NASA Space Station On-Orbit Status 24 February, 2021 – Spacewalk Preperations

The Expedition 64 crew members are revving up their spacewalk preparations as they juggle an array of advanced space science aboard the International Space Station today.
NASA Flight Engineer Kate Rubins spent Wednesday morning readying a pair of U.S. spacesuits that she and fellow NASA astronaut Victor Glover will wear on Sunday. Rubins was joined by astronauts Michael Hopkins of NASA and Soichi Noguchi of JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency) helping with the spacesuit fit checks today which consists of attaching the correctly sized leg, arm, glove and helmet components. All four astronauts called down to Mission Control in the afternoon to review Sunday’s spacewalk procedures.

Glover and Rubins will exit the station on Sunday about 6 a.m. EST to begin readying the station for upcoming solar array upgrades. Rubins will go out again on Friday, March 5, with Noguchi to work on coolant gear and communication systems. NASA TV will broadcast both spacewalks live.

Glover also had time for research work today as he serviced parts inside the Combustion Integrated Rack to support flame and fuel studies safely. NASA Flight Engineer Shannon Walker replaced communications gear inside the Human Research Facility that enables biological and psychological observations of astronauts.

Commander Sergey Ryzhikov worked on batteries and cameras before incubating and photographing microbe samples. Flight Engineer Sergey Kud-Sverchkov checked out Russian life support systems and ventilation gear Wednesday afternoon.

On-Orbit Status Report

Payloads

CIR (Combustion Integrated Rack) Fluids and Combustion Facility: The crew replaced the CIR FOMA Cal Unit. The CIR includes an optics bench, combustion chamber, fuel and oxidizer control, and five different cameras for performing combustion investigations in microgravity.

Micro-16: The crew printed an on-board copy of the checklist for the Syringe Pump Sequence and Valve Position. Loss of muscle mass and strength present a major challenge for astronauts on future long space voyages. Determining Muscle Strength in Space-flown Caenorhabditis elegans (Micro-16) uses this tiny worm to test whether decreased expression of muscle proteins is associated with decreased strength. The research team developed a new device to measure muscle strength in multiple generations of space-reared C. elegans worms and compare that strength to postflight muscle gene expression analyses.

HRF-1 (Human Resources Facility-1): The crew removed the Payload Ethernet Hub Bridge (PEHB) from the HRF-1 Rack and partially replaced it with an improved Payload Ethernet Hub Gateway (PEHG). There were some issues with the cable installations and ground teams are evaluating a troubleshooting plan to complete the rest of the installation. The rack was placed in a safe configuration. HRF-1 provides an on-orbit laboratory that enables scientists conducting human life science research to evaluate the physiological, behavioral, and chemical changes induced by space flight. Research performed using HRF-1 provides data to help scientists understand how the human body adapts to long-duration spaceflight.

Systems

Extravehicular Mobility Unit (EMU) On-orbit Fitcheck Verification (OFV): The crew performed a fitcheck of EMUs 3009 and 3015 in order to verify correct EMU sizing prior to the ISS Roll Out Solar Array (IROSA) Prep Extravehicular Activity (EVA). During the OFV, EMU 3015 failed an automated leak check. Initial troubleshooting of the EMU was unsuccessful. Eventually, the crew as able to isolate the Lower Torso Assembly (LTA) as the suspect component and swapped the component with another LTA from EMU 3006. EMU 3015 successfully passed the leak check and the OFV was completed for both EMU 3009 and 3015 and suits are in a nominal configuration.

EVA Preparations: The crew completed several activities in preparation for the IROSA Prep EVA. The crew reviewed a detailed timeline, the tool configuration summary, the sharp edge briefing, notes, cautions and warnings, and Dynamic Onboard Ubiquitous Graphic (DOUG) animations. The crew also performed a Rechargeable EVA Battery Assembly (REBA) powered hardware checkout for glove heaters and EMU TV on EMU 3009.

Completed Task List Activities:

None
Today’s Ground Activities:
All activities are complete unless otherwise noted.

X2R19 Software Transition Commanding (Day 2 of 4)
EMU OFV Support Commanding
Crew-1 Dragon Checkout
Look Ahead Plan

Thursday, February 25 (GMT 056)
Payloads:

PBRE Water inspect (NASA)
Food Acceptability (NASA)
Food Physiology Brief (NASA)
Industrial Crystallization Facility (ICF) install (NASA)
CIR FOMA Calibration prep part 1(NASA)
Micro-16 Microscopy, Experiment setup and init. Ops (NASA)
ELF Fastener R&R, Cartridge Install (JAXA)
TOHOKU2021 Ops (JAXA)
CBEF Ethernet cable reconnect (JAXA)
Systems:

EVA Procedure Conference
EVA DOUG Review
EVA Tool Config
IFM Hatch Seal Inspection
Friday, February 26 (GMT 057)
Payloads:

PBRE Water inspect (NASA)
HRF VEG POMS Qstn (NASA)
ICF SCGC Module install (NASA)
CIR FOMA Calibration prep part 2 (NASA)
Micro-16 Experiment setup and load (NASA)
Food Acceptability (NASA)
Asian Herb Watering (JAXA)
JAXA video Take 5 (JAXA)
FLARE (SCEM) Power cable connect (JAXA)
EPM SMSC R&R (ESA)
Systems:

EVA Tool Config
EVA A/L Fitcheck
EVA Cuff C/L Print
RGN Tank Manual Fill
Cygnus Cargo Ops
Saturday, February 27 (GMT 058)
Payloads:

PBRE Water inspect (NASA)
M16 USB drive removal (NASA)
CIR vlv Timer set (NASA)
ISS HAM powerdowns (NASA)
Systems:

Cygnus Cargo Ops
EVA Procedure Review
EVA Isle Prep
EVA Tool Audit
EVA Equipment Lock Prep
Today’s Planned Activities:
All activities are complete unless otherwise noted.

REBA Powered Hardware Checkout
Equipment Lock Prep Part 1
EMU On-orbit Fitcheck Verifications
EVA Procedure Reviews
EVA EHIP Check
EVA SAFER Practice (DEFERRED)
AULD Battery Charging
??? ?1 Absorption Cartridge Regeneration
Replacement of Condensate Pumping Unit (???) and ??? Control Panel
Replacement of [???] urine receptacle (??) and filter-insert (?-?). [???] toilet activation after replacement
Changeout of Dust Filter ??1-4 Cartridges in SM
Charging Scalar DG-3X Battery
Acoustic Monitor Data Transfer and Stow
HRF Rack 1 PEHG Install (PARTIALLY COMPLETED)
Public Affairs Office (PAO) Event in High Definition (HD) – JEM
Antimicrobial Coatings Touch
Micro-16 Checklist Print
Astrobee OBT Review
PBRE/MSG Water Release Inspection/Cleanup
Combustion Integrated Rack FOMA Cal Unit Replacement
ASEPTIC. Retrieval of Poverkhnost No.17.1 and Vozdukh 17.1 devices from thermostat. External inspection of culture media in devices