NASA Space Station On-Orbit Status 22 July 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.
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CDR Sergei Krikalev conducted a new experiment session with the German/Russian TEKh-20 Plasma Crystal-3 (PK-3) payload. [Right after wake-up, Sergei activated the turbopump in the Service Modules Transfer Compartment (SM PkhO), tagged up with ground specialists and started the evacuation of the vacuum chamber (ZB) in the SM Work Compartment (RO), then loaded new software and monitored PK-3 operations. The turbopump was to be deactivated tonight at ~5:25pm EDT. The experiment is performed on plasma, i.e., fine particles charged and excited by HF (high frequency) radio power inside the evacuated work chamber. Main objective is to study dust plasma crystallization processes at a specified power of HF discharge, pressure, and a varied number of particles with subsequent reduction of HF discharge power, then to observe melting of the structures formed earlier. The experiment is conducted in automated mode.]
FE/SO John Phillips collected the periodic reading of the cabin air’s current CO2 partial pressure in the SM and Lab, using the U.S. CDMK (carbon dioxide monitoring kit, #1013), for calldown, along with the battery status, for use in trending analyses.
Later, the FE also conducted the periodic verification of IMV (intermodular ventilation) airflow between the U.S. (USOS) and Russian segment (RS) using the Velocicalc meter. [There is no direct measurement of airflow except as reflected by differences in atmosphere partial pressures measured between the RS and USOS. ppCO2 (CO2 partial pressure) is a good yardstick since an increasing ppCO2 in the Lab not reflected in the SM indicates that Vozdukh is not receiving the air from the Lab at an efficient rate. Periodic air flow degradation checks support establishing a most effective fan cleaning schedule.]
In preparation for the expected docking of MPLM (multipurpose logistics module) “Raffaello” next week, the FE conducted an audit of the equipment required for the linkup of and ingress in the MPLM.
Starting a new round of the monthly preventive maintenance of RS ventilation systems, Sergei Krikalev worked in the SM on a three-hour inspection and cleaning of Group B ventilator fans and grilles.
Phillips started hardware prepack activities for Mission ULF1.1, flying later this year, using available uplinked IMS (Inventory Management System) plans for a number of return bags.
The FE also performed the monthly IMS (Inventory Management System)-based PEP (portable emergency provisions) audit and inspection. [The audit involved verification that PFEs (portable fire extinguishers), PBAs, QDMAs (quick-don mask assemblies) and EHTKs (extension hose/tee kits) are free of damage to ensure their functionality, and to track shelf life/life cycles on the hardware. There are a total of 5 PBAs in the U.S. segment (USOS). There is only one EHTK, in the Lab.]
Phillips completed the regular weekly maintenance reboot on the operational PCS (Portable Computer System) laptops and the bi-monthly restart of the OCA comm router SSC (Station Support Computer) laptop.
John did the daily routine maintenance of the SM’s environment control & life support system (SOZh), including its toilet system (ASU) and the weekly inspection of the BRPK air/liquid condensate separator apparatus. He also prepared the IMS “delta” file for automated export/import top the three IMS databases.
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 4 of a new set).]
Afterwards, John transferred the exercise data files to the MEC (Medical Equipment Computer) 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).
The crew reported, and TsUP/Moscow confirmed, that a ventilation fan (VPRK) in the SM aft end is not working, resulting in reduced air flow from the docked Progress 18. The fan will have to be removed and replaced. [The VPRK fan is the return fan that pulls the old air from the Progress (or SM PRK area when Progress not docked) back into SM RO compartment. The ventilation fan that supplies fresh air to the Progress and the SM PRK compartment is still operational.]
At ~10:40am, John and Sergei configured the television hardware for an interactive 13-minute TV interview event, starting at 10:53am, with the Sun Sounds of Arizona TV station. [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.]
The EarthKAM (Earth Knowledge Acquired by Middle School Students) experiment from the University of California in San Diego, currently running at the Lab science window, has to date downlinked 350 pictures-on-demand. [EarthKAM was activated yesterday. The payload runs without crew intervention. EK is using a Kodak ESC 460C electronic still camera with 50mm (f/1.4) lens, now powered by 16Vdc from a 28 Vdc adapter, taking pictures by remote operation from the ground, without crew interaction. It is available for students who submit image requests and conduct geographic research. The requests are uplinked in a camera control file to the IBM 760XD SSC laptop which then activates the camera at specified times and receives the digital images from the camera’s storage card on its hard drive, for subsequent downlink via OpsLAN.]
Working off his voluntary “time available” task list, Sergei had another session with the “Uragan” (hurricane) earth-imaging program, focusing the Nikon D1X digital camera with f400 or 800 mm lens from an SM window on targets specified by an uplinked list. [Today’s targets included the Argun River Valley, the left Russian bank of Amur River and Veya River valley in the vicinity of City of Svobodny, any logging and forest fire sites in the taiga, both banks of Tartar Straits, the Eastern coast of Sakhalin, the Kuriles, the valley of Katun River flowing from Mount Belukha, the primary mountain in Altai Range, the Altai and Sayan Mountains, the Baikal Perimeter Railway from Village of Sliudianka at extreme west of Lake Baikal to Port of Baikal at Angara head, the city of Khabarovsk and vicinity, a forest reserve in Armenia at the extreme west of Lake Sevan and lake vicinity, the Cherkeyskoye Reservoir in Dagestan, oil field infrastructure at base of Mangyshlak Peninsula, Katun River at nadir starting with City of Gorno-Altaisk and to right of track, Lake Teletskoye, etc.]
John Phillips was congratulated on his stowage efforts yesterday on the USOS consolidation of Russian items activity which has resulted in an additional 2.0 CTBEs (cargo transfer bag equivalents) of free space in the USOS to assist with stowage plans for LF-1 and ULF1.1.
Update on LF-1: According to current plans and preparations, the countdown for STS-114/Discovery will begin tomorrow, for launch on Tuesday, 7/26, at 10:38am EDT.
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 Dara Battlefield, Turkey (weather conditions were still favorable for mapping of vegetation patterns in this ancient battlefield. Overlapping nadir frames along track (SW to NE) are best for mosaicing and delineation of landscape patterns), Baltimore Ecosystem, Maryland (one of two urban LTER [Long Term Ecological Research] sites, the Baltimore site investigates the impacts of human land use change on the ecosystem. Nadir mapping along track is desired for delineation of urban materials within the Chesapeake Bay watershed), Northern Temperate Lakes, Wisconsin (weather was predicted to clear over this LTER site. Nadir mapping along track will be useful for identification of small water bodies and stream courses), and Johnston Island reef, Central Pacific (this nadir pass provided an opportunity for high-resolution imagery of this reef. Such imagery is useful for monitoring reef extent and changes to island morphology).
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, 6:34am EDT [= epoch]):
- Mean altitude — 353.5 km
- Apogee height — 355.6 km
- Perigee height — 351.4 km
- Period — 91.61 min.
- Inclination (to Equator) — 51.64 deg
- Eccentricity — 0.0003072
- Solar Beta Angle — -14.9 deg (magnitude increasing)
- Orbits per 24-hr. day — 15.72
- Mean altitude loss in last 24 hours — 62 m
- Revolutions since FGB/Zarya launch (Nov. 98) — 38122
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.
