National Aeronautics and Space Administration

International Space Station

EXPEDITION 52 began in June 2017 and ends in September 2017. This expedition includesastrophysics, technology demonstrations, biology and biotechnology. One 

 spacewalk is tentatively planned during Expedition 52.

During Expedition 52, researchers will demonstrate more efficient solar 

arrays, study the physics of neutron stars, investigate a new drug to 

fight osteoporosis and study the adverse effects of prolonged exposure 

to microgravity on the heart. 

Soyuz MS-05 Launch: July 2017 • Landing: December 2017

THE CREW:

Soyuz MS-04 Launch: April 2017 • Landing: September 2017

Note: Whitson launched aboard the Soyuz MS-03 spacecraft in November 2016 

and will remain aboard the space station through September 2017. 

THE SCIENCE:

What are 

some of the 

investigations 

the crew is 

operating?

Born: Mount Ayr, Iowa

Interests: weightlifting, biking, basketball and water 

skiing

Spaceflights: STS-111, STS – 113, Exps. 5, 16, 50, 51

Bio: http://go.nasa.gov/2eoOV8r

Twitter: @AstroPeggy

Peggy Whitson (NASA) – Flight Engineer

[MISSION SUMMARY]

Born: Batumi, Adjar ASSR, Georgian SSR

Interests: collecting stamps and space logos, sports, 

history of cosmonautics and reading

Spaceflights: STS-112, Exps. 15, 24/25, 36/37, 51

Bio: https://go.nasa.gov/2o9PO9F

Fyodor Yurchikhin (Roscosmos) – Commander

Born: Louisville, Colorado.

Interests: spending time with my family, flying, camping, 

traveling and construction

Spaceflights: Expedition 51 

Bio: https://go.nasa.gov/2o9FY7o

Twitter: @Astro2Fish

Jack Fischer (NASA) – Flight Engineer

Born: Fort Knox, Kentucky

Interests: travel, music, photography,weight training, sports,

scuba diving, motorcycling, and flying warbirds

Spaceflights: STS-129

Bio: https://go.nasa.gov/2rq5Ssm 

Twitter: @AstroKomrade

Randolph Bresnik (NASA) – Flight Engineer

Born: Moscow, Soviet Union

Interests: Numismatics, playing the guitar, tourism, 

sport games

Spaceflights: Exps. 37/38

Bio: https://go.nasa.gov/2rpXfOK

Twitter: @Ryazanskiy_ISS 

Sergey Ryazanskiy (Roscosmos) – Flight Engineer

Born: Milan, Italy

Interests: scuba diving, piloting aircraft, assembling 

computer hardware, electronic equipment and computer 

software

Spaceflights: STS-120, Exps. 26/27

Bio: https://go.nasa.gov/2rq0tlk

Paolo Nespoli (ESA) – Flight Engineer
National Aeronautics and Space Administration 

Lyndon B. Johnson Space Center

Houston, Texas 77058

www.nasa.gov

NP-2017-06-018-JSC

International

Space Station

Mission

Summary

Roll-Out Solar Array (ROSA)

Solar panels are an efficient way to generate power, but they can be 

delicate and large when used to power a spacecraft or satellites. They 

are often tightly stowed for launch and then must be unfolded when the 

spacecraft reaches orbit. The Roll-Out Solar Array (ROSA), is a solar panel 

concept that is lighter and stores more compactly for launch than the rigid 

solar panels currently in use. ROSA has solar cells on a flexible blanket 

and a framework that rolls out like a tape measure. The technology for 

ROSA is one of two new solar panel concepts that were developed by the 

Solar Electric Propulsion project, sponsored by NASA’s Space Technology 

Mission Directorate. 

The new solar panel concepts are intended to provide power to electric 

thrusters for use on NASA’s future space vehicles for operations near the 

Moon and for missions to Mars and beyond. They might also be used to 

power future satellites in Earth orbit, including more powerful commercial 

communications satellites. The demonstration of the deployment of 

ROSA on the space station is sponsored by the Air Force Research 

Laboratory. 

■ Neutron Star Interior Composition Explored (NICER)

Neutron stars, the glowing cinders left behind when massive stars 

explode as supernovas, are the densest objects in the universe, and 

contain exotic states of matter that are impossible to replicate in any 

ground lab. These stars are called “pulsars” because of the unique way 

they emit light – in a beam similar to a lighthouse beacon. As the star 

spins, the light sweeps past us, making it appear as if the star is pulsing. 

The Neutron Star Interior Composition Explored (NICER) payload, affixed 

to the exterior of the space station, studies the physics of these stars, 

providing new insight into their nature and behavior.

Neutron stars emit X-ray radiation, enabling the NICER technology 

to observe and record information about its structure, dynamics and 

energetics. In addition to studying the matter within the neutron stars, 

the payload also includes a technology demonstration called the Station 

Explorer for X-ray Timing and Navigation Technology (SEXTANT), which 

will help researchers to develop a pulsar-based, space navigation system. 

Pulsar navigation could work similarly to GPS on Earth, providing precise 

position for spacecraft throughout the solar system.

Systemic Therapy of NELL-1 for Osteoporosis (Rodent Research-5)

When people and animals spend extended periods of time in 

space, they experience bone density loss, or osteoporosis. In-flight 

countermeasures, such as exercise, prevent it from getting worse, but 

there isn’t a therapy on Earth or in space that can restore bone that is 

already lost. The Systemic Therapy of NELL-1 for osteoporosis (Rodent 

Research-5) investigation tests a new drug that can both rebuild bone 

and block further bone loss, improving health for crew members.

Exposure to microgravity creates a rapid change in bone health, similar 

to what happens in certain bone-wasting diseases, during extended 

bed rest and during the normal aging process. The results from this ISS 

National Laboratory-sponsored investigation build on previous research 

also supported by the National Institutes for Health and could lead to 

new drugs for treating bone density loss in millions of people on Earth. 

Fruit Fly Lab-02

Exposure to reduced gravity environments can result in cardiovascular 

changes such as fluid shifts, changes in total blood volume, heartbeat 

and heart rhythm irregularities, and diminished aerobic capacity. The 

Fruit Fly Lab-02 study will use the fruit fly (Drosophila melanogaster) 

to better understand the underlying mechanisms responsible for the 

adverse effects of prolonged exposure to microgravity on the heart. 

Flies are smaller, with a well-known genetic make-up, and very rapid 

aging that make them good models for studying heart function. This 

experiment will help to develop a microgravity heart model in the fruit 

fly. Such a model could significantly advance the study of spaceflight 

effects on the cardiovascular system and facilitate the development 

of countermeasures to prevent the adverse effects of space travel on 

astronauts. 

Our planet is shown surrounded by an imaginary constellation shaped like a house, depicting 

the theme of the patch: “The Earth is our home.” It is our precious cradle, to be preserved for all 

future generations. The house of stars just touches the Moon, acknowledging the first steps we 

have already taken there, while Mars is not far away, just beyond the International Space Station, 

symbolized by the Roman numeral “LII,” signifying the expedition number. The planets Saturn 

and Jupiter, seen orbiting farther away, symbolize humanity’s exploration of deeper space, 

which will begin soon. A small Sputnik is seen circling the Earth on the same orbit with the ISS, 

bridging the beginning of our cosmic quest till now: Expedition 52 will launch in 2017, sixty years 

after that first satellite. Two groups of crew names signify the pair of Soyuz vehicles that will 

launch the astronauts of Expedition 52 to the Station. 

THE MISSION PATCH:

WHITSON

FISCHER