NASA Space Station On-Orbit Status 9 June 2005
SpaceRef note: This NASA Headquarters internal status report, as presented here, contains additional, original material produced by SpaceRef.com (copyright © 2005) to enhance access to related status reports and NASA activities.
All ISS systems continue to function nominally, except those noted previously or below.
CDR Krikalev took his second physical test with the cardiological experiment “Study of the Bioelectric Activity of the Heart at Rest” (PZEh MO-1), with FE/SO Phillips assisting as CMO. [During the 30-min. test, the crew tagged up with ground specialists on a Russian ground site (RGS) pass on Daily Orbit 5 (~4:48am EDT) via VHF and downlinked data from the Gamma-1M ECG (electrocardiograph) for about 5-6 minutes.]
Closely supported by S-band tagup with ground specialists, the crew worked for several hours on the Elektron O2 generator. After making telemetry connections with the BITS2-12 onboard TM measurement system to enable ground monitoring, they uninstalled the failed Liquid Unit #6 (BZh-6) and replaced it with the previously used BZh-7. Tomorrow they will recharge BZh-7 with electrolyte (potassium hydroxide, KOH) transferred from BZh-5 with the use of the Nitrogen Purge Assembly (BPA). Meanwhile, daily ppO2 (partial pressure oxygen) requirements of the crew are met by the decomposition of SFOG (solid-fuel oxygen generator) “candles”.
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In the Service Module (SM), Sergei Krikalev successfully ran the standard vehicle-to-vehicle test of the TORU teleoperator control system between the SM and the docked Progress-352/17P, closely monitored by ground personnel. Progress thrusters (DPO) were inhibited and not involved. [TORU is the manual mode through which Krikalev can perform necessary guidance functions from the SM in the event of a failure of the “Kurs” automated rendezvous and docking (AR&D) of the unmanned Progress. He would control the cargo ship’s motions from a control panel, viewing the approach to the ISS via the Klest-M television camera mounted on the Progress. Remote TORU control from the ground is not available.]
Preparatory to tomorrow’s planned troubleshooting activities on the UOP-4 (Utility Outlet Panel 4) in the Lab, John Phillips initiated recharging of the scopemeter battery in the “Pilobolus” voltage/current gauge. [The troubleshooting of UOP-4 load components had been deferred on 5/16 due to a lengthy TVIS IFM (in-flight maintenance). Tomorrow’s checkout concerns those components that were connected to the UOP at the time the RPC-4 (Remote Power Controller #4) tripped in November 2004.]
John also worked on installing a protective cover for the status indicator pin of an SSU (sequential shunt unit) slated for stowage in the PMA-3 (Pressurized Mating Adapter #3).
Afterwards, the FE did the daily routine maintenance of the SM’s SOZh environment control & life support system, as well as the preparation of the regular IMS “delta” file for export/import to the IMS databases.
Working off his “job jar” task list, Krikalev had another session with the “Uragan” earth-imaging program, focusing the Nikon D1X No. 3 digital camera with 800-mm lens on targets called out on an uplinked list. [Today’s targets included detailed photography of the Byelorussian Polesye, a succession of close-up strip imagery directly in nadir, farm land of the Kursk region, quarries of the Kursk magnetic anomaly near Gubkin, agriculture of Voronezh Oblast and the Don steppe, similar imagery of farm land on the right bank of Volga river to flood plain, Tashkent and the Chervak reservoir, glaciers of Lenin Peak, Kailas Mountain, bays along the Far East coastline to spot oil sleeks, the Kuril Islands, and landscape imagery of South Kamchatka.]
Both crewmembers conducted their regular 2.5-hr. physical exercise program on the TVIS treadmill, RED resistive machine and VELO bike with bungee cord load trainer. [Sergei’s daily protocol prescribes a strict four-day microcycle exercise with 1.5 hr on the treadmill and one hour on VELO plus load trainer (today: Day 1 of a new set).]
Afterwards, the FE transferred the exercise data files to the MEC for downlink, as well as the daily wristband HRM (heart rate monitor) data of the workouts on RED, followed by their erasure on the HRM storage medium (done six times a week).
At ~10:20am, John and Sergei configured the television hardware for an interactive 20-minute TV interview event, starting at 10:43am, with Cable News Network (CNN, Daryn Kagan). [This was another in-flight event utilizing the new NASA Television Digital Satellite System. Due to the signal encoding and decoding required, the new digital satellite system has a 5-second audio delay between ISS and ground reception, and vice versa, for which the crew is prepared.]
At ~12:50pm EDT, the Science Officer engaged in a live teleconference with lead investigators of the EarthKAM (Earth Knowledge Acquired by Middle School Students) experiment from the University of California in San Diego.
CDR Krikalev has requested an additional ~6 hours to be incorporated in the crew schedule for the ongoing Progress 17 trash loading, which has been expanded by an uplinked supplemental list of more equipment for disposal, including US items.
MCC-H reported that all 8.5 hours of data files from John’s FOOT (Foot/Ground Reaction Forces during Space Flight) session on 6/7 were successfully received on the ground yesterday.
The Russian segment’s triple-redundant Central Computer system (TsVM) is operating only on two subsets after Lane 2 dropped out off the redundant set during the night. [This is a familiar and acceptable configuration, requiring no immediate restart/reintegration unless a second lane quits. Since the new 7.03 software does not support single-lane restart, the entire TsVM will have to be restarted when the time has come.]
Conjunction: MCC-H flight controllers are closely watching a conjunction with a Delta 2 rocket body predicted for tomorrow morning at 7:57am EDT. Collision probability is currently zero, but predicted radial miss distances are subject to change due to low perigee and the resulting drag. A 0.5 m/sec CAM (collision avoidance maneuver) with 17P thrusters is planned for 5:38am EDT tomorrow morning.
Launch of Progress 18: Thursday next week (6/16), at 7:09pm EDT (Baikonur: 6/17, 5:09am), with docking on 6/18 (at ~8:46pm), adding ~6934 kg to ISS mass. 17P undocking, reducing station mass by ~6934 kg, is scheduled for 6/15 (4:13pm), preceded by 17P propulsion system purge on 6/10 (Friday, 1:55am) and 17P docking clamp removal & leak check on 6/14 (Tuesday, 3:20pm).
Today’s CEO (crew earth observations) photo targets, in the current LVLH attitude no longer limited by flight rule constraints on the use of the Lab nadir/science window, were Sevilleta Wildlife Area, New Mexico (the Sevilleta LTER Project [Long Term Environmental Research, see 5/14 Status report] is located about 80 kilometers south of Albuquerque, New Mexico, in and around the Sevilleta National Wildlife Refuge (NWR). It is located at the intersection of several major biotic zones: Chihuahuan Desert grassland and shrubland to the south, Great Plains grassland to the north, Pinon-Juniper woodland in the upper elevations of the neighboring mountains, Colorado Plateau shrub-steppe to the west, and riparian vegetation along the middle Rio Grande Valley. Rapid disturbance of these ecosystems is the main topic of interest. Shooting just right of nadir. This site is contiguous with the next), Jornada Basin, New Mexico (continuing to shoot just right of track. The Jornada Basin Long Term Ecological Research (LTER) project focuses on desertification-wind and water erosion of fragile desert soils, leading to visible changes in vegetation density and type, are visible from space. Nutrient-rich areas that develop under shrub canopies are known as greener/darker “islands of fertility” are expected to show changes with time), and Beni River dynamics, Bolivia (all rivers on the vast Beni plain appear to be changing pattern. The largest appear to change fastest, especially the highly meandering Beni. CEO images are also useful in showing patterns of vegetation on this megafan surface, patterns which can be interpreted to indicate underlying sediment type).
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:
To view the latest photos taken by the expedition 11 crew visit:
- http://spaceflight.nasa.gov/gallery/images/station/crew-11/ndxpage1.html at NASA’s Human Spaceflight website.
Expedition 11 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.
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ISS Orbit (as of this morning, 6:21am EDT [= epoch]):
- Mean altitude — 351.3 km
- Apogee height — 354.2 km
- Perigee height — 348.4 km
- Period — 91.56 min.
- Inclination (to Equator) — 51.65 deg
- Eccentricity — 0.0004278
- Solar Beta Angle — -15.1 deg (magnitude decreasing)
- Orbits per 24-hr. day — 15.73
- Mean altitude loss in last 24 hours — 80
- Revolutions since FGB/Zarya launch (Nov. 98) — 37446
Some Increment 11 Main Events (not final):
- Progress M-52 (17P) undock — 6/15 (4:13pm EDT);
- Progress M-53 (18P) launch — 6/16 (7:09pm EDT, Baikonur: 6/17, 5:09am)
- Progress M-53 (18P) dock — 6/18 (8:46pm EDT);
- PMA-3 depress — 6/22 (4:50am EDT);
- Reboost — 6/29 (4:21pm, delta-V 2.3 m/s);
- LF-1/STS-114 launch — NET 7/13 (18-day window opens);
- LF-1/STS-114 dock — NET 7/15 (adding 110,713 kg to ISS mass);
- Soyuz TMA-6 (10S) relocate (from DC-1 to FGB) — ~8/16;
- Progress M-54 (19P) launch — 8/24 (dock 8/26);
- ULF1.1/STS-121 launch — NET 9/9 (launch window opens);
- 12A/STS-115 launch — NET 2/16/06;
- 12A.1/STS-116 launch — NET 4/23/06;
- 13A/STS-117 launch — NET 7/13/06.
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.
