NASA Space Station On-Orbit Status 15 May 2018 – Final Preparations for Tomorrow’s Spacewalk
Two NASA astronauts are finalizing their preparations ahead of Wednesday morning’s spacewalk to swap thermal control gear outside the International Space Station.
The Expedition 55 crew also worked on biomedical operations, radiation checks and Cygnus communications gear.
Flight Engineers Ricky Arnold and Drew Feustel checked their tools and reviewed their procedures one last time today before tomorrow’s spacewalk. The pair will work for about 6.5 hours swapping a pair of thermal control devices, known as Pump Flow Control Subassemblies, which control the circulation of ammonia keeping external station systems cool.
The veteran spacewalkers will set their spacesuit batteries to internal power Wednesday at about 8:10 a.m. EDT signaling the official start of the 210th spacewalk in space station history. NASA TV will begin its live broadcast of the activities beginning at 6:30 a.m.
Science and maintenance are always ongoing aboard the orbital lab even despite the spacewalk and cargo mission readiness activities. Feustel and Japanese astronaut Norishige Kanai collected their biological samples this morning and stowed them in a science freezer for later analysis. Cosmonaut Oleg Artemyev explored cardiac bioelectric activity at rest. Commander Anton Shkaplerov collected radiation measurements from dosimeters he retrieved from the orbital lab’s U.S. segment.
Orbital ATK is getting its Cygnus space freighter ready for launch Sunday at 5:04 a.m. to deliver science, supplies and hardware to the Expedition 55 crew. Astronaut Scott Tingle checked out command and communications gear that will be used when Cygnus arrives four days later on Thursday for capture at 5:20 a.m.
On-Orbit Status Report
Tropical Cyclone: The crew configured the camera settings in the Cupola to support the capture of a series of photographs of the Kilauea volcano in Hawaii. The images will be used to create 3 dimensional images of the craters that have formed as a result of the volcanic eruptions.
Exposed Experiment Handrail Attachment Mechanism (ExHAM) #2: Last night ground robotics controllers used the Japanese Experiment Module (JEM) Remote Manipulator System (JEMRMS) Small Fine Arm to transfer the Handhold Experiment Platform (HXP) from the JEM External Facility to the Slide Table. Later this week, the Slide Table will be brought back into the JEM and ExHAM samples will be exchanged before the HXP is returned to the JEM External Facility.
Two Phase Flow (TPF): This morning the crew deactivated the TPF experiment equipment in the Multi-Purpose Small Payload Rack (MSPR) for the experiment run completed overnight. The Two-Phase Flow experiment investigates the heat transfer characteristics of flow boiling in the microgravity environment. This experiment provides a fundamental understanding of the behaviors of bubble formation, liquid-vapor flow in a tube, and how heat transfers in cooling systems. Two-phase flow employs a sample cooling loop using perfluorohexane, often used in coolants for electronics, to establish flow rate and heating power in different conditions.
Radiation Dosimetry Inside ISS-Neutron (RaDI-N): Today the crew retrieved eight RaDI-N detectors from a US Laboratory module location and handed them over to a Russian crewmember for processing. This Canadian Space Agency (CSA) investigation measures neutron radiation levels in the ISS.
Extravehicular Activity (EVA) Preparations: In preparation for tomorrow’s US EVA 50 Pump and Flow Control Subassembly (PFCS) Relocate, the crew printed off their suit cuff checklists and finalized their EVA tool configurations. Once completed, the crew performed an audit of their EVA tool configuration and reviewed the EVA briefing package which includes a detailed timeline of their scheduled activities and procedures for dealing with off-nominal situations. The crew also participated in a conference with ground EVA specialists and discussed their review of the briefing packet. The crew is scheduled to egress the airlock at 7:15 AM CDT tomorrow morning.
Common Communications for Visiting Vehicles (C2V2) Checkout: This afternoon, the crew performed a successful checkout the C2V2 Portable Computer System (PCS) Command Panel in support of the upcoming Orbital-ATK Cygnus (OA-9) mission. The test verified crew command capability between ISS and a simulated Cygnus vehicle and is required ahead of the scheduled launch of OA-9 on 20-May. OA-9 will be the first Orbital vehicle to utilize the newer C2V2 system for approach and capture.
Today’s Planned Activities
All activities are complete unless otherwise noted.
IMS Update
Life On The Station Photo and Video
R PAO event report preparation
ECON-M. Observation and Photography
Extravehicular Activity (EVA) Reminder for EVA In-Suit Light Exercise (ISLE) Preparation
Auxiliary Computer System [???] Laptops Antivirus Software Checkout and Report
Regeneration of Micropurification Unit (???) ?2 Cartridge (start)
Cell Biology Experiment Facility (CBEF) Backup Power Retrieve
Health Maintenance System (HMS) Periodic Health Status (PHS) Pre EVA Examination
ISS HAM Service Module Pass
Gathering and deployment of PILLE sensors prior to USOS EVA
Study of cardiac bioelectric activity at rest
XF305 Camcorder Setup
??? maintenance
Environmental Health System (EHS) Potable Water Dispenser (PWD) Sample Collect
Two-Phase Flow Item Gathering
Two-Phase Flow Experiment Unit Closeout
FAZOPEREKHOD. Preparation steps and starting the experiment
Food Acceptability Questionnaire – Subject
Environmental Health System (EHS) Total Organic Carbon Analyzer (TOCA) Potable Water Dispenser (PWD) Sample Analysis
De-install and pre-pack for return of PLETHYSMOGRAPH unit from CARDIOMED equipment
Environmental Health System (EHS) Microbial Capture Device (MCD) Coliform Water Processing
Water Recovery and Management Condensate Pumping
Robotic Workstation (RWS) Setup
???? Reconfiguration in MRM1
SEPARATION. ???-? replacement
Extravehicular Mobility Unit (EMU) Cuff Checklist Print
Handhold Exp Platform #2 (HXP2) Item Checking part 1.
BIOCARD. Assistance During the Experiment and Photography
BIOCARD. Experiment Session
Extravehicular Activity (EVA) Tool Configuring
FAZOPEREKHOD. Closeout Ops
Extravehicular Activity (EVA) Tool Audit
Equipment Lock (E-LK) Preparation
SEPARATION. ???-? Water Sampling
SEPARATION. Distillation 6
Extravehicular Activity (EVA) Procedure Review
EVA Worksite Survey
MATRYOSHKA-R. BUBBLE-dosimeter collection and measurements, Memory Card pre-pack for return
Total Organic Carbon Analyzer (TOCA) Sample Data Record
Lab Major Constituent Analyzer (MCA) Jumper Teardown
SEPARATION. Concluding Distillation. Log-file dump
Radi-N Detector Retrieval/Readout
Radiation Dosimetry Inside ISS-Neutrons Hardware Handover
MATRYOSHKA-R. Handover of BUBBLE-dosimeters from USOS
Commercial Generic Bioprocessing Apparatus 4, Unit Relocation
Monitoring RS structural shell surfaces using Multipurpose Eddy Current Device ???-2?
????????-?.
Extravehicular Activity (EVA) Procedure Conference
Verification of ??-1 Flow Sensor Position
Preparing to downlink data on monitoring structural element surface
Cygnus Crew PCS Command Panel Checkout via C2V2 without RF Transmission to Ground Site
Regeneration of Micropurification Unit (???) ?2 Absorber Cartridge (end)
Extravehicular Activity (EVA) Reminder for EVA In-Suit Light Exercise (ISLE) Preparation
Completed Task List Activities
None
Ground Activities
All activities are complete unless otherwise noted.
C2V2 checkout for OA-9
Airlock MTL flow adjust for airlock depress operations
Lab MCA zero cal
Three-Day Look Ahead:
Wednesday, 05/16: US EVA #50 with Robotics Support (Swap PFCS, R&R CP13 ETVCG, R&R SGTRC-2), CSA-CP maintenance
Thursday, 05/17: Cygnus OBT, Post EVA Ops (A/L deconfg/restow, EMU Water recharge, debrief), PFCS XFER, Team Task Switching, HXP2 Sample Detach, HRF samples, Ku String swap
Friday, 05/18: JSL Lab & Node 2 router configuration, HXP2 Sample Attach 3, SABL3 Relocate, Beam EHS Sample Collect and WTS sensor troubleshooting, Node3 EWC power up.
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 – Operate
Major Constituent Analyzer (MCA) Node 3 – Idle
Oxygen Generation Assembly (OGA) – Process
Urine Processing Assembly (UPA) – Process
Trace Contaminant Control System (TCCS) Lab – Full Up
Trace Contaminant Control System (TCCS) Node 3 – Off
