NASA International Space Station On-Orbit Status 7 July 2016
A new set of Expedition 48 crew members is on its way to the International Space Station after launching Wednesday night (Thursday morning Baikonur time) aboard the Soyuz MS-01 spacecraft. The trio from Japan, Russia and the United States will arrive at their new home in space early Saturday morning for a four-month stay.
Veteran cosmonaut Anatoly Ivanishin is commanding the Soyuz spacecraft that is carrying him and first time astronauts Kate Rubins and Takuya Onishi to the orbital laboratory. They will dock to the Rassvet module Saturday at 12:12 a.m. EDT, open the hatches about two-and-a-half hours later and begin a mission scheduled to last until October. NASA TV will cover the docking activities beginning at 11:30 p.m.
While they wait for the new arrivals, Commander Jeff Williams and Flight Engineers Oleg Skripochka and Alexey Ovchinin are keeping up science operations and lab maintenance work. They have been aboard the station since March 18 and are due to return to Earth in September.
Williams installed gear in the Japanese Kibo lab module today for a new life science experiment set to arrive on the next SpaceX mission. Next he configured an observation rack in the U.S. lab module that will collect imagery of meteor showers pictured from space.
On-Orbit Status Report
47 Soyuz (47S) Launch: 47S launched successfully last night at 8:36 PM CDT from the Baikonur Cosmodrome with Expedition 48 crew members Anatoly Ivanishin, Takuya Onishi and Kate Rubins on board. Docking is scheduled Friday at 11:12 PM CDT. With this crew’s arrival, the ISS will be in 6-crew operations until 46S return on September 6.
Meteor Setup Configuration: Meteor was configured in the US Lab’s Window Observational Research Facility (WORF) rack, enabling ground teams to proceed with checkout and operations. The Meteor scientists plan to collect images of the Southern ?-Aquarid (mid-July to mid-August) and Perseid meteor (peak in mid-August) showers. The Meteor investigation provides the first space-based measurement of meteor flux. It also allows for the monitoring of carbon-based compounds. Continuous measurement of meteor interactions with the Earth’s atmosphere could also spot previously unseen meteor showers.
3D Printing in Zero-G Experiment Operations: The ground team remotely operated the 3D printer to produce three more 3D printed test coupons in the Microgravity Science Glovebox (MSG), after which the crew removed and stow them. The 3D Printing In Zero-G experiment demonstrates that a 3D printer works normally in space. A 3D printer extrudes streams of heated plastic, metal or other material, building layer on top of layer to create 3 dimensional objects. Testing a 3D printer using relatively low-temperature plastic feedstock on the ISS is the first step toward establishing an on-demand machine shop in space, a critical enabling component for deep-space crewed missions and in-space manufacturing.
Cell Biology Experiment Facility (CBEF) Reconfiguration: In preparation for the Mouse Epigenetics experiment arrival on SpaceX (SpX)-9, a 120 to 24 volt direct current (DC) converter and CBEF temperature controller was installed in the Saibo rack. The CBEF is a Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) sub-rack facility located in the Saibo (living cell) Experiment Rack. The CBEF is used in various life science experiments, such as cultivating cells and plants in the Japanese Experiment Module (JEM) and consists of an incubator and control equipment for control and communications.
Dose Tracker: The crew completed entries for medication tracking. This investigation documents the medication usage of crewmembers before and during their missions by capturing data regarding medication use during spaceflight, including side effect qualities, frequencies and severities. The data is expected to either support or counter anecdotal evidence of medication ineffectiveness during flight and unusual side effects experienced during flight. It is also expected that specific, near-real-time questioning about symptom relief and side effects will provide the data required to establish whether spaceflight-associated alterations in pharmacokinetics (PK) or pharmacodynamics (PD) is occurring during missions.
Lab Major Constituent Analyzer (MCA) Troubleshooting: The Lab MCA was successfully activated this morning following installation of a spare Orbital Replacement Unit (ORU)2 (Mass Spectrometer) and reinstallation of the previously installed ORU8 (Verification Gas Assembly). The was an issue during connection of the utilities when the vacuum line could not be fully seated due to an off-set with the vacuum connection on the drawer. This was corrected by adjusting the bracket that secures the vacuum line to the rack. The vacuum line was successfully connected and confirmed fully seated. The Lab MCA will remain powered and in IDLE state until crew time can be scheduled to connect the vacuum hose to pump down the ORU2 prior to being used operationally. The previously installed ORU2 is considered suspect and will be returned to ground.
Today’s Planned Activities
All activities were completed unless otherwise noted.
JEMRMS Bus Monitor Cable Teardown
RELAKSATSIYA. Hardware Setup r/g 2728
BRI log download from RSS1 / SM Auxiliary Computer Systems
Data Transmission Radio (????) – Onboard Memory Device (???). Functional Check of ??? Cards r/g 2726
3DP Coupon removal and stowage
RELAKSATSIYA. Parameter Settings Adjustment r/g 2728
CBEF Hardware Setup and Activation
RELAKSATSIYA. Observation r/g 2728
Tropical Cyclone, Hardware Closeout Ops
RELAKSATSIYA. Closeout Ops and Hardware Removal r/g 2728
JEM CO2 Supply
MELF3 Ice Brick Insert
IMS Tagup (S-band)
3DP Coupon removal and stowage
??? Maintenance
IMS Delta File Prep
Lab MCA R&R
Data Transmission Radio (????) – Onboard Memory Device (???). Functional Check of ??? Card r/g 2726
Pressurizing Elektron-VM Liquid Unit / SM Atmosphere Revitalization Subsystem
Flushing Progress 432 [AO] Rodnik H2O Tank 1 Connectors / r/g 2727
Search for [???] hose / r/g 2725
Video Footage of Greetings / r/g 2724
3DP Coupon removal and stowage
Habitability iPad App Update
METEOR Installation and configuration
EMCS Valve Closure
??1-4 Dust Filter Cartridge Replacement in SM
INTERACTION-2. Experiment Ops / r/g 2723
Completed Task List Items
None
Ground Activities
All activities were completed unless otherwise noted.
Lab MCA ops support
Nominal ground commanding.
Three-Day Look Ahead:
Friday, 07/08: 3D Printing cartridge exchange, Food Pantry install, 47S dock (begin)
Saturday, 07/09: 47S dock (end), leak check, hatch open, safety briefing
Sunday, 07/10: Crew off duty
QUICK ISS Status – Environmental Control Group:
Component – Status
Elektron – On
Vozdukh – Manual
[???] 1 – SM Air Conditioner System (“SKV1”) – Off
[???] 2 – SM Air Conditioner System (“SKV2”) – On
Carbon Dioxide Removal Assembly (CDRA) Lab – Standby
Carbon Dioxide Removal Assembly (CDRA) Node 3 – Operate
Major Constituent Analyzer (MCA) Lab – Idle
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
