NASA Space Station On-Orbit Status 3 April 2018
The SpaceX Dragon space freighter is midway on its trip to the resupply the International Space Station’s Expedition 55 crew.
Waiting to capture Dragon Wednesday morning are Flight Engineers Norishige Kanai and Scott Tingle.
The two astronauts have been reviewing procedures and training on a computer for Dragon’s capture for a few weeks now. Kanai will command the Canadarm2 robotic arm to reach out and grapple Dragon about 7 a.m. EDT Wednesday when it reaches a point about 10 meters away from the station. Tingle is backing up Kanai and will monitor Dragon’s approach and rendezvous from inside the Cupola. Flight Engineer Ricky Arnold will be assisting the duo by overseeing approach telemetry from a communications unit on the space station. NASA TV will begin its live mission coverage starting at 5:30 a.m.
Dragon is carrying a variety of cargo including new science experiments researching the human body, plants and how materials react when exposed to space. The Marrow study will explore bone marrow and the blood cells it produces. PONDS will explore ways to achieve uniform plant growth as astronauts supplement their diets with fresh space-grown greens. The Materials ISS Experiment Flight Facility, or MISSE-FF, will observe what happens to materials exposed to outer space phenomena such as ultraviolet radiation, charged particles and micro-meteoroids.
Meanwhile, the six space station residents are keeping the orbital lab in tip-top shape today while continuing ongoing scientific studies. Commander Anton Shkaplerov stayed focused on maintenance duties in the station’s Russian segment. New Expedition 55 crew members Ricky Arnold, Drew Feustel and Oleg Artemyev had time set aside to get used to their new home in space.
Tingle swapped out Combustion Integrated Rack hardware in the Destiny lab module. Kanai readied mouse habitat gear for a rodent study being delivered on Dragon. Kanai and Tingle later ended the day with more Dragon robotics practice.
On-Orbit Status Report
SpaceX-14 Status: SpaceX has completed the CUCU Broadcast Test and configured CUCU and Dragon UHF for rendezvous. The Dragon vehicle continues to follow the nominal rendezvous profile that supports an ISS capture tomorrow at 6:00 am CDT.
Advanced Combustion via Microgravity Experiments (ACME) Electric-Field Effects on Laminar Diffusion (E-Field) Flames: In preparation for the upcoming ACME E-Field Flames investigation the crew installed the ACME Mesh Positive Power Supply. The ACME investigation is a set of five independent studies of gaseous flames to be conducted in the Combustion Integrated Rack (CIR). ACME’s primary goal is to improve fuel efficiency and reduce pollutant production in practical combustion on Earth. For E-Field Flames an electric field with voltages as high as 10,000 volts is established between the burner and a mesh electrode. The motion of the charged ions, which are naturally produced within the flame, are strongly affected by a high-voltage electric field. The resulting ion-driven wind can dramatically influence the stability and sooting behavior of the flame. Conducting the tests in microgravity allows for great simplifications in the analysis, enabling new understanding and the development of less polluting and more efficient combustion technology for use on Earth.
Mouse Stress Defense: To prepare for the transfer on Thursday of mice from the SpaceX-14 vehicle, the crew perform a pre-mission set up of the Mouse Habitat Cage Units for the Cell Biology Experiment Facility (CBEF). They installed food cartridges, odor filters, water and filled up the washer fluid container. The crew was unable to add water to 2 of the cage units. Ground teams are investigating the issue. Microgravity provokes cellular mechanical stresses and perturbs cellular signaling, leading to reduction of muscle and bone density. To overcome these stresses, one of the promising strategies is to activate Nrf2, a master regulator of antioxidant pathway. Mouse Stress Defense investigates how Nrf2 contributes to effective prevention of space-originated stresses.
On-board Training (OBT) Dragon Robotics Onboard Trainer (ROBoT) Session 2: The crewmembers tasked with capturing Dragon completed their second, and final, OBT session using ROBoT. ROBoT is an on-orbit version of the ground-based Dynamics Skills Trainer (DST) that simulates robotics operations with graphical feedback. Today’s runs allowed the crew to practice Free Drift timing, malfunction response, and nominal rate approaches. After the training session the crew had a conference with ground specialists where they discussed any final questions or comments related to capture and berthing operations.
Today’s Planned Activities
All activities are complete unless otherwise noted.
Max Cycle Ergometer w/Vibration Isolation & Stabilization (CEVIS) Portable PFS Power Up
ALGOMETRIYA. Pressure and Thermal Algometry preparation for and measurement session
Replacement of ???-1?2 (?-1, ?-2) cartridges in ???? (preparation)
Max Cycle Ergometer w/Vibration Isolation & Stabilization (CEVIS) Portable PFS Subject
VEGGIE Software On-Board Training
Demating ???-1?2 (Filter-1, Filter-2) telemetry connectors from ???
Replacement of ???-1?2 (?-1, ?-2) cartridges in ????
XF305 Camcorder Setup
Mouse Habitat Unit (MHU) Removal for Pre-mission Setup
Mouse Stress Defense Pre-mission Setup
ISS Crew Orientation
Combustion Integrated Rack Rack Doors Open
Combustion Integrated Rack Front End Cap Open
Wastewater Storage Tank Assembly (WSTA) Fill
FAZOPEREKHOD. Preparation steps and starting the experiment
ACME Hardware Replace
VEG-03 Dual Facility Watering for each Plant Pillow
On-board Training (OBT) Dragon Attached Phase Operations Review
??? maintenance
Mouse Stress Defense Pre-mission Setup
IMS Update
Combustion Integrated Rack Front End Cap Close
FAZOPEREKHOD. Closeout Ops
Combustion Integrated Rack Rack Doors Close
Mate ???-1?2 (Filter 1, Filter-2) Telemetry Connectors to ???
Replacement of ???-1?2 (?-1, ?-2) cartridges in ???? (Closeout Ops)
SPHERES Payload OBT
Max Cycle Ergometer w/Vibration Isolation & Stabilization (CEVIS) Portable PFS Partial Stow
SPHERES Crew Conference
INTER-MAI-75. HAM Radio Hardware Activation
ALGOMETRIYA. Strain Measurements Mode
MERLIN 5 Desiccant Swap
Checkout of ???-95 Comm Panel in DC1, Telephone Communication System [????] Test in DC1
External Wireless Instrumentation System (EWIS) Internal Antenna Move
On-board Training (OBT) Dragon Robotics Onboard Trainer (ROBoT) Session 2
On-board Training (OBT) Dragon Attached Phase Operations Review
Veggie Science Kit Locate
Wastewater Storage Tank Assembly (WSTA) Fill
Countermeasures System (CMS) Max Cycle Ergometer w/Vibration Isolation & Stabilization (CEVIS) Portable PFS Conclude
Health Maintenance System (HMS) Spaceflight Cognitive Assessment Tool for Windows (WinSCAT) Test
Dragon Vestibule Outfitting Hardware Gather
Dragon Rendezvous Operations Conference
Combustion Integrated Rack Hardware Return
Network Attached Storage (NAS) Hard Drive Swap
Ghost camera setup in Cupola
INTER-MAI-75. Equipment deactivation and cleanup
ABOUT GAGARIN FROM SPACE. Ham Radio Session with “The Leaders Club” Expedition
ALGOMETRIYA. Conducting measurements in tenso- and thermo-algometry mode
Completed Task List Activities
ESA Columbus Toolbox Cue Card Removal
USB Card Reader Swap
Dragon RPOP Setup
Ground Activities
All activities are complete unless otherwise noted.
N2 ABCM Inspections
LAB MCA Calibration
CUCU Broadcast Test
CEVIS Spare Stowage Confirmation
Crew Recorded Message
Three-Day Look Ahead:
Wednesday, 04/04: SpaceX-14 Capture and Berthing, SPHERES Run, Veggie03, Mouse Habitat Setup
Thursday, 04/05: Dragon Cargo Ops, Mouse Stress Defense, TangoLab 2 Install, TangoLab 1 Card R&R, POLAR Sample Xfr, MVP Install, NanoRacks Plate Reader2 Ops
Friday, 04/06: Veg03 Ops, Metabolic Tracking Setup, Mouse Stress Defense Ops, STP-H5 Imagery, Medical Contingency OBT, MVP Insertion Ops, Made-In-Space Setup, METEOR Ops
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 – Operate
Carbon Dioxide Removal Assembly (CDRA) Node 3 – Standby
Major Constituent Analyzer (MCA) Lab – Operate
Major Constituent Analyzer (MCA) Node 3 – Standby
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
