NASA Space Station On-Orbit Status 9 August 2017 – Firing Soyuz Engines to Raise the Station’s Orbit
A docked Russian cargo craft fired its engines today slightly raising the orbit of the International Space Station. The orbital boost sets up next month’s crew swap. The SpaceX Dragon cargo craft also received a new target launch date while the crew gets ready for a spacewalk next week.
NASA astronauts Peggy Whitson and Jack Fischer will return to Earth on Sept. 2 with cosmonaut Fyodor Yurchikhin wrapping up their Expedition 52 mission. Fischer and Yurchikhin will each have lived 135 consecutive days in space while Whitson will have 289 days. The next crew, with cosmonaut Alexander Misurkin and astronauts Mark Vande Hei and Joe Acaba, launches Sept. 13 to begin a 167-day mission in space.
SpaceX announced a one-day launch slip of its Dragon cargo craft atop a Falcon 9 rocket. Dragon is now targeted to launch Monday at 12:31 p.m. EDT from Kennedy Space Center. Fischer and astronaut Paolo Nespoli of the European Space Agency are training for Dragon’s arrival and capture planned for Wednesday at 7 a.m.
Two cosmonauts are also gearing up for a spacewalk amidst the cargo mission and crew swap preparations. The experienced Russian spacewalkers, Yurchikhin with eight career spacewalks and Sergey Ryazanskiy with three, performed leak checks, installed batteries and sized up their Orlan spacesuits and ahead of their Aug. 17 spacewalk.
On-Orbit Status Report
Human Research Program (HRP): The crew collected blood, urine and air samples today to satisfy Return minus 15 days (R-15) Cardio Ox, Flight Day 15 (FD 15) and R-15 Biochemical Profile and R-30 and Launch plus 12 days (L+12) Marrow requirements.
By collecting Cardio Ox ultrasound and ECG data, along with blood and urine samples, scientists will try to determine whether biological markers of oxidative and inflammatory stress are elevated during and after space flight and whether this results in an increased, long-term risk of atherosclerosis in astronauts.
The Biochem Profile experiment tests blood and urine samples obtained from astronauts before, during and after spaceflight. Specific proteins and chemicals in the samples are used as biomarkers, or indicators of health. Post-flight analysis yields a database of samples and test results which scientists can use to study the effects of spaceflight on the body.
The Marrow investigation looks at the effect of microgravity on bone marrow. It is believed that microgravity, like long-duration bed rest on Earth, has a negative effect on the bone marrow and the blood cells that are produced in the bone marrow.
Multi Omics-Mouse: The crew continued preparations for the Multi-Omics Mouse investigation subjects arriving on SpX-12. They removed the Mouse Habitat Cage Units from the Cell Biology Experiment Facility (CBEF) and performed water nozzle checks. They also installed batteries in the vacuum cleaner and the CO2 Valve Unit.
At Home In Space: The crew completed a At Home in Space questionnaire.This Canadian Space Agency experiment assesses culture, values, and psychosocial adaptation of astronauts to a space environment shared by multinational crews on long-duration missions. It is hypothesized that astronauts develop a shared space culture that is an adaptive strategy for handling cultural differences and they deal with the isolated confined environment of the spacecraft by creating a home in space. At Home in Space uses a questionnaire to investigate individual and culturally related differences, family functioning, values, coping with stress, and post-experience growth.
Robonaut: The crew continued troubleshooting the intermittent fault in Robonaut’s power supply. Installation of a grounding jumper did not resolve the issue so additional troubleshooting steps are under development. Robonaut is a humanoid robot designed with the versatility and dexterity to manipulate hardware, work in high risk environments, and respond safely to unexpected obstacles. It is comprised of a torso with two arms and a head, and two legs with end effectors that enable the robot to translate inside the ISS by interfacing with handrails and seat tracks.
Dragon Robotics On-Board Trainer (RoBOT): In preparation for SpX-12 berthing currently scheduled for August 16, the crew completed this training consisting of a 30 meter approach, two Capture Point hold runs and 2 meter runs.
Remote Power Controller Module (RPCM) P12B_B Trip: This RPC powers the S-Band transponder for String 2. There were no impacts to voice or telemetry as S-Band String 1 was and continues to be prime. String 2 was in hot backup for ACS/UHF Audio Interface (AUAI) troubleshooting. The trip signature indicates a Field Effect Transistor (FET) Hybrid failure which would be the first occurrence for this RPC. Multiple closure attempts of RPC 10 were performed with no success. Two fully functional strings of ISS S-band are required per the SpaceX Launch Commit Criteria (LCC) Flight Rule. Teams met this morning to discuss and recommend a forward plan. This is an external RPCM that can be Removed and Replaced (R&R) by the Special Purpose Dexterous Manipulator (SPDM).
Failed Main Bus Switching Unit (MBSU) Retrieval Status: Last night, ground teams successfully translated the Mobile Transporter from Worksite 3 to Worksite 7. The degraded MBSU was then successfully installed on the JAXA Experiment Module (JEM) Orbital Replacement Unit (ORU) Transfer Interface (JOTI) and the slide table was retracted into the JEM airlock. The airlock will be pressurized Thursday morning. This MBSU is one of two failed units externally stowed on orbit that will be brought inside to undergo maintenance and repair.
ISS Reboost: An ISS reboost using 67P thrusters was successfully performed. This reboost, in combination with the next one planned for August 25th, will set up required conditions for 50S landing on September 3rd and 52S launch on September 12th.
Today’s Planned Activities
All activities were completed unless otherwise noted.
ISS Handover Ops Videos
Health Maintenance System (HMS) Spaceflight Cognitive Assessment Tool for Windows (WinSCAT) Test
SARCOLAB-3 Consumables Kit Refurbishment
50Sand 51S Samsung Tablet Battery Status Check and Recharge
URAGAN. Observation and Photography
ECON-M. Observation and photography
Marrow Breath And Ambient Air Sample Collection
HRF Generic Urine Collection Male
HRF Generic Sample MELFI Operations
HRF Generic Frozen Blood Collection
HRF Generic Refrigerated Centrifuge Double Spin
Power cycle NOD1 16-Port Ethernet Switch
Ultrasound 2 HRF Rack 1 Setup
??-3? Oxygen bottle pressure check in ???
Glisser-M Video Hardware Battery Charge
Total Organic Carbon Analyzer (TOCA) Water Recovery System (WRS) Sample Analysis
Orlan #6 and #4 ???? Battery Installation
Health Maintenance System (HMS) Ultrasound 2 Scan
At Home In Space Questionnaire
Orlan-MK #6 Spacesuit Height Sizing
Monitoring shutter closure on windows 6, 8, 9, 12, 13, 14
Mouse Habitat Unit Cage Swap
Orlan-MKS #4 Spacesuit Height Sizing
Orlan No.6 Backup Bladder Leak Check.
Mouse Habitat Unit Cage Removal
Orlan #6 leak and ??? (Orlan Interface Unit) leak checks and valve tests.
Ultrasound 2 Guided Data Export
PEPS Inspection
Mouse Habitat Unit Water Tank Filling
Mouse Habitat Unit Cage Removal
Review airlock ops procedure per RODF EVA from DC1.
MELFI Ice Brick Transfer 2
Utility Outlet Panel (UOP) Activation
Food Acceptability Questionnaire
OBT Dragon Robotics Onboard Trainer (ROBoT) Session 1
Orlan #4 leak and ??? leak check and valve tests.
Preparation of Glisser-M Video Hardware used during USOS EVA
Water Process Assembly (WPA) Multifiltration Bed (MF Bed) Effluent Samples
Glisser-M installation on Orlan #4 and #6.
Meteor Hard Drive Swapout
Robotic Workstation (RWS) Setup
SpX-12 Dragon Prepack
Health Maintenance System (HMS) Eye Exam – Fundoscope
CEVIS Portable PFS Partial Set Up
Completed Task List Items
ESA MARES Consumables Kit Consolidation
Robonaut CPCI Power Supply Troubleshooting
Ground Activities
All activities were completed unless otherwise noted.
Dragon RoBOT OBT
Fundoscope support
ISS Reboost
Three-Day Look Ahead:
Thursday, 08/10: CMS MAX CEVIS, Mouse habitat unit stow, Rodent Research inventory, SABL relocation
Friday, 08/11: CMS MAX CEVIS, SPHERES ops, 51S unpack, mobiPV checkout
Saturday, 08/12: Crew off duty, housekeeping
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”) – On
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) – Process
Urine Processing Assembly (UPA) – Standby
Trace Contaminant Control System (TCCS) Lab – Full up
Trace Contaminant Control System (TCCS) Node 3 – Off
