NASA Space Station On-Orbit Status 15 November 2017 – Unloading Cargo From Cygnus
The Expedition 53 astronauts are continuing to unload several thousand pounds of space cargo from the new Cygnus resupply ship that arrived Tuesday morning. Some of the new science cargo contains a bacteria that curiously loses its harmful properties in microgravity and CubeSats that will be deployed in Earth orbit.
The Cygnus is now installed on the Unity module and open for business. The astronauts entered the cargo craft Tuesday and started replenishing the station with almost 7,400 pounds of crew supplies, science experiments, spacewalk gear, station hardware and computer parts.
Some of the new research payloads will be looking at the space impacts on microbiology and botany. The advanced space research will explore the effectiveness of antibiotics on astronauts and observe how plants absorb nutrients in microgravity. Some pathogens for the STaARS Bioscience-5 study delivered aboard Cygnus have also been safely transferred to the NEXUS facility for later observation.
A couple of the newest technology experiments will deploy CubeSats to explore laser communications and hybrid solar panels. Scientists will study the ability of small satellites to communicate with each other using lasers and also explore if a combination of antenna and solar cells can speed up communication rates.
On-Orbit Status Report
Probiotics Operations: The crew completed the second half of the second sampling phase that began on GMT 316 with fecal sample collections. Today’s activities included saliva sample collections, a questionnaire, and a capsule intake. This sampling phase was the second of four sampling phases for the JAXA Probiotic experiment. Some species of harmful bacteria such as Salmonella grow stronger and more virulent in the microgravity environment of space. At the same time, the human immune system is weaker in space, leading to increased health risks. The objective of the Probiotics investigation is to study the impact of continuous consumption of probiotics on immune function and intestinal microbiota in astronauts under closed microgravity environment This investigation studies the effects of beneficial bacteria (Probiotics) to improve crew members’ intestinal microbiota as well as their immune function on long-duration space missions.
TangoLab-2 Card Cube Placement: The crew removed two CubeLabs from a polar that arrived on Orbital 8 (OA-8) and placed the cards in slots 5 and 7 of the TangoLab-2. TangoLab provides a standardized platform and open architecture for experimental modules called CubeLabs. CubeLab modules may be developed for use in 3-dimensional tissue and cell cultures.
Microgravity Experiment Research Locker / INcubator (MERLIN) Sample Transfer: The crew transferred science samples from the powered MERLIN in OA-8 to the STaARS-1 Experiment Facility on the ISS. The objective of the Space Technology and Advanced Research Systems, Inc.-1 Experiment Facility (STaARS-1 EF) is to support biotechnology and life science investigations to characterize the effects of microgravity on living systems. The STaARS-1 EF aims to facilitate advanced studies targeting the molecular responses to microgravity that alter cell physiology and lead to unique cellular processes and the production of novel compounds that can impact pharmaceutical, tissue engineering, regenerative medicine, biofuel, and discovery sciences.
Robotics Operations: Overnight, ground controllers ungrappled the Space Station Remote Manipulator System (SSRMS) from the Cygnus module and maneuvered it to pick up the Special Purpose Dexterous Manipulator (SPDM). Today, the SSRMS/SPDM system will be used to move the UTA from ESP2 to ELC-1, and moved the LEE from its place on ELC-1 to ESP2.
Cygnus Status: Following yesterday’s successful berthing and crew ingress, today the crew began cargo transfer operations:
On-Board Training (OBT) Cygnus: With the arrival and ingress of OA-8 yesterday, the crew performed an emergency procedures review. All crew members participated in this mandatory OBT.
Today’s Planned Activities
All activities are complete unless otherwise noted.
Probiotics Saliva Operations
Probiotics Salive Sample MELFI Insertion
Probiotics Question
Transfer Cygnus Cargo Operations
CTB RETRIEVE
MRM1 fan screen (Group B) cleaning, cleaning behind panels 405, 406
??? Maintenance
MATRYOSHKA-R. Monitoring Tritel Readings
BIOCARD. Operator Assistance During the Experiment
BIOCARD. Experiment Session. Tagup with specialists
JEM Internal Thermal Control System (ITCS) Sample Collection
Public Affairs Office (PAO) Event in High Definition (HD) – COL
Checkout of handrail-adapter No.4 27???.1101-0-03 inside of MRM2
ITCS Maintenance Canister Installation in JEM
ISS HAM Service Module Pass
Polar Cygnus Uninstall, Transfer, And EXPRESS Rack Install
ESA Weekly crew conference
Biolab Inc EC Exch Door Check
Probiotics Capsule Preparation
Probiotics Capsule Photo
Replacement of RSE1 Laptop Main Hard Drive
Galley Rack MERLIN Transfer
Robotic Workstation (RWS) Teardown
Retrieve Laptop Power Cable from JSB 1091
JEM Freezer-Refrigerator Of STirling cycle 2 (FROST2) Temperature check
MERLIN 1 Desiccant Insert
Public Affairs Office (PAO) Event in High Definition (HD) – Lab
Prep for Central Post Computer 2 (???2) Test (r/g review, equipment gathering)
MATRYOSHKA-R. BUBBLE-Dosimeter Measurement Data
SM, DC1, MRM2, MRM1, FGB, Power Supply Panels ???-6, ???-31 Plug-in Audit
Restow Vestibule Outfitting Kit (VOK)
TangoLab-2 Polar Remove
TangoLab-2 Card Cube Replace
Cygnus Cargo Operations Conference
Vacuum Cleaning ??1 and ??2 airducts in MRM2
CB/ISS CREW CONFERENCE
Waste Hygiene Compartment (WHC) to Internal EDV
On board Training Cygnus Emergency Procedure Review
Completed Task List Activities
Cygnus Cargo Photo
Cygnus Ingress
Take Baseline GSC and CDM readings
Node 1 Nadir Common Berthing Mechanism (CBM) Controller Panel Assembly (CPA) Removal
Node 1 Nadir to Cygnus Vestibule Outfitting Part 2
Photo TV High Definition (HD) Cygnus Video Setup
VEG-03 Plant Pillow Water
Ground Activities
All activities are complete unless otherwise noted.
Cygnus support
LEE/UTA swap
Standard commanding
Three-Day Look Ahead:
Thursday, 11/16: T2 SLS Install, Nanoracks Microgrowth, Cygnus Cargo Ops, WHC Urine Receptacle R&R
Friday, 11/17: Cubesat deployer installation, MARES/Sarcolab, SLS installation
Saturday, 11/18: Off Duty
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 – Standby
Major Constituent Analyzer (MCA) Lab – Idle
Major Constituent Analyzer (MCA) Node 3 – Operate
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
