Space Exploration

The Soyuz TMA-04M spacecraft is seen as it lands with Expedition 32 Commander Gennady Padalka of Russia, NASA Flight Engineer Joe Acaba and Russian Flight Engineer Sergie Revin in a remote area near the town of Arkalyk, Kazakhstan, on Monday, September 17, 2012. Padalka, Acaba and Revin returned from five months onboard the International Space Station where they served as members of the Expedition 31 and 32 crews. Photo Credit: NASA/Carla Cioffi. Larger image

U.S. Navy Lieutenant Commander Paul Nagy, USS Philippine Sea, and Carol Armstrong, wife of Neil Armstrong, commit the cremated remains of Neil Armstrong to sea during a burial at sea service held onboard the USS Philippine Sea (CG 58), Friday, Sept. 14, 2012, in the Atlantic Ocean. Armstrong, the first man to walk on the moon during the 1969 Apollo 11 mission, died Saturday, Aug. 25. He was 82. Image Credit: NASA/Bill Ingalls.

NASA astronaut Sunita Williams, Expedition 32 flight engineer, participates in the mission's third session of extravehicular activity (EVA). During the six-hour, 28-minute spacewalk, Williams and Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency astronaut Aki Hoshide (out of frame), flight engineer, completed the installation of a Main Bus Switching Unit (MBSU) that was hampered last week by a possible misalignment and damaged threads where a bolt must be placed. They also installed a camera on the International Space Station's robotic arm, Canadarm2. The thin blue line of Earth's atmosphere and the blackness of space provide the backdrop for the scene. ISS032-E-025280 (5 Sept. 2012) --- high res (1.3 M) low res (94 K) "

NASA astronaut Sunita Williams, Expedition 32 flight engineer, appears to touch the bright sun during the mission's third session of extravehicular activity (EVA) on Sept. 5, 2012.

A camera on the International Space Station captured Hurricane Isaac on Aug. 29, 2012, as the orbital laboratory flew over the Texas and Gulf Coast area.