NASA Space Station On-Orbit Status 31 January 2005

SpaceRef note: This NASA Headquarters internal status report, as presented here, contains additional, original material produced by SpaceRef.com (copyright © 2004) to enhance access to related status reports and NASA activities.

All ISS systems continue to function nominally, except those noted previously or below .   Underway: Week 15 of Increment 10 — a remarkable week because tomorrow the crew will start prepacking activities for LF-1, the Shuttle RTF (return to flight) mission!

After station inspection and morning hygiene, before breakfast and first exercise, CDR/SO Leroy Chiao and FE Salizhan Sharipov performed another session of the periodic Russian biomedical assessments PZEh-MO-8 (body mass measurement) and PZEh-MO-7 (calf volume measurement).  The FE set up the MO-8 “scales” equipment and later broke it down and stowed it away.   [Calf measurements (left leg only) are taken with the IZOG device, a custom-sewn fabric cuff that fits over the calf, using the knee and lower foot as fixed reference points, to provide a rough index of deconditioning in zero-G and effectiveness of countermeasures.  For determining body mass in zero-G, where things are weightless (but not massless), the Russian IM “scales” measure the inertial forces that arise during the oscillatory motion of a mass driven by two helical metering springs with known spring constants.  By measuring the time period of each oscillation of the unknown mass (the crewmember) and comparing it to the period of a known mass, the crewmembers mass is calculated by the computer and displayed].

Chiao and Sharipov had 3 hrs. set aside to conduct the Soyuz emergency descent training exercise, standard procedure for each ISS crew.  The exercise, which strictly forbids any command activation (except for switching the InPU display), was supported by a tagup and discussions with a ground instructor at TsUP/Moscow via U.S. S-band.   [The training session included a review of the pertinent ODF (operations data files), specifically the procedures books on Soyuz Ascent & Descent, Emergency Descents, Redundant Modes, and Off-Nominal Situations.  Standard procedure has been changed by the decision not to use the TMA-5 s backup battery during an emergency descent.  While recharging the main buffer battery (BB) and its backup (RB) after Soyuz TMA-5 relocation, a voltage drop in RB was noted.  RSC-Energia/TsUP will provide recommendations on the subsequent use of the RB after additional analysis has been performed.]

Having been cleared by Safety (i.e., no yellow tags anymore), two of the three newly delivered U.S. A31p NGLs (Next Generation Laptops) plus 16V DC and 28V DC power supplies and cables were deployed by Chiao in the SM.  The third A31p will go into the FGB.   [The two IBM A31p ThinkPads (#1020, #1021) were assigned to the SM to replace the IBM 760XD SSC (station support computer) Clients.  They are designated SSC-1 and SSC-2.  The third laptop (#1022) will take the place of the 760XD SSC Router in the FGB. The new SSC Router is to be loaded with SSC Router software vers. 2.00 and the two new SSC Clients with SSC Client vers. 9.00.  After the software is installed and checked out, the new SSC Clients in the SM will be configured manually to join the domain.  Once this is done, both SSC1 and SSC2 will also receive Service Pack 01 that has already been deployed on the USOS A31p clients.]

After tagging up with ground specialists on turning the Elektron O2 generator back on, Sharipov reactivated the machine in 50 amp mode, first time since EVA-12. After approximately 11 min, the machine went down, which Russian specialists considered to be a likely occurrence.  Approximately 45 min. later, the unit was reactivated in 50 amp mode for some 30 min., then switched to 32 amp performance, in which it remains at the current time, functioning nominally.  RSC-Energia s plan is to let it run until 2/9, then use up the O2 stores in the Progress 16 cargo vehicle.

FE Sharipov made preparations for his first experiment session with the Russian/German Plasma Crystal-3 (PK-3) payload, planned to start tomorrow.  Today s preps consisted of setting up the hardware, activating the evacuation turbopump and checking for leaks before starting the evacuation of the vent lines and vacuum chamber (ZB).  The activity was supported by tagup with ground specialists.   [The experiment will be performed on plasma, i.e., fine particles, charged and excited by RF/radio frequency power, inside the evacuated work chamber where they are studied in various modes and with various RF-discharge power levels, pressures, and quantities of particles.]

Leroy relocated the TEPC (Tissue Equivalent Proportional Counter) spectrometer and detector unit from the Lab to a specific location in the Node, near the port hatch (Cupola).   [This is regularly done to obtain and catalogue radiation readings in various locations throughout the ISS inhabited volume.  The radiation instrument will remain at the new place for two weeks.  Since the UOP (utility outlet panel) at that location is not a CHeCS data outlet, TEPC telemetry will not be available to MCC-H, making it necessary for Leroy to check the Total Dose reading and End File values each day during the two-week period for calldown in the evening.]

Salizhan worked on restoring the spherical SM Transfer Compartment (PkhO) to its pre-EVA conditions.   [Preparatory to EVA-12, various items of equipment, in containers, bags and kits, had been moved temporarily to alternate SM and FGB locations in order to make the PkhO usable as a backup airlock for the spacewalk.]

The crew performed their daily 2.5-hr. physical exercise program on TVIS treadmill (aerobic), RED exerciser (anaerobic) and VELO cycle with bungee cord load trainer (both aerobic and anaerobic).  Salizhan’s daily protocol currently prescribes a four-day microcycle exercise with 1.5 hr on the TVIS (today: Day 1 of a new set) and one hour on VELO.

Chiao then transferred the daily TVIS and RED exercise data files to the MEC (medical equipment computer) for downlink, as well as the daily wristband HRM (heart rate monitor) data, followed by their erasure on the HRM storage medium.

Later, Leroy performed the scheduled bimonthly inspection of the RED s canister cords and accessory straps.  He also worked on the TVIS treadmill, performing its weekly maintenance.   [Weekly maintenance generally checks the condition of the SPDs (subject positioning devices) and records time & date.]

In addition, the CDR prepared the regular IMS (inventory management system) delta file for export/import to the IMS databases.

Working off the voluntary Russian task list, Salizhan conducted the regular daily inspection of the BIO-5 Rasteniya-2 (“Plants-2”) experiment, which researches growth and development of plants under spaceflight conditions in the Lada-5 greenhouse.

At ~10:45am MCC-Houston performed the periodic zero calibration on the MCA (Major Constituents Analyzer).

During this weekend s Saturday Science the ground noticed that the bottom third of the video, downlinked from the VTR-1 tape recorder, looked jittery .  This was not seen during the EVA-12 video playback.  It is expected that the tape is bad since the heads were recently cleaned.  Further troubleshooting will attempt to pinpoint the problem.

The station continues to fly sideways in earth-fixed LVLH YVV attitude (local vertical local horizontal/y-axis in velocity vector) until 2/8 (Tuesday) when it maneuvers to sun-oriented XPOP (x-axis perpendicular to orbit plane) as the solar Beta angle dips below -60 deg magnitude.

The first volume (402 pages) of Rockets and People ( Rakety i lyudi), the remarkable memoirs of 93-year old Russian space pioneer Academician Boris E. Chertok, has now been published, with the support of the ISS Program Office, by the NASA HQ History Division.

No CEO (crew earth observations) photo targets for today.

CEO photography can be viewed and studied at the websites:

• http://eol.jsc.nasa.gov
• http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov
• http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/Study/AstronautPhotography/

See also the website “Space Station Challenge” at:

• http://voyager.cet.edu/iss/

To view the latest photos taken by the expedition 10 crew visit:

• http://spaceflight.nasa.gov/gallery/images/station/crew-10/ndxpage1.html at NASA’s Human Spaceflight website.

Expedition 10 Flight Crew Plans can be found at http://spaceflight.nasa.gov/station/timelines/

Previous NASA ISS On-orbit Status Reports can be found here. Previous NASA Space Station Status Reports can be found here. Previous NASA Space Shuttle Processing Status Reports can be found here. A collection of all of these reports and other materials relating to Return to Flight for the Space Shuttle fleet can be found here.

Upcoming Key Events :

•          Progress M-51 (16P) undocking & destructive reentry — 2/27/05;
•          Progress M-52 (17P) launch — 2/28/05.
•          EVA-13 — 3/25/05;
•          Soyuz TMA-6 (10S) launch — 4/15/05 with Expedition 11 (CDR Sergei Krikalev, FE/SO John Phillips);
•          Soyuz TMA-5 (9S) undock — 4/25/05 with Exp. 10 crew (after 193 days on orbit, 191 days on board ISS);
•          Progress M-53 (18P) launch — 6/10/05;
•          Progress M-54 (19P) launch — 8/24/05;
•          Soyuz TMA-7 (11S) launch — 9/27/05.

ISS Orbit   (as of this morning, 8:24am EST [= epoch]) :

• Mean altitude — 357.5 km
• Apogee height — 364.0 km
• Perigee height — 351.1 km
• Period — 91.69 min.
• Inclination (to Equator) — 51.64 deg
• Eccentricity — 0.0009586
• Solar Beta Angle — -64.8 deg (magnitude increasing)
• Orbits per 24-hr. day — 15.70
• Mean altitude loss in last 24 hours — 65 m
• Revolutions since FGB/Zarya launch (Nov. 98) — 35420

ISS Altitude History

Apogee height — Mean Altitude — Perigee height

For more on ISS orbit and worldwide ISS naked-eye visibility dates/times, see http://www.hq.nasa.gov/osf/station/viewing/issvis.html. In addition, information on International Space Station sighting opportunities can be found at http://spaceflight.nasa.gov/realdata/sightings/ on NASA’s Human Spaceflight website. The current location of the International Space Station can be found at http://science.nasa.gov/temp/StationLoc.html at NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center. Additional satellite tracking resources can be found at http://www.spaceref.com/iss/tracking.html.