ISS On-Orbit Status 23 Apr 2003

All ISS systems continue to function nominally, except as noted previously or below.  Day 151 for Expedition 6 (since STS-113 launch, 11/23/02).

Early before breakfast, FE-1 Nikolai Budarin started the Russian medical experiment PZE MO-11 (blood chemistry analysis) by taking blood samples, assisted by FE-2/SO Don Pettit as CMO (crew medical officer).  For the test, yesterday he destowed kits and accessories of the Reflotron 4 blood analyzer (earlier versions were already on Mir).  The analysis was conducted several times during the day.  [Fresh blood was drawn from Budarin’s finger with a pipette, 20 min. after he had imbibed 250 ml of warm water or plain (unsugared) tea.  Clinical parameters were then determined from the collected samples.  Using various reagent tabs, the blood was tested for such parameters as hemoglobin, glucose, bilirubin, amylase, uric acid, triglycerides, urea, etc.  The tubes with blood samples were then stored in  the refrigerator.  The Reflotron 4 uses 40 W of power, supplied by the SM electrical system.]

CDR Ken Bowersox and Don Pettit completed their regular PFE (periodic fitness evaluation) session.  Performed on the CEVIS (cycle ergometer with vibration isolation), the PFE checks up on blood pressure (BP) and electrocardiogram (ECG) during programmed exercise, with the BP/ECG and HRM (heart rate monitor watch) equipment.  [After the PFE, conducted with EGDH (early generalized data handler) software, they collected five minutes of real-time BP/ECG data via a MEC (medical equipment computer) 1553 card/cable connection, to validate newly updated GDH software.  Start of GDH and subsequent real-time data dump, enabled by the 1553 connection, were ground-commanded.]

Bowersox and Budarin were scheduled to conduct the second SUD motion control system test of the Soyuz-211 (TMA-1) to check on its readiness for undocking and descent.  [This test assumed nonavailability of U.S. S-band communications during the post-undock period, relying on Soyuz comm. Assets and Russian ground site (RGS) coverage alone.]

After yesterday’s installation of the new condensate separator and sample container in the SKV-K2M condensate water processor, Nikolai Budarin today went back for another check behind the Service Module (SM) wall to make sure that the SKV1 fan (VR) is not spreading moisture.

Budarin also dismantled and removed the Russian TEX-25 Skorpion payload in the SM and stowed it in its kit for return.  Skorpion has flown before during Expedition Four.  [Skorpion’s objective was to monitor environmental radiation parameters with dosimeters inside station compartments at various places and to characterize environmental conditions for conducting scientific and technical experiments.  Skorpion required about 6 W of energy and is supported by photography of the deployed hardware.]

Thanks to Don Pettit’s superior soldering skills, the results of his continued repair activity of the ARCTIC-1 refrigerator/freezer yesterday “far exceeded” the ARCTIC team’s hopes.  [Don was able to recover degraded function of six out of eight TEDs (thermoelectric devices).  New instructions and a wiring diagram for today’s troubleshooting were uplinked, while the engineering team is assessing the capability of the ARCTIC in the newly restored configuration.  Each of the TEDs (i.e., the heat pumps providing the refrigeration function) consists of many (~100) semiconductor cells (crystalline Bismuth Telluride, Bi2Te3) in series, arranged in two stages in form of a double-decker sandwich between aluminum oxide ceramic plates.  Where the two stages are no longer correctly connected, possibly due to corrosion, new solder junctions are required.]

The crew drew words of praise for the cleaning of smoke detector #2 (SD2) in the Node yesterday and for the resulting video tape.  According to the ground, the sensor “looks like a brand-new smoke detector”.  [SD2 readings have been degraded for over a year, such that the SD was taken offline.  The crew cleaned the internal components of the device using the vacuum cleaner, a type of cleaning that has never been performed by the on-orbit crew but was scheduled since no other SD will be delivered until Shuttle return-to-flight.  The cleaning was successful, wires were inspected OK and photos were downlinked for review on the ground. SD readings have now returned to nominal values.]  

Bowersox performed the daily routine maintenance of the SOZh life support system (including the ASU toilet facility) and did the regular Lab payload status checkup, while Pettit prepared the daily IMS (inventory management system) “delta” file for updating the IMS database.

Nikolai completed his regular daily 5-min. inspection of the BIO-5 Rasteniya-2/Lada-2 (“Plants-2”) plant growth experiment.

The crew continued their preparations for the upcoming handover activities to the Expedition 7 crew on 4/28-5/3 and their own return on Soyuz TMA-1 on 5/4.

All crewmembers worked out on the RED resistive trainer, CEVIS cycle ergometer and TVIS treadmill, completing their daily physical exercise program.

Bowersox’s schedule calls for another consumables inventory, this time of trash bag liners and urine prefilters.  As with the other consumables audits, its results will be used for manifest decisions for upcoming Progress flights.

Preliminary plan for the reduced-capacity battery #4 in the SM, now off-line, is to perform a full discharge/recharge cycle following 5S/Soyuz undock in early May.  [RSC-Energia is coordinating with Khrunichev SC for use of the remaining FGB spare 800A battery on board onboard.  An additional 800A battery is currently shown on the manifest for 11P/Progress.]

The crew today downlinked three PAO messages of greetings and thanks for taping for various clients, viz., the Cocoa Beach Space Congress, the Columbia Recovery Teams reception in Lufkin, TX on 4/29, and a conference of German engineers (including those who built the MSG/Glovebox) at Münster, Germany.

Launch preparations for 6S/Soyuz at the Baikonur Cosmodrom remain on schedule.  Rollout of the Soyuz launcher plus spacecraft will take place tomorrow (overnight Eastern time).  Launch of 6S is currently still set for 11:54pm EDT on 4/25 (Friday night).

Today’s CEO (crew earth observations) targets, currently restricted by limited the use of the science window in the Lab including near-vertical targets from the city target list due to the current XPOP attitude, were Western Mediterranean Dust (dust entering the Mediterranean should have been visible left and right of track over Tunisia as a front passed through the Strait of Gibraltar), Atlanta, Georgia (nadir pass; ESC [electronic still camera]), Tucson, Arizona (nadir pass; ESC), French Frigate Shoals (nadir pass over these coral reefs in the chain of atolls stretching NW from Hawaii.  Detail images needed for a global mapping study of reefs), Moscow region (Dynamic event. Best opportunity in many months continues. Long views north towards Moscow suggested. Looking oblique left), and Eastern Europe clear (Dynamic event. Best opportunity in many months continues.  From Denmark, eastwards).
CEO images can be viewed at the websites
http://eol.jsc.nasa.gov and
http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov

U.S. and Russian Segment Status (as of 1:54pm EST).

Environmental Control and Life Support (ECLSS) and Thermal Control (TCS):

• Elektron O2 generator is powered On (32 Amp mode).  Vozdukh CO2 scrubber is On (manual mode 5).  U.S. CDRA CO2 scrubber is Off.  TCCS (trace contaminant control subsystem) is operating.  MCA (major constituents analyzer) is operating.  BMP Harmful Impurities unit: absorbent bed #1 in Purify mode, bed #2 in Purify mode.  RS air conditioner SKV-1 is On; SKV-2 is Off.
• SM Working Compartment:  Pressure (mmHg) — 742; temperature (deg C) — 27.2; ppO2 (mmHg) — data invalid; ppCO2 (mmHg) — data invalid.
• SM Transfer Compartment:  Pressure (mmHg) — 751; temperature (deg C) — 21.4.
• FGB Cabin:  Pressure (mmHg) — 752; temperature (deg C) — 22.7.
• Node:  Pressure (mmHg) — 741.98; temperature (deg C) — 23.6 (shell); ppO2 (mmHg) — 166.5; ppCO2 (mmHg) — 4.2.
• U.S. Lab:  Pressure (mmHg) — 744.21; temperature (deg C) — 22.2; ppO2 (mmHg) — n/a; ppCO2 (mmHg) — n/a.
• Joint Airlock (Equip. Lock):  Pressure (mmHg) — 744.31; temperature (deg C) — 23.6; shell heater temp (deg C) — 24.0, ppO2 (mmHg) — n/a; ppCO2 (mmHg) — n/a.
• PMA-1:  Shell heater temp (deg C) — 24.2
• PMA-2:  Shell heater temp (deg C) — 12.9

         (n/a = data not available)

Propulsion System (PS):

• Total propellant load available: 3668 kg (8086 lb) as of 4/17/03 [SM(774) + FGB(2642) + Progress(252)].  (Capability: SM — 860 kg; FGB — 6120 kg).

Electrical Power Systems (EPS):

• Both P6 channels fully operational.  BGA (beta gimbal assembly) 2B and 4B both in Autotrack (sun-following).
• SM batteries:  Battery #4 is disconnected, in stand-alone ops; all other batteries (7 are in “Partial Charge” mode.
• FGB batteries:  Battery #5 is disconnected; all other batteries (5) are in “Partial Charge” mode.
• Plasma Contactor Unit PCU-1 and PCU-2 both in Standby mode (after the EVA)

Command & Data Handling Systems:

• C&C-1 MDM is prime, C&C-2 is back-up, and C&C-3 is in standby.
• GNC-1 MDM is prime; GNC-2 is Backup.
• INT-1 is operating; INT-2 is Off.
• EXT-2 is On (primary), EXT-1 is Off (both now upgraded to R3).
• LA-1, LA-2 and LA-3 MDMs are all operating.
• PL-2 MDM is On (primary); PL-1 MDM is Off
• APS-1 (automated payload switch #1) and APS-2 are both On.
• SM Terminal Computer (TVM): 3 redundant lanes (of 3) operational. Being upgraded.
• SM Central Computer (TsVM): 3 redundant lanes (of 3) operational. Being upgraded.

Attitude Control Systems:

• 3 CMGs on-line (CMG-1 failed).
• State vector source — U.S. SIGI-1 (GPS)
• Attitude source — U.S. SIGI-1 (GPS)
• Angular rate source — RGA-2

Flight Attitude:

• XPOP (x-axis perpendicular to orbit plane = “sun-fixed” [yaw: 0.5 deg, pitch: -8.8 deg., roll: 0 deg]), with CMG TA (thruster assist) Momentum Management.
• Solar Beta Angle: -38.8 deg (magnitude decreasing).

Communications & Tracking Systems:

• FGB MDM-1 is powered Off; FGB MDM-2 is operational.
• All other Russian communications & tracking systems are nominal.
• S-band is operating nominally.
• Ku-band is operating nominally.
• Audio subsystem operating nominally.
• Video subsystem operating nominally (VTR1 is operable again; VTR2 in troubleshooting).
• HCOR (high-rate communications outage recorder) is operating nominally.

Robotics:

• SSRMS/Canadarm2 based at LAB PDGF with Keep Alive (KA) power on both strings.
• MBS: KA power on both strings. 
• MT: latched at WS4, with KA power. 
• POA: KA power on both strings.
• RWS (robotics workstations): Lab RWS is Off; Cupola RWS is Off.

ISS Orbit  (as of this morning, 7:46am EDT [= epoch]):

• Mean altitude  392.1 km
• Apogee — 396.6 km
• Perigee — 387.6 km
• Period — 92.40 min.
• Inclination (to Equator) —  51.63 deg
• Eccentricity — 0.0006641
• Orbits per 24-hr. day — 15.58
• Solar Beta Angle:  -38.8 deg (magnitude decreasing)
• Mean altitude loss in last 24 hours — 120 m
• Revolutions since FGB/Zarya launch (Nov. ’98)  — 25247
• For more on ISS orbit and worldwide naked-eye visibility dates/times, see http://www.hq.nasa.gov/osf/station/viewing/issvis.html