Space Stations

NASA Space Station On-Orbit Status 17 December 2017 – New Crew Launches to the Station

By Marc Boucher

Status Report

December 19, 2017

Filed under Expedition 54, International Space Station, SpaceRef

NASA Space Station On-Orbit Status 17 December 2017 – New Crew Launches to the Station — Three Expedition 54 crew members launched aboard the Soyuz MS-07 rocket from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan. Credit: NASA/Joel Kowsky.

NASA

The Soyuz MS-07 launched from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan to the International Space Station at 2:21 a.m. EST Sunday, Dec. 17 (1:21 p.m. Baikonur time).
At the time of launch, the space station flew over south central Kazakhstan, northeast of Baikonur at an altitude of about 260 statute miles. Expedition 54-55 Flight Engineers Scott Tingle of NASA, Anton Shkaplerov of Roscosmos and Norishige Kanai of the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency are now safely in orbit.

The trio will orbit the Earth for approximately two days before docking to the space station’s Rassvet module, at 3:43 a.m. on Tuesday, Dec. 19. NASA TV coverage of the docking will begin at 3 a.m. Tuesday.

While the International Space Station was traveling overhead between Australia and Papua New Guinea, NASA astronauts Mark Vande Hei and Joe Acaba captured the Dragon spacecraft at 5:57 a.m. EST using the space station’s robotic arm. Ground controllers will now send commands to begin the robotic installation the spacecraft on the station’s Harmony module.

Dragon is carrying a Space Debris Sensor (SDS) that will measure the orbital debris environment around the space station for two to three years. Once mounted on the exterior of the station, this one-square-meter sensor will provide near-real-time debris impact detection and recording. Research from this investigation could help lower the risks posed by orbital debris to human life and critical hardware.

Also on board is NASA’s Total and Spectral Solar Irradiance Sensor, or TSIS-1, that will measure the Sun’s energy input to Earth. TSIS-1 measurements will be three times more accurate than previous capabilities, enabling scientists to study the Sun’s natural influence on Earth’s ozone, atmospheric circulation, clouds and ecosystems. These observations are essential for a scientific understanding of the effects of solar variability on the Earth system.

The SpaceX Dragon cargo spacecraft was installed on the Harmony module of the International Space Station at 8:26 a.m. EST.

The 13th contracted commercial resupply mission from SpaceX (CRS-13) delivered more than 4,800 pounds of supplies and payloads to the station. Among the research materials flying inside Dragon’s pressurized area, one investigation will demonstrate the benefits of manufacturing fiber optic filaments in a microgravity environment. Designed by the company Made in Space, and sponsored by the Center for the Advancement of Science in Space (CASIS), the investigation will attempt to pull fiber optic wire from ZBLAN, a heavy metal fluoride glass commonly used to make fiber optic glass. Results from this investigation could lead to the production of higher-quality fiber optic products for use in space and on Earth.

Dragon is scheduled to depart the station in January 2018 and return to Earth with more than 3,600 pounds of research, hardware and crew supplies.

On-Orbit Status Report

53 Soyuz (53S) Launch: 53S launched from the Baikonur Cosmodrome this morning with Anton Shkaplerov, Scott Tingle, and Norishige Kanai. Docking to the Mini Research Module-1 (MRM-1) module is scheduled for 02:42 AM CST on December 19 with hatch opening at ~4:15 AM CST.

SpaceX (SpX)-13 Capture and Berthing: SpX-13 rendezvous and capture were successfully completed today at 11:02 AM CST using the Space Station Remote Manipulator System (SSRMS). The crew monitored Dragon’s approach from the Cupola Robotic Workstation. During capture the Latch End Effector (LEE) snare cable tension went above the expected value, and before resuming nominal operation the Robotics Ground Controllers commanded the LEE mechanism to reduce this tension to the expected range. Dragon was berthed at 7:30 AM CST by ground controllers. Vestibule outfitting, vehicle ingress and removal of the center stack began following capture.

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

Robotic Workstation (RWS) High Definition (HD) Monitor Downlink Setup
Photo/TV Ghost Camera in Cupola on SSC power recording
Robotics Workstation (RWS) Dragon Configuration
Dragon R Bar Approach
Check Closure of SM window shutters 6,8,9,12,13,14 Note 6
Space Station Remote Manipulator System (SSRMS) Dragon Capture
Node 2 to Dragon Pressurization and Leak Check Equipment Pregather
??? maintenance. [???], [???], ???’s [????] counter, SM’s and FGB’s POTOK data dumps
Zebrafish Muscle2 Familiarization for sample fixation.
Node 2 to Dragon Pressurization and Leak Check
Dragon Vestibule Outfitting
Dragon Ingress
Node 2 Nadir Controller Panel Assembly (CPA) Ground Strap Replacement and CPA Rotation
Collecting SpX-13 Air Samples Using ??-1? Sampler
Transfer Center Stack
Dragon Cargo Operations Conference
Lighting Effects Sleep Log Entry – Subject
53 Soyuz (53S) Launch: 53S launched from the Baikonur Cosmodrome this morning with Anton Shkaplerov, Scott Tingle, and Norishige Kanai. Docking to the Mini Research Module-1 (MRM-1) module is scheduled for 02:42 AM CST on December 19 with hatch opening at ~4:15 AM CST.

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

Completed Task List Activities
None

Ground Activities
All activities are complete unless otherwise noted.
Dragon Rendezvous/Capture/Berth
Nominal Commanding

Three-Day Look Ahead:
Monday, 12/18: Dragon Cargo Transfer, Zebra, Bioculture System, Coldbag unpack, Tangolab2, RR Review
Tuesday, 12/19: 53S Docking, ISS Safety Brief, RR Transfer, BRIC LED, Space Headaches
Wednesday, 12/20: Arthrospira, SABL2, Synthetic Bone, 52S Emer Drill, Zebra, RR, Ram Deploy, APEX5, Marrow-2

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”) – Off
Carbon Dioxide Removal Assembly (CDRA) Lab – Standby
Carbon Dioxide Removal Assembly (CDRA) Node 3 – Operate
Major Constituent Analyzer (MCA) Lab – Idle
Major Constituent Analyzer (MCA) Node 3 – Operate
Oxygen Generation Assembly (OGA) – Shutdown
Urine Processing Assembly (UPA) – Reprocess
Trace Contaminant Control System (TCCS) Lab – Full Up
Trace Contaminant Control System (TCCS) Node 3 – Off
Completed Task List Activities
None

Ground Activities
All activities are complete unless otherwise noted.
Dragon Rendezvous/Capture/Berth
Nominal Commanding