NASA Space Station On-Orbit Status 8 January 2018 – Continued Dragon Unloading

Today – Human Research Program (HRP) Collections (Biochemical Profile, Repository): Over the weekend, a 52S subject completed his Flight Day (FD) 120 urine sample collections to support the Biochemical Profile and Repository experiments. The samples were placed in the Minus Eighty Degree Celsius Laboratory Freezer for ISS (MELFI).
– The Biochemical Profile experiment tests blood and urine samples obtained from astronauts before, during, and after spaceflight. Specific proteins and chemicals in the samples are used as biomarkers, or indicators of health. Post-flight analysis yields a database of samples and test results, which scientists can use to study the effects of spaceflight on the body.

– Repository is a storage bank used to maintain biological specimens over extended periods of time and under well-controlled conditions. This repository supports scientific discovery that contributes to our fundamental knowledge in the area of human physiological changes and adaptation to a microgravity environment and provides unique opportunities to study longitudinal changes in human physiology spanning many missions.

Spaceflight-induced Hypoxic/ROS Signaling (APEX-05) Operations: Today the crew photographed the APEX-05 petri plates growing in the Veggie facility. Before installing the Light Microscopy Module (LMM) for imaging, the crew checked that the inside of the petri plates were free of condensation and the outside of the plate was dry. When plants are grown in the confines of the International Space Station (ISS), they do not seem to get enough air and as a result, exhibit a stress response in their genes and proteins. The APEX-05 experiment grows different wild and mutant varieties of Arabidopsis thaliana, in order to understand how their genetic and molecular stress response systems work in space. The plants grow from seeds in the Veggie plant growth facility aboard the ISS, are frozen, and returned to Earth for detailed laboratory analysis.

Transparent Alloys Operation: During the installation of the cartridge last week, there was poor contact between the Transparent Alloys hardware and the cold plate in the Microgravity Science Glovebox (MSG), which resulted in the inability to properly control the heating of the cartridge. Results from the analysis of the MSG configuration determined that the MSG cold plate still had some M6 plugs installed that prevented good contact and heat transfer between the Transparent Alloys payload and the MSG cold plate. Today the crew removed the plugs, and after activation, the temperature readings are now in the nominal and expected range. This experiment run has started, and will last for a month. The aim of this experiment is to study the morphological instabilities of directional solidified, transparent binary eutectic alloys under purely diffusive conditions. It is planned to observe real-time the dynamics of eutectic front structures with a micron-scale resolution, over a large (centimetric) space scale, and over long periods of time. Such observations would be strongly sensitive to convective motions in the liquid, which, in ordinary conditions on earth, entail a detrimental redistribution of the solute on a scale comparable to the container size. Such convective motions are suppressed in microgravity. The specific goals of the experiment are: to study the formation and the relaxation of topological defects in rod-like structures, to study the rod-to-lamellar transition of eutectic growth patterns, to study the forcing effects of the distortions of the thermal gradient.

Airway Monitoring Overview and Hardware Gather: The crew reviewed reference material and gathered hardware to support the upcoming Airway Monitoring session this week. With dust particles present in the International Space Station atmosphere, Airway Monitoring studies the occurrence and indicators of airway inflammation in crewmembers, using ultra-sensitive gas analyzers to analyze exhaled air. This helps to highlight any health impacts and to maintain crewmember well-being on future human spaceflight missions, especially longer-duration missions to the Moon and Mars for example, where crewmembers will have to be more self-sufficient in highlighting and avoiding such conditions.

Dragon Operations: The crew continued with Dragon cargo loading operations. They installed a Lithium Hydroxide (LiOH) filter into the Dragon vehicle to scrub CO2 after hatch closure and completed a checkout of the Commercial Off the Shelf (COTS) Ultra High Frequency (UHF) Communication Unit (CUCU) Crew Command Panel (CCP) in preparation for Dragon release operations. Dragon hatch closure and unberth is scheduled for January 12 with release scheduled on January 13.

Extravehicular Activity (EVA) Preparations: The crew set up a Station Support Computer (SSC) and relocated items out of the airlock. They completed 1 of 2 training sessions on using the Simplified Aid for EVA Rescue (SAFER) and Enhanced Caution and Warning System (ECWS). The crew also performed a checkout of Extravehicular Mobility Unit (EMU 3004) that was delivered on Dragon SpaceX-13. The two planned EVA crewmembers also took EMU sizing measurements for the On-Orbit Fitcheck.

Today’s Planned Activities
All activities are complete unless otherwise noted.

Photo TV Battery Charge Initiation
APEX-05 MWA Preparation
Extravehicular Activity (EVA) Airlock Unstow for Airway Monitoring
Transparent Alloy Plug Removal
JEM Camera Robot Cable Swap
APEX-05 LMM Petri Plate Photo
Space Acceleration Measurement System Screen Cleaning
HRF2 Supply Kit Inventory
Extravehicular Activity (EVA) Simplified Aid for EVA Rescue (SAFER) On-Board Trainer (OBT)
Extravehicular (EVA) Checkout Post Launch
Extravehicular Activity Mobility Unit (EMU) Enhanced Caution and Warning System (ECWS) On-Board Training
Manufacturing Device Feedstock Canister and Extruder Exchange
Lighting Effects Visual Performance Tests Light Setting – Subject
APEX-05 Petri Plate Check
Light Microscopy Module APEX-05 Petri Plate Install
Airway Monitoring Big Picture Words Read
Photo TV Battery Charge Swap
Airway Monitoring Hardware Location
Public Affairs Office (PAO) Event in High Definition (HD) – JEM
Environmental Health System (EHS) Total Organic Carbon Analyzer (TOCA) Water Recovery System (WRS) Sample Analysis
Crew Quarters Velcro Fastener Installation
HRF Generic Urine Collection Setup
Empty Education and Payload Operations CTB
Auxiliary Laptop Computer System Virus Definition File Update
??? maintenance
HRF Generic Frozen Blood Collection Setup
Routing Ethernet cables overhead the ??? device (panel 229?) Tagup with specialists as necessary
Photo/TV CUCU Video Setup
COTS UHF Communication Unit (CUCU) Crew Command Panel (CCP) Checkout
HRF Hardware Locate2
BRIC-LED SD Card Remove
COTS UHF Communication Unit (CUCU) Crew Command Panel (CCP) Stow
Photo TV CUCU Video Deactivation
Extravehicular Mobility Unit (EMU) On-orbit Fitcheck Verification Measurements
Exercise Data Downlink via OCA
Dragon Lithium Hydroxide (LiOH) Filter Bag Installation
Plug-in Plan Airlock Hardware Deploy
Health Maintenance System (HMS) Profile of Mood States (POMS) Questionnaire
Dragon Locker Install
Environmental Health System (EHS) Total Organic Carbon Analyzer (TOCA) Sample Data Record
Acoustic Monitor Setup for Crew Worn Measurements
Photo TV Battery Charge Deactivation
Preparing for Antivirus scan on Auxiliary Computer Laptops

Completed Task List Activities
Airway Monitoring Hardware Location
Biolab Incubator Cold Spot Sponge Exchange
Use duct tape to reinforce the Dragon IMV duct connection if desired.
Handover Debrief
JAXA Report Part 1
Safety Video Followup
Wanted: Recycle Tank Vent Adapter

Ground Activities
All activities are complete unless otherwise noted.
SSRMS Characterization
CUCU CCP Checkout
EMU Checkout support
Nominal commanding

Three-Day Look Ahead:
Tuesday, 01/09: Airways Monitoring, RR-6, Petri Plate, Dragon Depart OBT, Spheres Zero Robotics, HRF Collections, OBT Med Contingency, Apex-5
Wednesday, 01/10: Airways Monitoring, RR-6, Dragon Depart OBT, Arthrospira, POLAR/MELFI transfer, Tangolab
Thursday, 01/11: Airways Monitoring, RR-6, Spheres Zero Robotics, POLAR Transfer, Petri Plate, Dragon cargo ops, Manufacturing Device Stow, Double Coldbag Pack Review

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 – Operate
Carbon Dioxide Removal Assembly (CDRA) Node 3 – Standby
Major Constituent Analyzer (MCA) Lab – Idle
Major Constituent Analyzer (MCA) Node 3 – Operate
Oxygen Generation Assembly (OGA) – Norm
Urine Processing Assembly (UPA) – Process
Trace Contaminant Control System (TCCS) Lab – Full Up
Trace Contaminant Control System (TCCS) Node 3 – Off