NASA International Space Station On-Orbit Status 27 January 2016

The six Expedition 46 crew members today prepared for the deployment of a pair of nanosatellites, loaded trash in the Cygnus cargo craft and reviewed timelines and procedures for a Feb. 3 spacewalk. The International Space Station will also raise its orbit ahead of March’s crew swap and cargo delivery activities.
Commander Scott Kelly and British astronaut Tim Peake were inside Japan’s Kibo laboratory loading a satellite carrier and its deployer mechanism in the lab module’s airlock. After the Japanese robotic arm extracts the deployer from the airlock the Aggiesat4 and BEVO-2 nanosatellites will be deployed on Friday. The student-built nanosatellites will help further develop and refine autonomous navigation, rendezvous and docking software and procedures.

Peake then joined NASA astronaut Tim Kopra loading trash inside the Orbital ATK Cygnus supply ship. The private space freighter is due to leave the station Feb. 19 ending its stay at the Harmony module. Next, Kopra moved on to a combustion experiment testing how well different samples resist burning in microgravity.

Cosmonauts Yuri Malenchenko and Sergey Volkov are a week away from the second spacewalk of 2016. The veteran spacewalkers reviewed the timeline and procedures they will use to install hardware and science experiments outside the station’s Russian segment on Feb. 3 at 8:10 a.m. EST.

On-Orbit Status Report

Burning and Suppression of Solids – Milliken (BASS-M): Yesterday Kopra completed reconfiguration of the Microgravity Science Glovebox (MSG) Facility and started setup of hardware for BASS-M. Today he completed the BASS-M setup. During the setup, there was an issue with the data from the power/video unit. He was able perform troubleshooting and recover the data, however due to the extended time the first BASS-M run had to be deferred. The BASS-M investigation tests flame-retardant cotton fabrics to determine how well they resist burning in microgravity. Results benefit research on flame-retardant textiles that can be used on Earth and in space.

Low Earth Orbiting Navigation Experiment for Spacecraft Testing Autonomous Rendezvous and Docking (LONESTAR): Today Kelly and Peake opened the Japanese Experiment Module (JEM) Airlock inner hatch and extended the Airlock Slide Table into the JEM. They then installed the Cyclops deployer on the Slide Table, installed a Small Fine Arm (SFA) Plate on Cyclops, and then installed the Lonestar on Cyclops. Lonestar contains satellites AggieSat4 (built by Texas A&M University students) and Bevo-2 (built by University of Texas students). Deployment is planned for Friday, January 29. After free-flying safely away from the ISS, AggieSat4 will eject the BEVO-2 satellite. Both satellites then perform cross-linking communications, exchange data, link to GPS, and transmit to ground radio stations. LONESTAR is used to further develop and refines autonomous navigation, rendezvous and docking software and procedures. Future NASA missions to destinations such as asteroids and other celestial bodies require the use of autonomous navigation systems.

Cognition: Peake performed his Flight Day 46 session of the Cognition experiment today. The Individualized Real-Time Neurocognitive Assessment Toolkit for Space Flight Fatigue (Cognition) investigation is a battery of tests that measure how spaceflight-related physical changes, such as microgravity and lack of sleep, can affect cognitive performance. Cognition includes ten brief computerized tests that cover a wide range of cognitive functions, and provides immediate feedback on current and past test results. The software used allows for real-time measurement of cognitive performance while in space.

Dynamic Surf 3: Peake exchanged the Video Recording Unit (VRU) hard disk drive within JAXA’s Image Processing Unit (IPU) for the Dynamic Surf 3 investigation. A disk drive filled with data generated from the experiment was replaced with a fresh drive for continued recording. The Dynamic Surf 3 investigation is part of a series of JAXA experiments designed to provide insight into the underlying principles of Marangoni convection. These experiments demonstrate in microgravity the flow transition phenomena from steady to oscillatory, chaotic, and finally turbulent. Observations are made of fluid convection during formation of a silicone oil liquid bridge that is generated by differential heating of two discs within the Fluid Physics Experiment Facility (FPEF). The results of this investigation could ultimately drive the design and development of more efficient fluid flow based systems and devices.

Ras Labs-CASIS-ISS Project for Synthetic Muscle: Resistance to Radiation (Synthetic Muscle): Peake took a set of historical photos of the synthetic muscle samples. The purpose of this investigation is to measure the effects of radiation on proprietary synthetic muscle materials in space and earth environments. Robots made of these materials could provide assistance to humans in space, enhance survivability of robots during deep space travel, and provide support in extreme radiation environments on Earth.

Fine Water Mist Portable Fire Extinguishers (PFE) Deployment: Kopra deployed two Fine Water Mist PFEs today. Once the Fine Water Mist PFEs were stowed in the USOS Portable Emergency Provision (PEP) locations, Kopra attached new instruction cue cards to the exterior of each location. Fine Water Mist PFEs are the preferred type of fire extinguisher for open cabin fire scenarios, but cannot be used behind racks. In the event that a Fine Water Mist PFE is unavailable, a CO2 PFE may still be used.

Orbital ATK (OA)-4 Cargo Operations: All three USOS Crew will continue transferring Cygnus cargo to ISS today. As of yesterday afternoon, approximately 22 hours remain to be completed. Cygnus is scheduled to unberth from ISS on February 19th.

ISS Reboost: ISS performed a reboost this afternoon using the Progress 61P thrusters. This reboost is the second in a series of reboosts to target the planned conditions for the Soyuz 44 landing on March 2nd, Soyuz 46 four orbit rendezvous on March 19th, and Progress 63 four orbit rendezvous on March 31st.

ISS Reboost.

Payload Multiplexer/Demultiplexer (MDM) #2 Loss Of Communications: Overnight Payload MDM #2 experienced a High Rate Data Link (HRDL) card latch up, which prevented communications with the MDM and ISS Payloads. Flight Controllers attempted to command a reset of the card twice without success. They then commanded a MDM transition to Payload MDM #1 and have restored communications to ISS Payloads. Later, Ground teams powercycled Payload MDM #2 in order to recover communications with the unit. The MDM is currently serving as a backup to Payload MDM #1.

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

Environmental Health System (EHS) Microbial Capture Device (MCD) – In-flight Microbiology Water analysis and data recording
Cygnus Cargo Operations
TV conference with participants of the 10th S.P. Korolev Russian National Youth Readings
SYN_MUSCL – Photography
CYCLOPS – Big Picture Overview
Video Of Greetings Video Footage for Roscosmos Press Service
VEG-01 – Plant Photo
JEMAL – Slide Table extension
CYCLOPS – P/L Installation on JEM Airlock Slide Table
Study of cardiovascular system under graded physical load on VELO
Pumping brine and urine from EDV-U to Progress 429 (SM Aft) Rodnik H2O Tank and Flushing Connector
Operator assistance in study of cardiovascular system under graded physical load on VELO
Replacement of ??2 Filter Unit (??) ??0501 (Install No.166 (00068062R, ??1??_4_449_1 bag 249-17). Dismantled ??2 Filter Unit 00068061R – for disposal. Reflect changes in IMS)
Verification of ??-1 Flow Sensor Position
Operator assistance in study of cardiovascular system under graded physical load on VELO
Study of Cardiovascular System Under Graded Physical Load on VELO
JEMAL – Slide Table Retraction
BASSM – Preparation Operations Part 1 [Deferred]
Image Processing Unit (IPU) Hard Disk Exchange
Life On The Station Photo and Video
DOSETRK – Medication Tracking Update
??? Maintenance
Closing window 6,8,9,12,13,14 shutters
Review airlock ops procedure per RODF “EVA from DC1?
BASSM – Experiment start [Deferred]
Gathering EVA equipment
DOSETRK – Medication Tracking Update
BASSM – BASS Hardware Installation and Test [Deferred]
IMS Delta File Prep
BASSM – Experiment end [Deferred]
USOS Window Shutter Closure
JRNL – Journal Entry
TV Session with NTV Channel
Emergency Water Mist Portable Fire Extinguisher Deployment
CONTENT. Experiment Ops
Cygnus – Cargo Operations Tagup
COGNITION – Experiment Ops and Filling Questionnaire

Completed Task List Items
None

Ground Activities
All activities were completed unless otherwise noted.
System commanding associated with ISS Reboost

Three-Day Look Ahead:
Thursday, 01/28: Cygnus Cargo Transfer, PS120 J Install, JPM Int Port Camera Relocation
Friday, 01/29: Cygnus Cargo Transfer, BASS-M Ops, Lonestar Deploy, Kelly Off Duty
Saturday, 01/30: Crew Day Off, Weekly Cleaning

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