NASA ISS On-Orbit Status 19 September 2008

All ISS systems continue to function nominally, except those noted previously or below.
Post-Hurricane Ike Update: JSC/MCC-H operations will be handed back to Houston later today after the Progress thruster tests. JSC will open officially for business on 9/22 (Monday).
Working in the newly-arrived Progress M-65 cargo ship (TKG), CDR Volkov installed the LKT local temperature sensor commutator (TA251MB) of the BITS2-12 onboard telemetry measurement system, along with its ROM unit (read-only memory, TA765B), a 1-hr. job. The LKT was subsequently switched on by the ground to complete the basic configuration. [The standard US-21 matching unit was installed yesterday, connecting the SM (Service Module) with the Progress motion control and DPO thrusters systems, so that they can be commanded by the SM computer system (BVS). The Progress thrusters will be test fired later today to insure their functionality in providing attitude control for ISS. This fully incorporates 30P into the steering logic for the ISS.]
Volkov and FE-1 Kononenko had again several hours set aside for Progress unloading, transferring and stowing Russian & US cargo aboard the ISS, while tracking moves & locations in the IMS (Inventory Management System) database with BCRs (Bar Code Readers)
Afterwards, Sergey & Oleg undertook their fifth periodic (generally monthly) health test with the cardiological experiment PZEh MO-1 (“Study of the Bioelectric Activity of the Heart at Rest”) on the TVIS (Treadmill with Vibration Isolation System). [During the 50-min. test, the crewmembers tagged up with ground specialists on an RGS (Russian Groundsite) pass at ~12:23pm EDT via VHF and downlinked data from the Gamma-1M ECG (electrocardiograph) for about 5-6 minutes.]
Working in the JAXA Kibo laboratory, FE-2 Chamitoff continued outfitting activities, first assembling LDFR (Long Duration Foot Restraints), with plates and loops, and their mounting rails, then installing the LDFRs in the JPM (JEM Pressurized Module). After also unstowing and installing four SDFRs (Short Duration Foot Restraints) in Kibo, Gregory took a series of photographs in JPM and JLP (JEM Logistics Pressurized Section), documenting current stowage configurations.
Afterwards, Chamitoff replaced failed lights (GLAs/General Luminaire Assemblies) in Kibo, specifically in JLP
a failed LHA (Light Housing Assembly, FP2), replacing it with the LHA from lighting fixture PA2, plus a failed BBA (Baseband Assembly), and in JPM a failed LHA (OA2), replacing it with the LHA of OF2, plus a failed BBA (OF2).
Greg also made preparations for packing the dried marble papers that resulted from the JAXA EPO (Education Payload Operation) experiments AQUASPHERE and INK BALL for return to Earth. [The Japanese EPO program consists of eight activities: Life in the Universe (study of space environment effects on living things for educational purpose); Space Poem Chain (poems by famous poets and general public composed & recorded before the launch on a DVD, played and stored on ISS); Microgravity Clay (sculpting in clay to express the inspiration of human space flight); Aquasphere (recording the motion of a water sphere after external oscillations in micro-G environment with an HDTV camera, making various water shapes by vibration); Ink Ball (creating ink flow patterns/”marbling” on the water sphere, then transferring the marbling from the water ball to handmade Japanese papers for recording); Art (images taken with the HDTV camera on the ISS); Space Clothes (studying new clothing designs in space); and Photographing the Moon (images taken of the Moon from the station).]
In addition, the FE-2 performed troubleshooting on the JPM PLT (Payload Laptop), an A31p/ThinkPad, by calling up and checking its BIOS Setup Utility. As noticed early last month, the PLT had developed a noisy hard drive (see 8/1/08 status).
In the SM, the CDR completed the routine daily servicing of the SOZh system (Environment Control & Life Support System, ECLSS), today as a discretionary job from the “time permitting” task list. [Regular daily SOZh maintenance consists, among else, of checking the ASU toilet facilities, replacement of the KTO & KBO solid waste containers and replacement of EDV-SV waste water and EDV-U urine containers.]
The FE-1 performed the daily IMS maintenance, updating/editing its standard “delta file” including stowage locations, for the regular weekly automated export/import to its three databases on the ground (Houston, Moscow, Baikonur).
Gregory completed the weekly 10-min. CWC (Contingency Water Container) inventory as part of on-going WRM (Water Recovery & Management) assessment of onboard water supplies. Updated “cue cards” based on the crew’s water calldowns are sent up every other week. [The new card (17-0002Z) lists 30 CWCs (~1100.4 L total) for the four types of water identified on board: technical water (342.3 L, for flushing only because of Wautersia bacteria), potable water (706.7 L, incl. 174.6 L currently on hold), condensate water (34.4 L), waste/EMU dump and other (17 L). Wautersia bacteria are typical water-borne microorganisms that have been seen previously in ISS water sources. These isolates pose no threat to human health.]
Chamitoff completed another one of the periodic inspections of the RED (Resistive Exercise Device) canister cords and accessories, currently done every two weeks.
The FE-2 also took measurements for the regular atmospheric status check for ppCO2 (Carbon Dioxide partial pressure) in the Lab, SM at panel 449 and COL (Columbus Orbital Laboratory) plus battery ticks, using the hand-held CDMK (CO2 Monitoring Kit, #1002). The unit was then deactivated and returned to its stowage location (LAB1S2). [Purpose of the 5-min activity is to trend with MCA (Major Constituents Analyzer), i.e., to correlate the hand-held readings with MCA measurements.]
Greg conducted the regular 30-day inspection of the new AED (Automated External Defibrillator) in the CHeCS (Crew Health Care Systems) rack. [The AED is a portable electronic device that automatically diagnoses the potentially life threatening cardiac arrhythmias of ventricular fibrillation and ventricular tachycardia in a patient. It then can treat them through defibrillation, i.e., the application of electrical therapy which stops the arrhythmia, allowing the heart to re-establish an effective rhythm. AEDs are generally either held by trained personnel who will attend events or are public access units which can be found in places including corporate and government offices, shopping centers, airports, restaurants, casinos, hotels, sports stadiums, schools and universities, community centers, fitness centers, health clubs and any other location where people may congregate.]
The crew completed their regular daily 2.5-hr. physical workout program (about half of which is used for setup & post-exercise personal hygiene) on the CEVIS cycle ergometer (FE-2), TVIS treadmill (CDR/MO-1, FE-1/MO-1), RED resistive exercise device (CDR, FE-2), and VELO bike with bungee cord load trainer (CDR, FE-1).
Later, FE-2 transferred the exercise data files to the MEC (Medical Equipment Computer) laptop for downlink, including the daily wristband HRM (Heart Rate Monitor) data of the workouts on RED, followed by their erasure on the HRM storage medium (done six times a week).
At ~4:15am EDT, Sergey & Oleg linked up with TsUP stowage specialists via S-band to conduct the weekly IMS tagup, discussing inventory & stowage issues, equipment locations and cargo transfers.
At ~6:15am, the crew held the regular (nominally weekly) tagup with the Russian Flight Control Team (GOGU/Glavnaya operativnaya gruppa upravleniya = “Chief Operative Control Group”), including Shift Flight Director (SRP), at TsUP-Moscow via S-band/audio, phone-patched from Houston and Moscow.
Dynamic 30P Thruster Tests: FE-2 Chamitoff closed the protective shutters of the science window in the JAXA JPM (~9:00am EDT) and in the US Lab (~9:15am) in preparation for the Progress thruster firings, which are scheduled at ~2:01pm (Manifold 1) & ~3:32pm (Manifold 2). The translational DPO-B (Approach & Attitude Control) thruster tests, intended to check 30P’s full integration into the ISS steering logic and ensure thruster functionality in providing attitude control, reboosts and debris avoidance maneuvers (DAMs), do not require any powerdowns. They are also used to determine which thruster manifold, of two jets each, will be considered the primary one for reboosting and DAMs.
CDRA Update: The US Carbon Dioxide Removal Assembly is working nominally. [On 9/13, CDRA had a hardware failure caused by the CSV (Channel Selector Valve) and ASV (Air Supply Valve) not completing valve position changes during a half cycle transition. Manual commanding of the valves was attempted twice, without success, whereupon CDRA was shut down and the LTL (Low Temperature Loop) coolant jumper disconnected. On 9/15, the valves were successfully ground-commanded into position and the CDRA was reactivated. It is now operating without further problems. The 9/13 valve event is thought to be a recurrence of intermittent CSV valve positioning problems (“sticking”) encountered before, caused by zeolite dust contamination of the valve sealing surfaces. Procedures exist to manually command the valves to their correct positions. It is also possible to clean or replace the valves on orbit. Background: A zeolite is a hydrated aluminosilicate mineral with a micro-porous structure. More than 150 zeolite types have been synthesized and 48 naturally occurring zeolites are known (e.g., volcanic ashes). They are the aluminosilicate members of the family of microporous solids known as "molecular sieves", which refers to a particular property of these materials: the ability to selectively sort molecules based primarily on a size exclusion process.]
No CEO (Crew Earth Observations) photo targets uplinked for today.
CEO photography can be studied at this “Gateway” website:
http://eol.jsc.nasa.gov (as of 3/1/08, this database contained 757,605 views of the Earth from space, with 314,000 from the ISS alone).
ISS Orbit (as of this morning, 8:00am EDT [= epoch]):
Mean altitude — 352.7 km
Apogee height — 357.3 km
Perigee height — 348.1 km
Period — 91.59 min.
Inclination (to Equator) — 51.64 deg
Eccentricity — 0.0006843
Solar Beta Angle — 51.0 deg (magnitude decreasing)
Orbits per 24-hr. day — 15.72
Mean altitude loss in the last 24 hours — 70 m
Revolutions since FGB/Zarya launch (Nov. 98) — 56337
Significant Events Ahead (all dates Eastern Time, some changes possible.):
09/29/08 — ATV de-orbit (nighttime re-entry for observation from 2 NASA planes; 9:12pm)
10/01/08 — NASA 50 Years (official)
10/02/08 – ISS Reboost (~1.8 m/s)
10/10/08 — STS-125/Atlantis Hubble Space Telescope Service Mission 4 (SM4) 12:33am
10/11/08 — Progress M-65/30P undocking (from SM aft)
10/12/08 — Soyuz TMA-13/17S launch (~3:03am EDT; Lonchakov, Fincke, Garriott)
10/14/08 — Soyuz TMA-13/17S docking (FGB nadir port, ~4:51am)
10/24/08 — Soyuz TMA-12/16S undocking (DC1 nadir) & landing
11/12/08 — STS-126/Endeavour/ULF2 launch – MPLM Leonardo, LMC
11/14/08 — STS-126/Endeavour/ULF2 docking
11/20/08 — ISS 10 Years
11/25/08 — Progress M-65/30P undocking & deorbit
11/26/08 — Progress M-66/31P launch
11/30/08 — Progress M-66/31P docking
02/09/09 — Progress M-66/31P undocking & deorbit
02/10/09 — Progress M-67/32P launch
02/12/09 — Progress M-67/32P docking
02/12/09 — STS-119/Discovery/15A launch – S6 truss segment
02/14/09 — STS-119/Discovery/15A docking
02/24/09 — STS-119/Discovery/15A undocking
02/26/09 — STS-119/Discovery/15A landing (nominal)
03/25/09 — Soyuz TMA-14/18S launch
03/27/09 – Soyuz TMA-14/18S docking (DC1)
04/05/09 — Soyuz TMA-13/17S undocking
04/07/09 — Progress M-67/32P undocking & deorbit
05/15/09 — STS-127/Endeavour/2J/A launch – JEM EF, ELM-ES, ICC-VLD
05/25/09 — Soyuz TMA-15/19S launch
05/27/09 — Six-person crew on ISS (following Soyuz 19S docking)
07/30/09 — STS-128/Atlantis/17A – MPLM(P), last crew rotation
10/15/09 — STS-129/Discovery/ULF3 – ELC1, ELC2
12/10/09 — STS-130/Endeavour/20A – Node-3 + Cupola
02/11/10 — STS-131/Atlantis/19A – MPLM(P)
04/08/10 — STS-132/Discovery/ULF4 – ICC-VLD, MRM1
05/31/10 — STS-133/Endeavour/ULF5 – ELC3, ELC4 (contingency).