Status Report

MRPO Daily Status Report 07-10-02

By SpaceRef Editor
July 10, 2002
Filed under , ,

GMT Date: 191

Calendar Date: 07/10/02

Increment: 5

Stage: UF2

Week 5

Payloads currently on-board ISS:
ADVASC, BSTC, InSPACE, MAMS, MEPS, MSG (facility), PFMI, SAMS, StelSys, STES-8, SUBSA and ZCG. InSpace will not operate during this increment.

Status:
MRPO payloads ADVASC, MAMS, SAMS, STES 8 and ZCG continue nominal unattended operations. BSTC and StelSys operations have been successfully completed.

EXPRESS RACKS 1, 2 and 4 (ER1, ER2 & ER4) are powered and supporting payload operations. ER3 is installed in the US Lab and will be checked out later. ER5 was checked out during Increment 4 and powered down.

ADVASC is down-linking nominal health and status data. The crew is scheduled to photograph the plants from inside the growth chamber today to determine if the plants are blooming. If the plants are blooming, it is earlier than expected and environmental changes need to be implemented earlier than planned.

MAMS is operating nominally in the quasi-steady mode. HiRAP is turned-off. MAMS data is available on the acceleration measurement web page.

MEPS has been transferred to ER1 and initial operations are scheduled for week 6.
The MSG facility was powered-up today to support SUBSA operations. One fan did not work but adequate negative pressure was maintained in the work volume, by the second fan, for SUBSA operations to proceed. The SUBSA run was terminated early and trouble-shooting procedures are being planned.

PFMI is stowed in the US Lab and is scheduled to operate in the MSG late in this increment.

SAMS equipment in all EXPRESS racks is operating nominally. The SAMS sensor in the MSG was activated today but it did not communicate with the SAMS Interface Control Unit.

Trouble-shooting is in progress. SAMS data is also being posted to the acceleration measurement web page.

STES-8 is down-linking nominal health and status data. Growth chamber number three was deactivated on day 180. A second growth chamber is planned for deactivation on day 200.

Initial SUBSA operations were attempted today but false sample temperature readings on-board, and on the ground, caused the run to be terminated shortly after it was started. Sample 05 was to be used today but the containment tube was cracked and sample 06 was installed. Trouble-shooting is in progress.

ZCG furnace operations are nominal. Furnace power-down is planned for Friday, 7/12. Sample removal and electronics power-down is planned for next Monday, 7/15.

Near-term Outlook:

Week 5 (7/8-7/14) ) – Planning for this week was based on approximately 18 hours of crew time availability for NASA payload operations. Progress 8 transfer operations are continuing and the crew is reviewing/practicing robotic arm operations daily. MSG/SUBSA/SAMS trouble-shooting and ZCG furnace power-down are planned.

Week 6 (7/15-7/21) – Preliminary planning is being based on approximately 15 hours of crew time availability for NASA payload operations. ADVASC sampling; ZCG electronics power-down and sample removal; MEPS activation, operation and deactivation; multiple MSG/SUBSA operations; STES-8 growth chamber 6 deactivation and SAMS hard-drive and battery swap are planed.

M. Vlasse, PhD, DSc
MRPO Increment Scientist

ACRONYMS:
ADVASC – Advanced Astroculture
BCSS — Biotechnology Cell Science Stowage
BSTC– Biotechnology Specimen Temperature Controller (General status information on this payload will include coverage of the following items of support equipment: BTR, BCSS and GSM)
BTR — Biotechnology Refrigerator
ER1– EXPRESS RACK 1
ER2 — EXPRESS RACK 2
ER3 – EXPRESS RACK 3
ER4 – EXPRESS RACK 4
ER5 – EXPRESS RACK 5
GSM — Gas Supply Module
InSPACE- Investigating the Structure of Paramagnetic Aggregates
MAMS — Microgravity Acceleration Measurement System
MCOR -Medium Rate Communication Outage Recorder
MEPS – Microencapsulation Electrostatic Processing System
MSG – Microgravity Science Glovebox
PFMI – Pore Formation and Mobility Investigation
SAMS — Space Acceleration Measurement System II
STES – Protein Crystal Growth – Single Thermal Enclosure System
SUBSA – Solidification Using a Baffle in Sealed Ampoules
ZCG – Zeolite Crystal Growth

SpaceRef staff editor.