ISS On-Orbit Status 26 Mar 2002
All ISS systems continue to function nominally, except as noted previously or below.
CDR Yuri Onufrienko worked most of the day on Progress 7P, docked at the SM aft port. After clearing out the CPCF-2 (commercial protein crystallization facility #2) payload and other topmost stowed items yesterday, first task today was the important installation in 7P of the avionics container with the US-21 matching units, previously deinstalled from Progress 6P. These electronic blocks, essentially third-tier computers, are required to enable the SM to take control of Progress onboard systems with the SM TVM computers and MCS (motion control system). In particular, the Progress propulsion system can now be used for reboosts and orbital debris avoidance maneuvers, if required.
Having control of the Progress also requires its TMS (telemetry measuring system) to be connected to the SM’s BITS2-12 onboard TMS. Onufrienko completed this task, which involved ground commanding via S-band, at about 5:00 am EST.
Yuri then spent another hour on ASU toilet system maintenance, changing out the MP urine receptacle with a new one, replacing the filter insert and finally checking out the ASU performance from its control panel.
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Later, he and FE-1 Carl Walz continued unloading the Progress 7P cargo ship. [Main items today were new sets of RODF (Russian Operational Data Files) procedures for twelve discipline areas, both hard-copy pages and in digital form on CD-ROMs. The crew was advised to destroy the old procedures book pages as well as the old CDs and to replace them with the new material. Yuri was also to insert barcode stickers in the VKS auxiliary computer systems books for later use to label equipment stowage locations.]
FE-2 Dan Bursch completed regular MedOps microbial sampling using the SSK/MVK (surface sampling kit/water monitoring kit), as well as the MAS (microbial air sampler) for visual analysis and data entries into the MEC (medical equipment computer). Petri-dish-grown microbial colonies of the samples are photographed and visually analyzed using a colony density chart. Microanalysis pictures taken previously of the fungal/mildew samples will be downlinked to MCC-H later today and/or tomorrow.
Bursch also provided on-site support to a power-down of the VOA (volatile organic analyzer), ground-commanded via RPCM (remote power controller module). His task was to make sure that VOA completed a controlled power-down, instead of going into Standby or another mode, as has happened before, and to take appropriate steps in case it did so again.
MCC-H has uplinked eight new software files to the MEC to fix a “bug” in the current software of the TEPC (tissue equivalent proportional counter) which has prevented the ground from commanding the hardware into Acquisition mode after data dumps. As a temporary fix, the crew had to power-cycle (turn off/on) the TEPC manually after every data dump (Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays). The new files will now be transferred from the MEC to the TEPC.
At about 8:00 am EST, MCC-H began a 7-8 hour uplink of new step-up software loads to the GNC MDMs (guidance, navigation and control computers) to configure them for flight 8A as well as to set inhibits required for the US s/w activation and checkout period after 8A. First, the backup GNC MDM was loaded, then ISS attitude control was handed over to the RS (Russian segment) at 9:30 am, followed by swapping the GNC MDMs and configuring the second MDM, then returning control back to the USOS (US segment) at 12:37 pm. There was no crew action required.
At about 9:00 am, as part of further ARIS ICE (active rack with vibration isolation/isolation characterization experiment) checkout, the crew began recording video of their nominal onboard activities.Ê [The objective was to capture the effects of normal crew activities/movement in the Lab, and how they correspond to ARIS ICE data and ARIS system responses. To allow researchers to correlate the video and crew movement with the data, the crew was instructed to provide a verbal and visual cue at the start of recording. Approximately 40 minutes of video was desired.]
FE-1 Walz reconfigured the CCAAs (common cabin air assemblies) dehumidifiers in the Lab by switching them from the port unit to the starboard channel. This will allow going back to the dried-out port CCAA for the 8A mission.
The two FEs participated in a live interactive audio/visual NASA education event with Immaculate Conception School in Celina, Ohio, lasting about 15 minutes. In the presence of the Mayor of Celina, the Superintendent of Celina City Schools and various clergy, students engaged in a Q&A exchange with Dan and Carl.
High-resolution pictures of the recent P6 photovoltaic array survey by the crew are being reviewed on the ground. Early impression is that the 2B wing looks OK, while 4B appears to show some delaminations (seen before).
The issue of onboard regeneration of the U.S. Metox (metal oxide) canisters will be discussed tomorrow at a joint “Team Zero” meeting. As of now, the Russian side seems adversely inclined against the regeneration of the more efficient CO2/contaminant removal devices in the U.S. Airlock and advises use of the conventional nonrecycleable LiOH (lithium hydroxide) canisters for the 8A EVAs instead.
The issue of water venting from the Lab is also under continuing discussion. Condensate water from the U.S air dehumidifiers can only be recycled on the ISS via Russian systems, but the USOS generates so much water that it needs to be vented into space (retrograde from the Lab) or stored in CWCs (collapsible water containers) for transfer to the Shuttle (and venting from there). [The Russian side currently requests that (1) water venting from the Lab or docked Shuttle not be done whenever the Russian docking port is open, (2) no vents be performed later than 5-10 days before a Soyuz or Shuttle docking, and (3) that NASA review the basic need for doing these dumps from the station. The next water dump is currently scheduled to be done from the Shuttle after 8A undocking, on 4/12.]
CSA (Canadian Space Agency) today successfully completed final testing of the 6DOF (six degree-of-freedom) software patch for the SSRMS, to be used on its prime string during 8A. The patch will be delivered to NASA by close-of-business tonight. The replacement WR (wrist roll) joint, to be installed during an EVA on UF-2 in place of the failed WR joint, will be delivered with its FSE (flight support equipment) by 4/10. “Vertical” integration with the existing SSRMS software (not involving the FSE) will then follow, with certification of the replacement for flight by 4/16.
TsUP/Moscow has now explained why the flight of Progress M1-8 to ISS took one day longer than the usual “template” profile of two-day ascent-and-rendezvous: The flight phase of the automated cargo ship was used for non-standard maneuvers to test new accelerometers for the upgraded Soyuz TMA spacecraft (first flight as 5S/TMA-1 to ISS in October 2002). The tests were reportedly fully successful.
Today’s target areas for CEO (crew earth observations) were Patagonian Glaciers (some of the seldom-photographed glaciers at the southern end of the South Patagonian Ice Field were south [right] of the ISS track. There may have been scattered clouds, but these ice masses should be documented as Southern Hemisphere autumn sets in. On a second pass, to the right of track (S) were some of the largest glaciers on the eastern flank of the Andes. Crew was asked to record the extent of the glaciers that feed the large lakes in this region, particularly the more southerly ones), New Caledonia Reefs (Dynamic Event: Areas of coral bleaching, in response to warming sea temperatures, are increasing along New Caledonia. ISS had an excellent pass down the length of the island, which should have permitted the crew to take a detailed mapping strip [10% overlap of frames] documenting the health of the reefs).
One orbital debris conjunction object is being monitored: #27163 on 3/27 at 6:55 am. No action required at this time.
U.S. and Russian Segment Status (as of 2:00 pm EST today):
Environmental Control and Life Support (ECLSS) and Thermal Control (TCS):
- Elektron O2 generator is On (24 Amps mode). Vozdukh CO2 scrubber is ON in MANUAL cycle mode #5 (vacuum pump failed). U.S. CDRA CO2 scrubber is in Standby. BMP Harmful Impurities unit: Absorbent bed #1 in Purify mode, bed #2 in Purify mode.
- SM Working Compartment: Pressure (mmHg) — 764, temperature (deg C) — 26.6, ppO2 (mmHg) — 158.1, ppCO2 (mmHg) — 2.5.
- SM Transfer Compartment: Pressure (mmHg) — 767, temperature (deg C) — 21.7; ppO2 (mmHg) — n/a; ppCO2 (mmHg) — n/a.
- FGB Cabin: Pressure (mmHg) — 768, temperature (deg C) — 26.2; ppO2 (mmHg) — n/a; ppCO2 (mmHg) — n/a.
- Node: Pressure (mmHg) — 757.88, temperature (deg C) — 23.6 (shell); ppO2 (mmHg) — n/a; ppCO2 (mmHg) — n/a.
- U.S. Lab: Pressure (mmHg) — 759.76, temperature (deg C) — 25.1, ppO2 (mmHg) — n/a; ppCO2 (mmHg) — n/a;
- Joint Airlock (Equip. Lock): Pressure (mmHg) — 759.56, temperature (deg C) — 21.9; shell heater temp (deg C) — 22.7, ppO2 (mmHg) — n/a; ppCO2 (mmHg) — n/a.
- PMA-1: Shell heater temp (deg C) — 23.6
- PMA-2: Shell heater temp (deg C) — 13.3
(Note: Partial pressures ppO2 and ppCO2 in U.S. segment (USOS) not available because MCA [major constituent analyzer] is failed and in Extended Life mode [= a state that preserves mass spectrometer vacuum but produces no pp data]).
Electrical Power Systems (EPS):
- Beta Gimbal Assembly (BGA) 2B in Autotrack mode, BGA 4B in Autotrack mode.
- SM batteries: battery #2 offline (capacity restoration mode [ROM]); all other batteries (7) in “partial charge” mode.
- FGB battery #6 is offline (capacity restoration mode [ROM]); all other batteries (5) are in “partial charge” mode.
- Plasma Contactor Unit PCU-1 in Standby mode; PCU-2 in Standby mode.
Thermal Control Systems:
- Air conditioner SKV-1 is Off (Freon leak). SKV-2 is On.
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 back-up.
- LA-1, LA-2 and LA-3 MDMs are all operating.
- APS-1 (automated payload switch #1) and APS-2 are both On.
- SM Terminal Computer (TVM): 3 redundant lanes (of 3) operational.
- SM Central Computer (TsVM): 2 redundant lanes (of 3) operational.
Communications Systems:
- S-band is operating nominally.
- Ku-band is operating nominally.
- Audio subsystem operating nominally.
- Video subsystem operating nominally.
- MCOR (medium-rate communications outage recorder) operating nominally.
Robotics:
- SSRMS/Canadarm2 at Progress viewing position, with Keep Alive power on both strings.
- RWS (robotics workstations) are Off.
ISS Orbit (as of this morning, 6:34 am EST):
- Mean altitude — 391.0 km
- Apogee — 393.4 km
- Perigee — 388.7 km
- Period — 92.4 min.
- Inclination (to Equator) — 51.64 deg
- Eccentricity — 0.0003473
- Orbits per 24-hr. day — 15.59
- Altitude decrease — 300 m (mean) in last 24 hours
- Solar Beta Angle: +52.0 deg (magnitude increasing)
- Revolutions since FGB/Zarya launch (Nov. ’98) — 19113
- Current Flight Attitude — XPOP (x-axis perpendicular to orbit plane = “sun-fixed” [yaw: ~180 deg, pitch: -5 deg., roll: 0 deg])
For more on ISS orbit and naked-eye visibility dates/times, see
http://www.hq.nasa.gov/osf/station/viewing/issvis.html
