NASA International Space Station On-Orbit Status 5 October 2015

The crew is working high-end maintenance today, while preparing for an upcoming spacewalk and an early December cargo mission. CubeSats are also being deployed this week from the Kibo laboratory module.
Commander Scott Kelly checked on a power supply problem with the humanoid Robonaut. Flight Engineers Kjell Lindgren and Kimiya Yui installed cables in the Unity module where the Orbital ATK Cygnus commercial space freighter is scheduled to arrive in early December. Yui earlier charged spacesuit batteries that Kelly and Lindgren will use on a spacewalk planned for Oct. 28.

Cosmonauts Mikhail Kornienko and Oleg Kononenko continued unloading cargo from the new Progress 61 resupply ship which arrived last Thursday. Sergey Volkov, on his third space station mission, worked throughout the Russian segment on maintenance tasks. The trio also had time set aside for ongoing Russian science investigations exploring magnetics and chemical reactions in Earth’s upper atmosphere.

A small satellite deployer attached to Japan’s Kibo module will be busy this week as 16 CubeSats will be released into orbit through Wednesday. The Cubesats are exploring such things as navigation, communications and Earth observations.

On-Orbit Status Report

NanoRack Cubesat Deployer (NRCSD) #6 Operations: Today Kelly opened the outer hatch and extended the Japanese Experiment Module (JEM) Airlock slide table external to ISS. The ground operations team used the JEM Remote Manipulator System (JEMRMS) Small Fine Arm (SFA) to grapple the Multi-Purpose Experiment Platform (MPEP), mounted on the slide table, and maneuvered it into position for the initial cubesat deploys. Today, two Danish cubesats were deployed at 9:06am CDT and the first 4 Dove cubesats of the “Flock 2″ fleet of satellites will be launched later today. Yui used a camera to take several photos of the CubeSat deployment from the Cupola window. The Danish satellite GOMX-3 has an advanced antenna-pointing system and a variety of communications capabilities. It contains radios to test reception and data downlink for GPS satellites, the military and for weather monitoring, air traffic control and other uses. The second Danish satellite AAUSAT-5 uses a student-designed and constructed Automatic Identification System (AIS) receiver to track ship signals in support of a space-based AIS system. The Dove nanosatellites enable imagery of the entire planet to be taken on a frequent basis, with humanitarian and environmental applications ranging from monitoring deforestation and the ice caps to disaster relief and improving agriculture yields in developing nations. A total of 16 cubesats will be deployed this week: 14 Planet Lab Doves and the 2 Danish satellites.

Robonaut 2 Troubleshooting: Kelly performed troubleshooting the Robonaut’s Compact Peripheral Component Interface today. Both power supplies are giving the same error indications. Ground teams are in the process of developing additional troubleshooting steps. Robonaut 2 is a two-armed humanoid robot torso designed with the versatility and dexterity to manipulate hardware, work in high risk environments, and respond safely to unexpected obstacles. Robonaut is currently mounted inside the ISS. In the future, it will perform tasks both inside and outside the ISS.

Twins Study: Kelly collected Flight Day 191 blood samples today in support of the Twins Study. This investigation is an integrated compilation of ten different studies led by multiple investigators. The studies take advantage of a unique opportunity to look at the effects of space travel on identical twins, with one of them experiencing space travel for a year while the other remains earth-bound for that same year. The study looks at changes in the human body in the fields of genetics, psychology, physiology, microbiology, and immunology.

Node 1 Sample Delivery System (SDS) Hose and Power Cabling Installation: As part of USOS Reconfiguration, Lindgren removed several Node 1 Closeout Panels. The panels were removed early before working behind them to allow adequate time for passive ventilation. Later in the afternoon, Lindgren and Yui installed two SDS hoses and partially completed installation of power and data cables which will eventually support the Node 1 Nadir Berthing Port, Galley Rack and the International Docking Adapters on Node 2. The cable routing activity ran long and planner are working to schedule the remainder of the activity tomorrow.

Waste Hygiene Compartment (WHC) Maintenance: As part of regularly scheduled Maintenance, Yui replaced the WHC Piping between the Pump Separator and the Dose Pump.

Robotics Refueling Mission (RRM): On Saturday, the Robotics Ground Controllers maneuvered Special Purpose Dexterous Manipulator (SPDM) Arm2 into position to continue the RRM payload Task Board 3 (TB3) Science Operations. They first acquired the Vent Plug Adapter (VPA) and removed it from its receptacle. After backing it away from the receptacle, they then performed the VPA free space checkout consisting of radial expansion and retraction of the VPA o-rings. Next they inserted the VPA inside a 2” tube vent, where the o-rings were expanded to seal the inside of the vent tube. After multiple attempts of pulling with incrementally higher forces and pushing back in, the VPA was finally released by the Multi Function Tool (MFT) with minimum force after the MFT was cycled through its modes.

Sunday, the Robotics Ground Controllers maneuvered SPDM Arm2 to position it over MFT Valve Interface (MVI) Valve 1 (V1). However, the MVI pressure test activity was deferred due to video camera issues. They then moved on to the Electrical Plug Adaptor (EPA) task by repositioned SPDM Arm2 for the start of the EPA task and used the MFT to unstow the EPA from its receptacle. After backing it away from the receptacle, they performed the EPA free space checkout. Finally, the Robotics Ground Controllers maneuvered SPDM Arm 2 to a park position. The RRM operations will resume this afternoon.

Today’s Planned Activities
All activities were completed unless otherwise noted.

HRF Blood Sample Collection Closeout Ops
HRF – Sample MELFI Insertion
JEMRMS RLT Laptop Activation
Audio Session with the Participants of World Space Week in Kostroma
Opening JEMAL Outer Hatch and extending slide table to JEF side
Terminate BSA Battery Stowage Assembly Maintenance Cycle
???1 Unit Replacement
On MCC GO Filling ??? Container with Water from Progress 429 (SM Aft) Rodnik ??1 Tank
???-1. Relaksatsiya Experiment Battery Charge
Start BSA Battery Charge
??? Maintenance
HRF Closeout Ops
ARED – Cylinder Flywheel Evacuation
WRS Water Sample Analysis
Node 1 – Cable Installation/Routing Ops
Robonaut Node2 Camcorder Video Setup
Robonaut Lab Camcorder Video Setup
JEMRMS Small Fine Arm (SFA) Ungrapple
CPCI – Troubleshooting and R&R
Formaldehyde Monitoring Kit (FMK) Deployment Operations
Grab Sample Container (GSC) Sampling Operations
On MCC GO Mating ???1 TLM connector
Replacement of ???1 Unit – Closeout Ops
Progress 429 (SM Aft) priority and US cargo transfers and IMS Ops
WHC Pretreat Tank R&R
JEMAL Hardware Removal
JRNL Journal Entry [Not statused]
CUBESAT Latch Inspection
Post-Exercise Hygiene Procedure
R2. Experiment Ops
On MCC GO RS1 Laptop Activation
CUBESAT – Latch Inspection
???1 Unit Testing
RS1 Laptop Deactivation
Preventive Maintenance of SM ???-? and Progress 429 [???] Hatch Cover Sealing Mechanisms
Post-Exercise Hygiene Procedure
Preparation for ??-2 Treadmill Repairs
PAO Hardware Setup
CUBESAT – Deployment Photo
COVER – Hardware Setup
Node 1 Nadir Cable/Hose Routing And Installation [Partial Completed]
Progress 429 (SM Aft) Priority and US cargo transfers and IMS Ops
Node 1 Data Cable Routing/Installation [Partially Completed]
R2. Experiment Ops
TOCA Data Recording
RELAKSATSIYA. Mounting hardware on CQ window No.1
R2. Experiment Ops
Post-Exercise Hygiene Procedure
ODF Books Update on IPAD
RELAKSATSIYA. Parameter Settings
IMS Delta File Prep
RELAKSATSIYA. Survey
R2. Experiment Ops
R2. Experiment Ops
CEVIS Exercise
RELAKSATSIYA Closeout Ops
Evening Work Prep
R2. Experiment Ops
R2 – Hardware Deactivation and Stowage
Preparation of reports for Roscosmos site

Completed Task List Items

JAXA Video Take Pt 6
Safety Video Followup [In Work]

Ground Activities
All activities were completed unless otherwise noted.

JEMRMS Operations in support of CubeSat deploys
Robotics Refueling Mission Science Operations

Three-Day Look Ahead:
Tuesday, 10/06: NRCSD #6 Deploys, Node2 and 3 Cable Routes, RRM Ops
Wednesday, 10/07: NRCSD #6 Deploys, SDS Power data Jumper Install, EMU 3005 & 3011 Loop Scrubs, RRM Ops
Thursday, 10/08: SPHERES, Node 1 Nadir Power Connections Part 1

QUICK ISS Status – Environmental Control Group:

Component – Status
Elektron – On
Vozdukh – Manual
[???] 1 – SM Air Conditioner System (“SKV1”) – On
[???] 2 – SM Air Conditioner System (“SKV2”) – Off
Carbon Dioxide Removal Assembly (CDRA) Lab – Standby
Carbon Dioxide Removal Assembly (CDRA) Node 3 – Operate
Major Constituent Analyzer (MCA) Lab – Shutdown
Major Constituent Analyzer (MCA) Node 3 – Operate
Oxygen Generation Assembly (OGA) – Standby
Urine Processing Assembly (UPA) – Standby
Trace Contaminant Control System (TCCS) Lab – Off
Trace Contaminant Control System (TCCS) Node 3 – Full Up