NASA Space Station On-Orbit Status 28 April, 2020 – Japanese Small Satellite Orbital Deployer 13

The International Space Station is looking ahead to its next cargo mission when a U.S. space freighter departs next month.
The Expedition 63 crew is also working on variety of space research and Russian spacecraft activities.

The U.S. Cygnus space freighter from Northrop Grumman is being readied for its robotic release from the orbiting lab’s Unity module. Commander Chris Cassidy reviewed procedures and set up hardware that will deploy small experimental satellites from the outside of Cygnus after its departure on May 11. Cygnus will removed from Unity and released by the Canadarm2 robotic arm completing its 83-day stay at 12:10 p.m. EDT.

Cassidy also opened up the Combustion Integrated Rack for maintenance replacing components in the research device that enables safe fuel, flame and soot studies in microgravity. Afterward, the three-time station visitor logged his meals for a nutrition study then swapped batteries in an acoustic monitor that measures the sound levels aboard the station.

Cosmonauts Anatoly Ivanishin and Ivan Vagner continued unpacking and inventorying the near three tons of food, fuel and supplies delivered late last week aboard the Progress 75 resupply ship. Ivanishin also serviced a variety of Russian life support gear. Vagner checked on lighting systems and photographed the external condition of the Poisk module which hosts docked Russian spacecraft.

On-Orbit Status Report

Japanese Small Satellite Orbital Deployer (J-SSOD) #13: The crew performed photographic documentation of the J-SSOD#13 deployment. The JEM Small Satellite Orbital Deployer (J-SSOD) provides a novel, safe, and small satellite launching capability to the International Space Station (ISS). The J-SSOD is a unique satellite launcher, handled by the Japanese Experiment Module Remote Manipulator System (JEMRMS), which provides containment and deployment mechanisms for several individual small satellites. Once J-SSOD, including satellite install cases with small satellites, is installed on the Multi-Purpose Experiment Platform (MPEP) by crew members, it is passed through the JEM airlock for retrieval, positioning, and deployment by the JEMRMS.

SlingShot: The crew performed a partial setup of the Slingshot payload in order to allow ground commanding to test the WIDAR communication link through Wallops ground site using the Cygnus spacecraft. Unfortunately, the data cables did not connect properly and the task was aborted. Ground teams are discussing a forward plan to get a data connection in order to proceed with the test at a later date. SEOPS’ SlingShot is a small satellite deployment system that fits inside the Cygnus spacecraft’s Passive Common Berthing Mechanism (PCBM). SlingShot can accommodate up to 18 satellites that are deployed post Cygnus unberth.

Advanced Combustion via Microgravity Experiments (ACME): The crew replaced an ACME controller In preparation for the continuation of s-flame runs. The ACME experiment series being performed in the CIR includes five independent studies of gaseous flames. The primary goals of ACME are to improve fuel efficiency and reduce pollutant production in routine fuel combustion activities on Earth. Its secondary goal is to improve spacecraft fire prevention through innovative research focused on materials flammability.

Systems

Acoustic Monitoring: Crew-worn acoustic monitors were set up and distributed to the crew onboard the ISS. These will be worn for 24 hours before they will be deployed to static locations within ISS. The acoustic monitoring sessions gather data to characterize any changes to the acoustic environment throughout the station.

Completed Task List Activities:
Network Attached Storage (NAS) Hard Drive Swap

Today’s Ground Activities:
All activities are complete unless otherwise noted.
Ground Cmding for SlingShot Test

Look Ahead Plan
Wednesday, 4/29 (GMT 120)
Payloads:
Astrobee Battery change (NASA)
VEGGIE PONDS Facility Clean (NASA)
RED-EYE temp Stowed during Astrobee mapping ops (NASA)

Systems:
Acoustic Monitoring Setup – Static Measurements
EVA Loops Scrubs for units 3004/3008
EHS TOCA Calibration Check
O-OHA Test

Thursday, 4/30 (GMT 121)
Payloads:
Astrobee Localization and Mobility ops (NASA)
CBEF 2nd cleaning post MHU-5 (JAXA)
Space Fiber Stow (NASA)
Food Physiology (NASA)
VEGGIE PONDS Facility Deact (NASA)
ISS HAM Pass (NASA)

Systems:
EHS TOCA Water Sample Analysis
JEM CTB Relocate
Acoustic Monitor Data Transfer and Stow

Friday, 5/1 (GMT 122)
Payloads:
RADIN SBD deploy (CSA)
JSSOD-13 removal (JAXA)
CIR Manifold Bottle change (Joint)
RED-EYE restow (NASA)

Systems:
Cygnus Cargo Ops

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

Verification of anti-virus scan results on Auxiliary Computer System [???] laptops
SlingShot BPW Review
Regeneration of Micropurification Unit (???) ?1 Absorption Cartridge (init)
Remove Common Berthing Mechanism (CBM) Controller Panel Assemblies (CPA) Removal
?C1, ??2 Dust Collectors Filters Vacuum Cleaning in FGB (panels 203, 403)
Teardown [????-2] (?304)
Food Acceptability Survey
LIGHTING SYSTEM AUDIT in FGB
JEMRMS Small Satellite Deployment Observation
Acoustic Monitor Setup for Crew Worn Measurements
SlingShot Controller Install
[???1] and [???2] Fans screen cleaning
INSTALLATION OF ????-2 (POSITION A304)
Photography of Plume Impingement and Deposit Monitoring Unit [????] position on MRM2 through SM window No.13
ACME Controller Replace 1 in Combustion Integrated Rack (CIR)
Current converter fan (???) screen cleaning
URAGAN. BCC P/L Adjustment and Testing
Diagnostics of FGB Power Supply System Filter Units (??-1?) and Main Bus Assembly (???-1?) – preparation steps
Health Maintenance System (HMS) ISS Food Intake Tracker (ISS FIT)
Early unstow and US cargo transfers from Progress 448 (SM Aft) and IMS Ops
Progress 443 (DC1) Stowage Ops with IMS Support
Video Footage of Greetings
JEMRMS Small Satellite Deployment Observation
ODF update using Progress 448 delivered files
Public Affairs Office (PAO) Event in High Definition (HD) – JEM
Acoustic Monitor Battery Swap
SlingShot WIDAR STOW
On-Orbit Hearing Assessment (O-OHA) with EarQ Software Setup and Test