NASA Space Station On-Orbit Status 3 March, 2021 – Studying High-powered Space Computing
Preparations are stepping up ahead of Friday’s spacewalk at the International Space Station to continue solar array modifications.
The Expedition 64 crew is also studying high-powered space computing while maintaining orbital lab systems.
Flight Engineers Kate Rubins and Soichi Noguchi are getting ready to begin a spacewalk on Friday to finish installing solar array modification kits. The installation work began during a spacewalk on Feb. 28 to ready the station for new, more powerful solar arrays being delivered soon on upcoming SpaceX Dragon cargo missions.
The duo will set their spacesuits to battery power about 7 a.m. EST on Friday officially beginning the fourth spacewalk of the year. They will exit the U.S. Quest airlock and maneuver to the far-left side of the station to their worksite on the Port-6 truss structure. Rubins of NASA and Noguchi of JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency) will spend about six-and-a-half hours wrapping up the modifications and performing get-ahead work if time permits. NASA TV begins its live spacewalk coverage at 5:30 a.m.
As the spacewalk preparations are underway, the rest of the crew is staying focused on a multitude of research work. Ensuring the stable operation of space station systems is also a daily priority.
Space technology is a big topic and scientists want to extend the power of Earth-based data processing to microgravity. Today, NASA Flight Engineer Victor Glover installed the Spaceborne Computer-2 delivered last month aboard the Cygnus space freighter. The new computing device, located in Europe’s Columbus laboratory module, seeks to demonstrate artificial intelligence and high-powered computations on the station rather than downloading scientific data for analysis on Earth.
NASA astronauts Shannon Walker and Michael Hopkins worked on space plumbing tasks on Wednesday. Walker readied cables that will power the station’s new water recycling device, the Brine Processor Assembly. Hopkins worked on fluid transfers and swapped pipes inside the Waste and Hygiene Compartment, the station’s bathroom in the U.S. segment.
Commander Sergey Ryzhikov completed a 24-hour session that recorded his electrical heart signal with a portable electrocardiogram. Flight Engineer Sergey Kud-Sverchkov repressurized the station’s environment with nitrogen stored inside the docked ISS Progress 77 cargo ship.
On-Orbit Status Report
Payloads
Exploration Environmental Control and Life Support System: Brine Processor System (BPA): The crew routed the power cable to the BPA hardware. The BPA is designed to improve water recycling on the International Space Station and boost the efficiency of water recycling for the Artemis generation.
Dose Distribution Inside the ISS – 3D (DOSIS-3D): The crew installed and connected cables of a new DOSTEL-1 unit to the DOSIS main box. This spare unit is a refurbished unit that was flown on NG-15. International Space Station crewmembers are continually exposed to varying levels of radiation which can be harmful to their health. DOSIS-3D uses several active and passive detectors to determine the radiation doses inside the ISS. The goal is a three-dimensional radiation map covering all sections of the ISS.
Investigation of Mechanism of Faceted Cellular Array Growth (Facet): The crew installed the Facet Cell into the Solution Crystallization Observation Facility (SCOF). Then the crew removed the Fluid Physics Experiment Facility (FPEF) cable from the Ryutai Rack and connected the SCOF cables. Facet will investigate the phenomena at the solid-liquid interface for crystallization, especially for facet-like crystallization, which are considered to be strongly influenced by the temperature and concentration distributions in the liquid phase.
TangoLab Mission-20: The crew performed troubleshooting steps to resolve a connection issue of Card-18 in the TangoLab-1 facility but connecting the card with cube into TangoLab-2. The ground reported seeing good voltages on the card. Nitrogen Fixation of Leguminous Species in Micro-G (Symbiotic Leguminous Nitrogen Fixation) explores the effects of microgravity on the growth and development of legumes, plants capable of biological nitrogen fixation with symbiotic bacteria. Reduced nitrogen is an essential element of agriculture, but plants use only reduced forms of nitrogen. Knowing how microgravity affects the nitrogen reduction process is key to successfully growing plants on future missions.
The ISS Experience: The crew performed trouble shooting steps on the ISS Experience EVA Z-Camera by removing it from the JEM Airlock and examining and checking the pin connections with a multimeter. Observations were related to the ground. The ISS Experience is a cinematic virtual reality (VR) series documenting life and research aboard the space station. Filmed over multiple months, the immersive VR series documents different crew activities – from science conducted aboard the station to preparation for a spacewalk.
Systems
Extravehicular Activity (EVA) Preparations: The crew completed several activities in preparation for the ISS Upgrades III EVA. The crew configured EVA tools, reviewed procedures, and participated in a conference with the ground. Additionally, the crew completed On-Board Training (OBT) for the Extravehicular Mobility Unit (EMU) Enhanced Caution and Warning System (ECWS) and practiced EVA cuff checklist procedures. The ISS Upgrades III EVA (United States On-orbit Segment EVA 72) is scheduled for Friday, March 5th.
Waste and Hygiene Compartment (WHC) Piping Remove & Replace (R&R): The crew performed an R&R of the piping between the pump separator and the dose pump. The piping is replaced every 6 months as part of preventive maintenance to ensure continued performance and preclude a functional failure.
Temperature and Humidity Control (THC) Intermodule Ventilation (IMV) Flow Measurement: As part of system health monitoring, the crew used a Velocicalc tool to measure the amount of airflow through selected ventilation inlets and outlets. Today’s measurements were taken in Node 3 prior to the BPA power cable routing and partial installation.
Completed Task List Activities:
ARED Crank Handle Troubleshooting
Today’s Ground Activities:
All activities are complete unless otherwise noted.
Crew-1 Dragon Monthly Wake-up and Checkout
JEMAL Commanding
JEMRMS File Operations
UTS Commanding for Recycle Tank Drain
Look Ahead Plan
Thursday, March 4 (GMT 063)
Payloads:
Hunch tape Lap Ops (NASA)
Mochii Power vac check (NASA)
HRF-1 sply Inventory (NASA)
SERFE Analysis and Cold stowage insert (NASA)
Food Acceptability (NASA)
EarthKam Node 2 lens change (NASA)
BPA Power cable install (NASA)
LSR H2O QD unpack and stow (ESA)
PBRE water inspect (NASA)
Systems:
EVA Tool Configuration & Audit
EVA Procedure Review & Conference
EVA Equipment Lock Preparation
COL PPSB Fuse Remove
TOCA Calibration Checkout
Friday, March 5 (GMT 064)
Payloads:
HRF-1 Rack handle R&R (NASA)
Food Acceptability (NASA)
AC-Touch (NASA)
PBRE water check (NASA)
Systems:
ISS Upgrades III EVA
ECLSS PEPS Inspection
JSL Node 3 Gigabit Ethernet Cable Routing
Saturday, March 6 (GMT 065)
Payloads:
Crew Off-Duty
Systems:
EVA Debrief Conference
EMU H2O Recharge
Today’s Planned Activities:
All activities are complete unless otherwise noted.
TangoLab CardSwap Troubleshooting
Eddy Current Assist
JEM Airlock Slide Table (ST) Extension to JPM Side
LOR. Experiment Ops
Extravehicular Activity (EVA) Tool Configuring
Facet Cell Installation
ISS Experience EVA Z-Cam Troubleshooting
Solution Crystallization Observation Facility (SCOF) Cable Connection
PBRE/MSG Water Release Inspection/Cleanup
SM air sampling using ??-1? sampler
Antimicrobial Coatings Touch
JEM Airlock Slide Table (ST) Retraction from JPM Side
AstroPi SD card exchange
Temperature and Humidity Control (THC) Intermodule Ventilation (IMV) Flow Measurement Survey
Filling ??? from Progress 445 (DC1) Rodnik H2O Tank 1
Portable Breathing Apparatus (PBA) Cargo Transfer Bag (CTB) Deploy
Regen (RGN) EDV Drain
Extravehicular Activity (EVA) Procedure Review
ISS HAM Antenna Cable Change 3
ISS HAM Antenna Cable Change 4
DOSIS DOSTEL-1 and its cables installation.
Micro-16 SABL USB Drive Removal
ISS HAM Service Module Pass
Brine Processor Assembly (BPA) Power Cable Install
ISS N2 repress from Progress 445 (DC1) ???? section 1
Extravehicular Activity (EVA) Procedure Conference
Environmental Health System (EHS) Total Organic Carbon Analyzer (TOCA) Water Recovery System (WRS) Sample Analysis
LSG Work Volume Deploy & Stow
Regen EDV Drain Swap
Diagnostics of FGB ???? 11?156? devices
24-hour ECG recording (termination)
Extravehicular Activity Mobility Unit (EMU) Enhanced Caution and Warning System (ECWS) On-Board Training
Recycle Tank Drain to Resupply Tank (RST)
Troubleshooting FGB Power Supply System ??-2 and ???-2 devices using oscilloscope
BD-2 Log Files Copying
In Flight Maintenance (IFM) Waste Hygiene Compartment (WHC) Piping R&R
Spaceborne Computer-2 Installation 1 (ABORTED)
Spaceborne Computer-2 Installation 2 (ABORTED)
Spaceborne Computer-2 Cable Installation (ABORTED)
VZAIMODEISTVIYE-2. Experiment Ops
EXPRESS Rack 10 Payload MTL Flow Rate Adjust (ABORTED)
Spaceborne Computer-2 Power ON (ABORTED)
Crew Dragon Forward Monthly PCS Checkout
Environmental Health System (EHS) – Compound Specific Analyzer-Combustion (CSA-CP) Checkout
Laptop RSK1 battery checkout
