Expedition Three ISS Science Operations Weekly Science Status Report Nov. 16, 2001
Space Station experiments ranging from biology and human physiology to materials
processing and education were on track to pass the 50,000-hour operating mark
during the past week as Expedition Three nears its end later this month.
ìWe’ve taken our first few steps to do continuous
research operations,î said Expedition Three Lead Increment Scientist John Uri,
reflecting on science operations to date on the Station. ìWe’ve got a great
team. We’ve gotten a lot better about operations and being more efficient in
saving crew time. A lot of good science has already come down.î
Those automated experiments continuing to run this week include the Advanced
Protein Crystallization Facility, Materials International Space Station
Experiment, Space Acceleration Measurement System, Microgravity
Acceleration Measurement System, and Dynamically Controlled Protein Crystal
Growth, and Experiment on Physics of Colloids in Space.
The Active Rack Isolation System ISS Characterization Experiment (ARIS-ICE)
conducted more short duration tests Monday through Thursday of the ARIS
controller. The purpose is to study stability and isolation performance
of new ARIS controller computer algorithms necessary to handle different
ARIS rack hardware configurations. Data file downlink and analysis
continue. ARIS-ICE plans to conclude experiment operations in Expedition
Four. NASA managers decided last week to leave the ARIS ICE Payload
On-orbit Processor aboard the Station because it is useful for testing
tool for ARIS equipped Express racks arriving on future missions.
The Colloids experiment conducted a 48-hour test run that began Monday and
ended Wednesday. Scientists on the ground commanded it to start another 48-hour
test run on Thursday. Like the 24-hour test completed November 9 and 10, these
runs included low angle light scattering and time-lapse images of the phase
separation of the colloid-polymer critical point sample. Scientists are able
to repeatedly stir the colloid samples, allow them to crystallize, and re-mix
them to study colloid behavior.
The final Hoffman Reflex session for all three crewmembers is planned
for today (November 16). On the task list of optional items for the crew this
week as their schedules permit are the Crew Interactions survey, Bonner
Ball status check, Crew Earth Observations photography and DREAMTiME
videography of various geographic locations on Earth.
Geographic locations for the Crew Earth Observations photography program
this week included Detroit, Cleveland, Pittsburgh and Washington/Baltimore;
the Central Valley of California; high central Andean glaciers; the Tuamotu
Archipelago; reefs of American Samoa; human development in the Red Basin of
Western China; the Philippine Islands; reefs in Malaysia; fault lines of the
Rukwa Transform in Tanzania, the New England coast and the Appalachians and
Piedmont areas of the United States.
Roughly eight hours of crew time is allocated to payload activities this week
as the crew rests from their November 12 spacewalk, and begins the process of
preparing Station equipment and payloads for return to Earth and to support
Expedition Four. At the Payload Operations Center in Huntsville, Ala.,
the new Expedition Four team of controllers began phasing in to operations during
the past week.
