Space Stations

NASA Space Station Status Report 3 November, 2022 – Training for an Emergency

By SpaceRef Editor

Status Report

SpaceRef

November 4, 2022

Filed under Expedition 68, International Space Station, ISS, ISS On-orbit status, NASA

NASA Space Station Status Report 3 November, 2022 – Training for an Emergency — Astronaut Josh Cassada practices CPR on the space station. (Oct. 28, 2022)

NASA

The seven Expedition 68 crew members started Thursday training for an emergency aboard the International Space Station. Afterward, the orbiting septet split up and prepared for next week’s arrival of a U.S. cargo craft, worked on spacesuits, and organized spacewalking tools.

The station’s four astronauts and three cosmonauts began Thursday morning practicing emergency procedures in collaboration with mission controllers on the ground. The commander and six flight engineers from NASA, the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA), and Roscosmos reviewed actions they would take in the unlikely event of several contingency scenarios including a depressurization, an ammonia leak, or a fire. They also coordinated communication protocols with each other and ground controllers from around the world.

In the afternoon, two NASA Flight Engineers, Nicole Mann and Josh Cassada, paired up using a computer to run through a variety of maneuvers necessary to capture Northrop Grumman’s Cygnus space freighter when it arrives next week. Cygnus, packed with 8,200 pounds of cargo, is at the launch pad at NASA’s Wallops Flight Facility in Virginia counting down to its lift off atop the Antares rocket on Sunday at 5:50 a.m. EST. It will rendezvous with the station on Tuesday, where Mann be in the cupola to command the Canadarm2 robotic arm to reach out and capture Cygnus at 5:50 a.m. Cassada will back up Mann as he monitors the spacecraft’s automated approach.

Two astronauts and two cosmonauts have been focusing this week on upcoming spacewalking activities. Cassada and fellow Flight Engineer Frank Rubio spent the better part of Thursday swapping spacesuit components and organizing the Quest airlock for future spacewalks. Commander Sergey Prokopyev and Flight Engineer Dmitri Petelin checked parts on their Orlan spacesuits in the Poisk airlock, gathered spacewalking tools, and photographed their work for review by spacewalk specialists on the ground.

Flight Engineers Koichi Wakata of JAXA and Anna Kikina of Roscosmos focused their attention on lab maintenance activities after Thursday morning’s emergency scenario training. Wakata first checked components on the Microgravity Science Glovebox then turned off the Veggie space botany facility after the completion of experiment activities in both research devices. Kikina cleaned hardware inside the Nauka multipurpose laboratory module then measured her blood pressure and serviced urine samples for analysis.

On-Orbit Status Report

X2R21 Transition Activities: As part of the X2R21 software updates occurring this week, ground teams loaded and transitioned the S3 and P3 Multiplexer/Demultiplexers (MDMs) to S3P3 R7 and installed the CCS R21 Timeliner bundle to the primary Command and Control (C&C) MDM. Today’s activities concluded the X2R21 software transition, and the ISS is now using the newest software. The X2R21 software updates will provide support for new vehicles such as the HTV-X1 and DCC-1, add safing for rack relocation activities, provide commanding and mode swap capabilities, and provide a number of other generic system improvements.

Payloads:

Electrostatic Levitation Furnace (ELF): Photos of the Sample Vacuum Cleaner Nozzle were taken in order to confirm correct sample is on-board. The ELF is an experimental facility designed to levitate/melt/solidify materials by containerless processing techniques using the Electrostatic Levitation method. With this facility, thermophysical properties of high temperature melts can be measured, and solidification from deeply undercooled melts can be achieved. The ELF is located in the JEM Multipurpose Small Payload Rack (MSPR) in the Kibo Module.

Lumina: The Lumina hardware data was transferred and parameters changed with EveryWear application. Fiber-optic Active Dosimeter (Lumina) is an active fiber dosimeter that monitors, in real-time, the received radiation dose by exploiting the capacity of optical fibers to darken when exposed to radiation. The dosimeter provides reliable dose measurements in complex environments such as the ones associated with electrons, protons, gamma-ray or X-ray photons or neutrons.

Veggie Facility: The Veggie Facility was deactivated post XROOTS operations. The Vegetable Production System (Veggie) is a deployable plant growth unit capable of producing salad-type crops to provide the crew with a palatable, nutritious, and safe source of fresh food and a tool to support relaxation and recreation. The Veggie Facility provides lighting and nutrient delivery and utilizes the cabin environment for temperature control and as a source of carbon dioxide to promote growth.

Systems:

Training for Emergency Response On-board ISS: The crew practiced ISS Emergency Response for ISS emergency scenarios with ground teams based on information provided by the simulator displays. The crew executed procedures and decision making based on cues provided by the simulator and physically translated through the ISS to appropriate response locations to visualize the use of equipment and interfaces. This allows the crew to practice communication and coordination with MCC-H and MCC-M teams for a given emergency scenario.

In-Flight Maintenance (IFM) Waste and Hygiene Compartment (WHC) Pre-Treat Tank Remove & Replace (R&R): The crew R&R’d the Pre-Treat Tank as part of nominal WHC preventative maintenance. Each tank contains five liters of pre-treat solution, a mix of acid, chromium oxide, and water, used for toilet flushing and required for nominal WHC operation.

Extravehicular Activity (EVA) Preparations: After the issue with Extravehicular Mobility Unit (EMU) 3009 during yesterday’s EVA preparation activities, the crew will use EMU 3004 for the upcoming EVAs. Today, they completed a resize from EMU 3009 to EMU 3004, removed the EMU battery and Li-Ion Rechargeable EVA Battery Assembly (LREBA) battery from EMU 3009, and R&R’d the Hard Upper Torso (HUT) on EMU 3004. The R&R changed out the installed medium HUT with a large HUT. Additionally, the crew practiced donning Simplified Aid for EVA Rescue (SAFER) and started preparing the Equipment Lock and EMUs 3004 and 3013 for an upcoming On-orbit Fitcheck Verification (OFV).

Cygnus NG-18 Arrival Preparations: Today, the crew gathered and stowed Centerline Berthing Camera System (CBCS) and vestibule closeout equipment in preparation for NG-18 arrival on Tuesday, November 8^th. The CBCS will be installed at Node 1 Nadir and checked out by the crew tomorrow. Additionally, the two crewmembers assigned to NG-18 capture operations practiced offset grapples on the Permanent Multipurpose Module (PMM) Flight Releasable Grapple Fixture (FRGF). With the Space Station Remote Manipulator System (SSRMS) purposefully misaligned within tolerances and positioned at the PMM FRGF High Hover position, the two crewmembers took turns using the Cupola Robotic Workstation (RWS) to perform as many grapple approaches as desired. The two also used the time to determine how they would manage the volumetric constraints of the Cupola and understand the lighting conditions during SSRMS maneuvering.

Completed Task List Activities: