ISS On-Orbit Status 17 Oct 2002
All ISS systems continue to function nominally, except as noted previously
or below. A day of well-deserved rest and recreation for the station residents.
The crew woke at 4:30am EDT to grateful kudos for a well-executed Mission
9A, which achieved all objectives.
FE-1/SO Peggy Whitson collected three cabin air samples with the GSC
(grab sample container) in the FGB, SM and Lab. This activity is coordinated
with SSAS (solid sorbent air sampler) and FMK (formaldehyde monitoring
kit) operations, and Peggy set up and activated two SSAS units in the
Lab and SM near the center of the modules in well-ventilated zones, followed
by deployment of two FMK monitors in the Lab and two in the SM. These
tests are usually performed once every two weeks. [SSAS and FMK require
20 minutes to deploy and activate, 24 hr of unattended sample collection,
and 10 min of deactivation.]
In addition, MCC-H remotely commanded a sampling run of the VOA (Volatile
Organic Analyzer), which looks for potentially toxic volatile organic
compounds in the atmosphere and is timed to take samples within five minutes
of the Lab GSC sample.
CDR Valery Korzun and FE-2 Sergei Treschev completed sessions 1 and 2
of the Russian-Japanese HDTV (high-definition TV) protocol, which uses
video imaging of the crewmember’s facial features during an interview
conversation for medical examination. The sessions, each at least 10 min
in length, focused first on the CDR, then on the FE.
Korzun performed the periodic functional closure test of the emergency
vacuum valves (AVK) of the Vozdukh carbon dioxide (CO2) removal system.
[The AVKs are critical because they close the Vozdukh’s vacuum access
lines in the event of a malfunction of the regular vacuum valves (BVK)
or a depressurization in the Vozdukh valve panel (BOA). Access to vacuum
is required to vent CO2 during the regeneration of the absorbent cartridges
(PP). During nominal operation, the AVK valves remain open.]
The CCAA (common cabin air assembly) air conditioner and cabin smoke
detector in the Airlock (AL) were deactivated by ground command in order
to preserve the integrity of its newly installed water separator. FE-1
Whitson reconfigured the air duct to improve ventilation between the AL
and Node. [Test results from the old water separator after its return
to Earth are expected back on 10/25. They should provide insight into
thedegradation that was observed this year. Until the AL CCAA can be reactivated
again, the crew will use battery powered fans as required when ingressing
the AL for extended periods, to preclude CO2 pockets.]
In the Lab module, Peggy reconfigured the CCAA air conditioner, switching
it from the portside channel to the alternate starboard system. [The CCAA
is a network of ducting that draws in the air through filters, delivers
it for conditioning, and returns it to the modules. The swap-over between
the CCAA channels is generally done by the crew once a month, with ground
support, to dry out the heat exchanger of the deactivated side. MCC-H
commands the required systems configurations for the dryout via S-band.]
Peggy was thanked by the ground for yesterday’s work on the AR (air revitalization)
rack LTL QDs (low temperature loop quick disconnects). The information
on the waterfrom the LTL supply QD will help to isolate the unexplained
tiny leak in the internal thermal control system (ITCS) accumulator quantities
("a few ounces a month") and to determine a course of action.
Daily routine servicing tasks were performed by Korzun (SOSh life support
systems maintenance) and Whitson (status checkup of Lab payloads PCG-STES007,
PGBA, and ZCG Parameters).
Valery also completed his daily checkup of the BIO-5 Rasteniya-2 ("Plants-2")
experiment and prepared Rasteniya experiment data for downlink via Regul-Packet
as a compressed file from laptop 3.
The two cosmonauts had their weekly PFCs (private family conferences),
via Russian VHF/audio.
Korzun and Treschev set up the Russian TV equipment in the SM and downlinked
a televised message of greeting to the opening ceremony of the Tenth (Jubilee)
International Space Olympiad of School Students, taking place 10/17-10/27
at Korolev near Moscow. Participants in the International Space Camp are
from Russia, Greece, Great Britain, and the USA. The opening ceremony
of the event, which is dedicated to the 45th anniversary of the first
launch of an artificial satellite on 10/4/57, will be tomorrow. [ISS crew:
"We hope your entire life will be guided by the well-known motto:
‘To strive, to seek, to attain and to persevere!’"]
Dedicated ham operator Peggy Whitson today had another amateur radio
pass, this time with Lamar Elementary School (formerly Travis) in Greenville,
Texas. The 20 fourth-grade students had prepared questions, which Whitson
fielded during the ten minute pass.
A new task item added to the crew’s "job jar" task list is
the inspection of PBAs (portable breathing apparatus) and PFEs (portable
fire extinguishers, due by 10/27. Normally scheduled every 30 days, they
were added as get-ahead tasks for Mission 11A.
Another item added to the task list is the upgrading of the two new BCRs
(bar code readers) of the IMS (inventory management system) with the latest
version of the software. This procedure was run once before in July.
At 11:25am EDT, the ground, with Peggy’s support, powered up the HRF
(human research facility) for downlinking the EVARM (EVA radiation monitoring)
data prepared yesterday by Valery. The HRF was then deactivated again.
Instructions were uplinked to the crew for tomorrow’s robotics operations
with the MSS (mobile service system) and SSRMS (space station remote manipulator
system). [Primary objectives of the robotics ops are to perform a checkout
of MBS PDGF2 (mobile base system power and data grapple fixture #2) in
preparation for Mission 11A, and to collect FMS (force moment sensor)
data during LEE (latching end effector) grapple operations on both electronic
strings. At the end, when the SSRMS is firmly mated at PDGF2, the ground
will perform a checkout of the grapple fixture to confirm power, data
and video connectivity through that PDGF.]
A single-burn ISS reboost by eight Progress 9P thrusters (DPO) planned
for early this morning has been rescheduled for tomorrow morning at 4:25am
EDT (because of nonavailability of the Russian MCC-to-RGS relay satellite).
[The maneuver, of approximately 6 m/s is intended to establish the optimum
altitude for the 5S and 11A mission rendezvous profiles. For the reboost,
station attitude control will be handed over to the SM motion control
system and later returned to USOS CMG momentum management.]
Today’s targets for the U.S. CEO (crew earth observations) program were
E. Mediterranean Aerosols (high pressure system settling over the central
Med. Basin: crew was to look for smog buildup left and right of track,
especially from the Po Valley flowing into the over the Adriatic "slot"
between Italy and former Yugoslavia), and High Central Andean Glaciers.
