NASA ISS On-Orbit Status 20 August 2011
All ISS systems continue to function nominally, except those noted previously or below. Saturday C Crew off-duty day.
As part of the regular Daily Morning Inspection, CDR Borisenko performed the routine checkup of the SM (Service Module) PSS Caution & Warning panel.
Borisenko also inspected the recently activated Russian BIO-5 Rasteniya-2 (“Plants-2”) payload with its LADA-01 greenhouse, checking for proper fan operation by testing the air flow from the ventilators BO A04 & BO A05 and verifying that both LEDs (Light Emitting Diodes) are lit. [Rasteniya-2 researches growth and development of plants (currently wheat) under spaceflight conditions in the LADA greenhouse from IBMP (Institute of Bio-Medical Problems, Russian: IMBP).]
First thing after wake-up, FE-3 Garan opened the protective window shutters of the Lab WORF (Window Observational Research Facility) for the ISSAC (ISS Agriculture Camera) equipment, so ground images can be captured today by ground commanding. At sleeptime tonight, Garan will close the shutters again. [ISSAC takes frequent visible-light & infrared images of vegetated areas on the Earth. The camera focuses principally on rangelands, grasslands, forests, and wetlands in the northern Great Plains and Rocky Mountain regions of the United States. The images may be delivered directly upon request to farmers, ranchers, foresters, natural resource managers and tribal officials to help improve their environmental stewardship of the land. The images will also be shared with educators for classroom use.]
The six crewmembers joined in conducting the regular weekly three-hour task of thorough cleaning of their home, including COL (Columbus Orbital Laboratory) and Kibo JPM (JEM Pressurized Module). As part of today’s uborka, FE-6 Fossum took documentary photographs of the RGSH AORG (Return Grid Sensor Housing add-on screens) at COL D0 before and after going over them with the vacuum cleaner (to be compared with pictures taken during previous cleaning to establish the quantity of debris captured during the week). [“Uborka”, usually done on Saturdays, includes removal of food waste products, cleaning of compartments with vacuum cleaner, damp cleaning of the SM (Service Module) dining table, other frequently touched surfaces and surfaces where trash is collected, as well as the sleep stations with a standard cleaning solution; also, fan screens and grilles are cleaned to avoid temperature rises. Special cleaning is also done every 90 days on the HEPA (high-efficiency particulate air) bacteria filters in the Lab.]
As part of the uborka house cleaning, CDR Borisenko & FE-1 Samokutyayev & FE-4 Volkov completed regular maintenance inspection & cleaning of fan screens in the FGB (TsV2) plus Group E fan grilles (VPkhO, FS5, FS6, VP) in the SM, and the BMP Harmful Contaminants Removal System grille in the SM. Before the cleaning, all fan screens were photographed for ground inspection.
FE-4 Volkov completed the routine daily servicing of the SOZh system (Environment Control & Life Support System, ECLSS) in the SM. [Regular daily SOZh maintenance consists, among else, of checking the ASU toilet facilities, replacement of the KTO & KBO solid waste containers, replacement of EDV-SV waste water and EDV-U urine containers and filling EDV-SV, KOV (for Elektron), EDV-ZV & EDV on RP flow regulator.]
At ~8:35am EDT, the crew held the regular WPC (Weekly Planning Conference) with the ground, discussing next week’s “Look-Ahead Plan” (prepared jointly by MCC-H and TsUP-Moscow timeline planners), via S-band/audio, reviewing upcoming activities and any concerns about future on-orbit events.
Day 2 of the three-day test series of the Russian ATV (Automated Transfer Vehicle) ASN-M Satellite Navigation System which requires Borisenko to monitor communications between the RSK2 A31p laptop with the test program and the three active ASN NPM-1, NPM-3 & NPM-4 navigation electronics modules every 2 hrs during work hours. [The objective of the test is to confirm that array configurations for ATV docking in positive Solar Beta angles do not create unacceptable multipathing for the ASN RGPS (Relative Global Positioning System). Both TRRJs (Thermal Radiator Rotary Joints) and both SARJs (Solar Alpha Rotary Joints) plus the 1B, 2B, 3A & 4A BGAs (Beta Gimbal Assemblies) were placed in Directed position for this test (i.e., not autotrack). The test will include 4 different array configurations, with periods of autotrack in between for power generation recovery. The test is planned to be complete late Sunday evening. A second ATV RGPS test at negative Betas is planned for 9/1 through 9/4.]
Ron Garan performed the monthly maintenance/inspection of the T2/COLBERT treadmill system and its components, checking pin alignment, rack centering, snubbers and the snubber jam nut witness marks. [Witness marks (12 total) are applied to the X-, Y- & Z-axis jam nuts on each (of four) snubber arm. Their inspection serves to determine to what degree and which jam nuts are backing off.]
For his on-going 2nd (FD30) Ambulatory Monitoring session of the ESA ICV (Integrated Cardiovascular) experiment, FE-5 Furukawa observed the initial 10-min rest period before going about his business, swapping Makita batteries as required. Midpoint for the entire ICV run was reached at about 12:40pm, after which the second 24h data collection period was started. [The rest period involves relaxing & breathing normally for 10 minutes under quiet, restful conditions. ICV activities consist of two separate but related parts over a one-week time period: an ultrasound echo scan & an ambulatory monitoring session. Today, wearing electrodes, the HM2 (Holter Monitor 2) for recording ECG (Electrocardiogram) for 48 hours, the ESA Cardiopres/BP to continuously monitor blood pressure for 24 hours, and two Actiwatches (hip/waist & ankle) for monitoring activity levels over 48 hours, Satoshi continued the ambulatory monitoring part of the ICV assessment. During the first 24 hrs (while all devices are worn), ten minutes of quiet, resting breathing were timelined to collect data for a specific analysis. The nominal exercise includes at least 10 minutes at a heart rate >=120 bpm (beats per minute). After approximately 24 hrs, the Cardiopres was temporarily doffed and the HM2 HiFi CF Card and AA Battery were changed out to allow continuation of the session for another 24 hours. After data collection is complete, the Actiwatches and both HM2 HiFi CF Cards are downloaded to the HRF PC1, while Cardiopres data are downloaded to the EPM (European Physiology Module) Rack and transferred to the HRF PC1 via a USB key for downlink. The sessions are scheduled at or around FD14, FD30, FD75, FD135 and R-15 (there will be fewer sessions if mission duration is less than six months). The FD75 echo scan includes an exercise component with a second scan (subset of the first) completed within 5 minutes after the end of exercise.]
With the Russian Elektron oxygen generator currently inactive, Volkov was to initiate another refresh of the ISS interior with an O2 repress from Progress 43P tankage on Go-ahead from TsUP-Moscow. [The O2 (oxygen) & N2 (nitrogen) storage tanks of 43P should be empty now.]
Mike Fossum & Satoshi Furukawa each volunteered for doing a VolSci (Voluntary Weekend Science) program today. For his selected VolSci activity, another session with the SHERE (Shear History Extensional Rheology Experiment) payload, Mike first activated the EDR ERB-2 (European Drawer Rack / Erasmus Recording Binocular) and the MSG (Microgravity Science Glovebox) from its laptop, then conducted two consecutive experiment runs, each with an FM (Fluid Module, #50 & #52), unstowed & retrieved from the CGBA (Commercial Generic Bioprocessing Apparatus) and restowed after its run. At the conclusion later today, FE-6 will transfer the experiment data and turn off the equipment, including MSG and its A31p laptop (ERB-2 turned itself off after 1h 20m). [Background: Rheology is the study of the deformation and flow of matter under the influence of an applied stress (“preshearing” = rotation) which might be, for example, a shear stress or extensional stress. In practice, rheology is principally concerned with extending the “classical” disciplines of elasticity and (Newtonian) fluid mechanics to materials whose mechanical behavior cannot be described with the classical theories. SHERE is designed to study the effect of preshear (rotation) on the transient evolution of the microstructure and viscoelastic tensile stresses for solutions with long chains of monodisperse dilute polymer molecules in the MSG. Collectively referred to as “Boger fluids,” these polymer solutions have become a popular choice for rheological studies of non-Newtonian fluids and are the non-Newtonian fluid used in this experiment. The SHERE hardware consists of the Rheometer, Camera Arm, Interface Box, Cabling, Keyboard, Tool Box, Fluid Modules, and Stowage Tray.]
Furukawa’s VolSci selection consisted of an EPO (Educational Payloads Operation) session with the JAXA EPO-7 “Doctor in Space” demonstration. [With the CANON G1 camcorder set up for recording, Satoshi provided explanations about medical care and health management in space, as well as the changes which the human body will undergo in response to environmental changes. The downlinked footage will be edited for use as educational material in aerospace medicine. The implementation of this video-taking project is planned for two sessions, one each for Increments 28 & 29 resp.]
Ron & Mike filled out their weekly FFQs (Food Frequency Questionnaires) on the MEC (Medical Equipment Computer). [On the FFQs, USOS astronauts keep a personalized log of their nutritional intake over time on special MEC software. Recorded are the amounts consumed during the past week of such food items as beverages, cereals, grains, eggs, breads, snacks, sweets, fruit, beans, soup, vegetables, dairy, fish, meat, chicken, sauces & spreads, and vitamins. The FFQ is performed once a week to estimate nutrient intake from the previous week and to give recommendations to ground specialists that help maintain optimal crew health. Weekly estimation has been verified to be reliable enough that nutrients do not need to be tracked daily.]
At ~8:10am EDT, Sergei Volkov supported a Russian PAO TV event from the RS (Russian Segment), downlinking, a message of greetings to the Shchyolkov Region on the occasion of its 82nd anniversary, to be celebrated on 8/26 at Shchyolkov’s House of Culture, attended by delegations from sister-cities of Germany, Finland, Poland, Ukraine, Latvia, and Russia. [“My cordial greetings and best wishes on yet another anniversary of Shchyolkov Region on behalf of the International Space Station Crew! For historical reasons, the Cosmonaut Training Center at Star City is located on Shchyolkov’s soil. All cosmonauts who received their training at various times here care about the history and traditions of our area, its successes and great folk. I, for one, had a chance to grow up here, finish school, get my profession of a cosmonaut, and carry out my second flight in the year of the 50th anniversary of Yuri Alexeyevich Gagarin’s flight…”]
At ~10:15am, Sergei had his weekly PFC (Private Family Conference) via S-band/audio and Ku-band/MS-NetMeeting application (which displays the uplinked ground video on an SSC laptop).
The crew worked out with their regular 2-hr physical exercise protocol on the CEVIS cycle ergometer with vibration isolation (FE-3, FE-5), TVIS treadmill with vibration isolation & stabilization (CDR), ARED advanced resistive exercise device (FE-1, FE-3, FE-4, FE-5, FE-6), T2/COLBERT advanced treadmill (CDR, FE-1, FE-6), and VELO ergometer bike with load trainer (FE-4).
Weekly Science Update (Expedition Twenty-Eight — Week 22)
2D NANO Template (JAXA): No report.
3D SPACE: No report.
AgCam (Agricultural Camera): No report.
ALTCRISS (Alteino Long Term monitoring of Cosmic Rays on the ISS): Complete.
ALTEA SHIELD (NASA/ASI): “Dear Satoshi, big thanks for picking up so quickly from the Task List our proposed power cycle activity! Since 8/13, we were impacted by the fact that 2 (out of 6) SDU’s were not sending science data. With your help, we are now back and acquiring full science on 6 (out of 6) SDU’s. Since 8/12, the minimum science requirements of 20 days measurement duration on this location have been met (preferred 30 days or more).”
AMS-02 (Alpha Magnetic Spectrometer): AMS and its Laptop continue to operate smoothly (thanks for the reboot). Data from 4 billion cosmic rays has been collected and is being eagerly analyzed by scientists at CERN and around the world.
APEX (Advanced Plant Experiments on Orbit) -Cambium: No report.
APEX-TAGES (Transgenic Arabidopsis Gene Expression System): No report.
Asian Seed 2010 (JAXA): Returned on ULF6.
BCAT-4/5 (Binary Colloidal Alloy Test 4/5): No report.
BIOLAB (ESA): No report.
BIORHYTHMS (JAXA, Biological Rhythms): Performed on 8/18, FE-5 Satoshi’s second operation. This is a joint activity with Onboard Diagnostic Kit Measurement-2.
BISE (CSA, Bodies in the Space Environment): No report.
BISPHOSPHONATES: No report.
BXF-Facility (Boiling eXperiment Facility, NASA): No report.
BXF-MABE (Microheater Array Boiling Experiment, NASA): No report.
BXF-NPBX (Pool Boiling Experiment, NASA): No report.
CARD (Long Term Microgravity: Model for Investigating Mechanisms of Heart Disease, ESA): Samples were returned on STS-135 (ULF7).
CARDIOCOG-2: Complete.
CB (JAXA Clean Bench): No report.
CBEF-2 (JAXA Cell Biology Experiment Facility)/SPACE SEED: No report.
CCISS (Cardiovascular & Cerebrovascular Control on Return from ISS): No report.
CERISE (JAXA): No report.
CCF (Capillary Channel Flow): No report.
CFS-A (Colored Fungi in Space-A, ESA): No report.
CSI-3/CGBA-5 (CGBA Science Insert #2/Commercial Generic Bioprocessing Apparatus 5): No report.
CGBA-2 (Commercial Generic Bioprocessing Apparatus 2): Complete.
CIR (Combustion Integrated Rack), MDCA/Flex: No report.
Commercial (Inc 23&24, JAXA): No report.
Commercial (Inc 25 & 26, JAXA): Sample returned by ULF6.
CSLM-2 (Coarsening in Solid-Liquid Mixtures 2): No report.
CsPins (JAXA): No report.
CubeLab: No report.
CW/CR (Cell Wall/Resist Wall) in EMCS (European Modular Cultivation System): Complete.
DECLIC-ALI (Device for the Study of Critical Liquids & Crystallization-ALICE-like, CNES/NASA): No report.
DomeGene (JAXA): Complete.
DOSIS (Dose Distribution Inside ISS, ESA): No report.
EarthKAM (Earth Knowledge Acquired by Middle School Students): No report.
EDR (European Drawer Rack, ESA): No report.
EKE (Endurance Capacity by Gas Exchange and Heart Rate Kinetics During Physical Training, ESA): No report.
ELITE-S2 (Elaboratore Immagini Televisive – Space 2): Planned.
EMCS (European Modular Cultivation System): No report.
ENose (Electronic Nose): No report.
EPM (European Physiology Module): No report.
EPO (Educational Payload Operations, NASA) (Sesame Street): No report.
EPO (Educational Payload Operations, NASA) (Kids in Micro-G): No report.
EPO LES-2 (ESA): No report.
EPO GREENHOUSE (ESA): No report.
EPO 3-min Video (JAXA): No report.
EPO J-Astro Report (JAXA): Report-6 was completed by Satoshi on 8/10.
EPO Dewey’s Forest (JAXA): Closed out on 3/15.
EPO Space Clothes (JAXA): Complete.
EPO Hiten (Dance, JAXA): No report.
EPO Lego Bricks (NASA, JAXA): No report.
EPO-5 SpaceBottle (Message in a Bottle, JAXA): No report.
EPO Moon Score (JAXA): No report.
EPO Try Zero-G (JAXA): On 8/2, FE3 Garan and FE5 Satoshi completed all actions on live video.
EPO Kibo Kids Tour (JAXA): Complete.
EPO Paper Craft (Origami, JAXA): No report.
EPO Poem (JAXA): No report.
EPO-6 Spiral Top 2 (JAXA): No report.
EPO-7 Doctor Demo (JAXA): Selected as Voluntary Science on 8/20-8/21.
ERB-2 (Erasmus Recording Binocular, ESA): [ERB-2 aims are to develop narrated video material for various PR & educational products & events, including a 3D interior station view.] “Dear Ron, while we are eagerly waiting to downlink all your video footages during this coming weekend, we would like to thank you for posting a link on You Tube about the short ERB-2 video – Cool!”
ETD (Eye Tracking Device): Completed.
FACET-2 (JAXA): No report.
FERULATE (JAXA): No report.
FIR/LMM/CVB (Fluids Integrated Rack / Light Microscopy Module / Constrained Vapor Bubble): No report.
Fish Scales (JAXA): Completed on FD7/ULF-4 and returned on STS-132.
FOAM STABILITY (ESA): No report.
FOCUS: No report.
FSL (Fluid Science Laboratory, ESA): FSL activation is on-hold pending engineering assessment of the recent faulty boot-up events. No activities during Week #18 to #22, awaiting the analysis of the engineering teams.
FWED (Flywheel Exercise Device, ESA): No report.
GENARA-A (Gravity Regulated Genes in Arabidopsis A/ESA): No report.
GEOFLOW-2 (ESA): GEOFLOW-2 runs will be resumed only when ESA will have a clear forward plan for FSL.
HAIR (JAXA): No report.
HDTV System (JAXA): No report.
Hicari (JAXA): No report.
Holter ECG (JAXA): No report.
HQPC (JAXA): Was delivered by 34P.
HREP (HICO/Hyperspectral Imager for the Coastal Ocean & RAIDS/Remote Atmospheric & Ionospheric Detection System/JAXA): HICO has taken 3828 images to-date. The most recent HICO images include images of Christchurch, New Zealand, Cape Town, South Africa and the Great Barrier Reef. RAIDS is collecting secondary science including nighttime atmospheric disk photometry, spectra and temperatures. Extreme Ultra Violet airglow spectroscopy and optical contamination studies are also being performed.
HydroTropi (Hydrotropism & Auxin-Inducible Gene Expression in Roots Grown under Microgravity Conditions/JAXA): No report.
ICE CRYSTAL (JAXA): Complete.
ICV (Integrated Cardiovascular): “Satoshi and Mike, ICV’s FD75 Exercise Echo is scheduled on Tuesday and will feature the first inflight use of the new Ultrasound 2! Reference material review is scheduled for Monday and will include ICV-specific material as well as an introduction to the Ultrasound 2 hardware.”
IMMUNO (Neuroendocrine & Immune Responses in Humans During & After Long Term Stay at ISS): Complete.
INTEGRATED IMMUNE: No report.
InSPACE-2 (Investigating the Structure of Paramagnetic Aggregates from Colloidal Emulsions 2): No report.
IRIS (Image Reversal in Space, CSA): No report.
ISS Amateur/Ham Radio: No report.
ISSAC (ISS Agricultural Camera, NASA): No report.
IV Gen (Intravenous Fluids Generation): No report.
KID/KUBIK6: No report.
KUBIK 3 (ESA): No report.
LMM/PACE-2 (Light Microscopy Module / Preliminary Advanced Colloids Experiment): “Ron: Great work changing out the PACE Particle Sample. You’ve become very efficient at working with LMM! We appreciate you figuring out how to successfully dispense the oil in light of the hardware issues. We observed and imaged the PACE Particle Sample S/N 2001 with and without ARIS. We collected a lot of data that we’re beginning to analyze. Powered operations with the PACE Particle Sample S/N 2003 began shortly after the sample changeout.”
LOCAD-PTS (Lab-on-a-Chip Application Development-Portable Test System): No report.
Marangoni Exp (JAXA): 24th run was completed on 12/22.
Marangoni DSD C Dynamic Surf (JAXA): Payload name was change from Marangoni DSD to Dynamic Surf.
Marangoni UVP (JAXA): No report.
Matryoshka-2 (RSA): No report.
MAXI (Monitor of All-sky X-ray Image, JAXA): Continuing telemetry monitoring.
MDCA/Flex: “Ron: Nice job replacing the bottle on CIR Manifold #2. We appreciate your hard work! CIR/MDCA was powered up shortly after the bottle replacement, and we successfully performed five test points. The test points used heptane fuel at two different chamber atmospheres.”
MEIS (Marangoni Experiment for ISS) in JAXA FPEF (Fluid Physics Experiment Facility): No report.
Microbe-2 (JAXA): Sample returned by ULF6.
Micro-G Clay (JAXA EPO): Complete.
MISSE-7 (Materials ISS Experiment 7): The 7th Materials on International Space Station Experiment (MISSE-7) reached a successful mission completion on 5/10. During EVA-1, PEC 7A and PEC 7B were retrieved and transferred to the STS-134 Shuttle payload bay for return to Earth. MISSE-7 was launched to the ISS aboard the STS-129 Shuttle mission in November 2009, and operated continuously since that time. During its 1.5 year on-orbit mission, MISSE-7 tested a variety of next-generation solar cells and electronic devices and provided real-time downlink of science data. MISSE-7 also continuously exposed cutting-edge material samples that will be analyzed in ground laboratories to determine how well they survived the space exposure effects of atomic oxygen, ultraviolet exposure, particle irradiation, and extreme temperature cycles.
MISSE-8 (Materials ISS Experiment 8): The two MISSE-8 experiments that exceeded temperature limits last week, Reflectarray and SEUSXE II, have not been turned back on but the plan is to turn them on in the near future. PASCAL continued nominal commanding that produced IV curves of the solar cells. IV curves are plots of the current versus voltage for solar cells and tell a lot about how these are performing. The SpaceCube experiment used extended overnight command windows to upload files with updated code for new radiation hardening by software experiment algorithms; this is now 100% complete.
MMA (JAXA/Microgravity Measurement Apparatus): No report.
MPAC/SEED (JAXA): Completed on 19A FD4.
MSG-SAME (Microgravity Science Glovebox-Smoke Aerosol Measurement Experiment): No report.
MSL (Materials Science Laboratory, ESA): “Hello Mike, thank you for your interest in MSL and the upcoming experiments.”
MTR-2 (Russian radiation measurements): Passive dosimeters measurements in DC-1 “Pirs”.
MULTIGEN-1: Completed.
MYCO 3 (JAXA): No report.
MyoLab (JAXA): Completed on 4/20.
NANOSKELETON (Production of High Performance Nanomaterials in Microgravity, JAXA): Returned on ULF6.
NEURORAD (JAXA): No report.
NEUROSPAT (ESA/Study of Spatial Cognition, Novelty Processing and Sensorimotor Integration):
NOA-1/-2 (Nitric Oxide Analyzer, ESA): Complete.
NUTRITION w/REPOSITORY/ProK: No report.
ODK (Onboard Diagnostic Kit, JAXA): On 8/17-19, FE-5 Satoshi completed Onboard Diagnostic Kit Measurement-2.
PADIAC (Pathway Different Activators, ESA): No report.
PADLES (JAXA, Area PADLES 3/4; Passive Area Dosimeter for Lifescience Experiment in Space): On 6/14 completed installation of 17 Dosimeters in JPM and JLP.
PASSAGES (JAXA): “Dear Ron, many thanks for completing your last session of PASSAGES. The science team already checked the data; they confirmed the data look good, and we will be waiting for you for post-flight BDC. Thank you for your interest in participating in this experiment!”
PCDF-PU (Protein Crystallization Diagnostic Facility – Process Unit): No report.
PCG (JAXA, Protein Crystal Growth): Continuing telemetry monitoring.
PCRF (Protein Crystallization Research Facility) Reconfiguration (JAXA): See PCG.
PLSG (Plant Signaling, NASA/ESA): No report.
PMDIS (Perceptual Motor Deficits in Space): Complete.
POLCA/GRAVIGEN (ESA): Complete.
Portable PFS: No report.
Pro K: No report.
RadGene & LOH (JAXA): Complete.
RadSilk (JAXA): No report.
RST/Reaction Self Test (Psychomotor Vigilance Self Test on the ISS): “Ron, Mike and Satoshi, thank you for your participation in Reaction Self Test!”
RYUTAI Rack (JAXA): No report.
SAIBO Rack (JAXA): On 8/6 Voluntary Science, FE-5 Satoshi completed Clean Bench clean up and Valve check out.
SAMS/MAMS (Space & Microgravity Acceleration Measurement Systems): No report.
SAMPLE: Complete.
SCOF (Solution Crystallization Observation Facility, JAXA): No report.
SEDA-AP (Space Environment Data Acquisition Equipment-Attached Payload, JAXA): Continuing telemetry monitoring.
SHERE II (Shear History Extensional Rheology Experiment II): Satoshi did two experiment sessions on Monday and Tuesday, and six test points were successfully completed. The team is currently looking forward to working with Mike during Voluntary Science on Saturday. The halfway point in completing the experiment’s test points was reached this week, and only 10 more test runs now remain. “Great job to both Mike and Satoshi for working so hard and diligently on SHERE II!”
SLAMMD (Space Linear Acceleration Mass Measurement Device): No report.
SLEEP (Sleep-Wake Actigraphy & Light Exposure during Spaceflight): No report.
SMILES (JAXA): Continuing telemetry monitoring.
SODI/IVIDIL (Selectable Optical Diagnostics Instrument/Influence of Vibration on Diffusion in Liquids, ESA): No report.
SODI/COLLOID (Selectable Optical Diagnostics Instrument/Colloid): No report.
SOLAR (Solar Monitoring Observatory): Currently out of Sun visibility. The next Sun Visibility Window is predicted to start on 8/23 and to end on 9/03. – SOLSPEC: no science acquisition, out of Sun visibility. On 8/16, nominal weekly calibration of the instrument. – SOLACES: no science acquisition, out of Sun visibility. Between 8/17
and 8/19, the instrument has been heated up at +50degC to protect it from potential contamination from 43P Propellant Line Purge activity scheduled on 8/18.
SOLO (Sodium Loading in Microgravity): No report.
Space-DRUMS (Space Dynamically Responding Ultrasonic Matrix System): No report.
Space Food (JAXA): No report.
SPHERES (Synchronized Position Hold, Engage, Reorient, Experimental Satellite): “Ron, thank you very much for the amazing Zero Robotics finals you ran! The MIT auditorium had attendees from the MA legislature, MA Education Department, and MIT faculty, but more importantly: 70 very excited middle-school students. The atmosphere was amazing throughout the whole event. It was the first time that every team has seen their code compete TWICE aboard ISS, thanks to your efficiency in running the event. For your information, here is the final tally of the day:
5th – Ford School 10pts
4th – Timilty 15pts
3rd – East End House 22pts
2nd – Salem CyberSpace 34pts
1st – Winthrop 40pts
Once again, thank you for your super performance. We look forward to either working with you more aboard ISS and/or seeing you on the ground at MIT in the future.”
SPHINX (SPaceflight of Huvec: an Integrated eXperiment, ESA): No report.
SPICE (Smoke Point In Co-flow Experiment): No report.
SPINAL (Spinal Elongation): No report.
SPRINT: No report.
SS-HDTV (Super Sensitivity High Definition Camera, JAXA): On 8/12-14, FE-5 Furukawa completed Recording-3 – Meteor Shower. We are expecting that many invisible meteors were recorded by the SS-HDTV.
STP-H3 (Space Test Program C Houston 3): MHTEX has been running with pumps 3, 4 and 5 this week and plans to re-prime the system next week. Canary took data during the CIR-N2 venting event and continues to operate nominally. VADER continues to cycle the VEDs at the increased voltage and analyzing the resulting change in emissivity. DISC is processing images that were taken in previous weeks.
SWAB (Characterization of Microorganisms & Allergens in Spacecraft): No report.
TASTE IN SPACE (ESA): No report.
THERMOLAB (ESA): “Thank you, Mike, for your first successful in-flight THERMOLAB data collection during your VO2max protocol on 6/27.”
TRAC (Test of Reaction & Adaptation Capabilities): Planned.
TREADMILL KINEMATICS: No report.
TRIPLELUX-B (ESA): No report.
ULTRASOUND: Planned.
UMS (Urine Monitoring System (NASA): “Mike, thanks for your efforts with the UMS to date. While we have not completed the runs as hoped, the data gathered is valuable for analysis. We’ll keep you posted on future plans as they are formulated.”
VASCULAR (CSA): No report.
VCAM (Vehicle Cabin Atmosphere Module, NASA): No report.
VESSEL ID System (ESA): Acquiring science data with NorAIS receiver.
VESSEL IMAGING (ESA): No sessions possible due to Ultrasound anomaly.
VO2max (NASA): No report.
VLE (Video Lessons ESA): No report.
WAICO #1/#2 (Waving and Coiling of Arabidopsis Roots at Different g-levels; ESA): No report.
YEAST B (ESA): No report.
CEO (Crew Earth Observation): Through 8/16, 10,369 CEO frames were received on the ground for review and cataloging. “We are pleased to report your acquisition of imagery with times corresponding to those of our CEO Daily Target Lists for the following targets: Antananarivo, Madagascar – a long session is still under evaluation and cataloging – more clouds were present than we had anticipated – however, a preliminary review suggests that the target was not acquired; and Southwestern Glaciers of the Southern Patagonian Ice Field – a long session was received just last night – many fresh and beautiful shots of Patagonian glaciers with the long lens settings were acquired – these are still under evaluation and cataloging for content within the specific target area. We’ve also noted with interest your unsolicited nighttime views: auroral activity was weak and illumination was poor, but you did acquire some views of displays – better still were some of your noctilucent cloud shots – also, your skill with cities at night is improving with a number of visually striking sessions acquired. We will begin calling these out as targets as conditions permit. Your unique and rare view of a Perseid Meteor was published on the NASA/GSFC’s Earth Observatory website this week as an Image of the Day feature – nice timing! Also published this past weekend on the website was your beautiful view of the entire island of Crete with sun glint on the northeastern Mediterranean Sea. Kudos to the crew for your patience in acquiring both these photos!”
CEO (Crew Earth Observation) targets uplinked for today were Merapi Volcano (ISS had a mid-afternoon pass in fair weather over Indonesia’s most active volcano located in the central part of the major island of Java. At the uplinked time, as the crew approached from the SW, they were to look near-nadir for this distinct volcanic cone. Looking carefully, there are numerous volcanoes in this area, but Merapi is the one most likely to have a plume), Rio de Janeiro, Brazil (HMS Beagle Site: Darwin and the Beagle arrived in the vicinity of Rio de Janeiro, presently a city of more than 7 million, in April of 1832 and undertook an expedition inland. ISS had a mid-afternoon pass with fair weather expected. At this time as the crew tracked northeastward along the Brazilian coast, they were to look just left of track and map the urban area around the prime visual cue, Guanabara Bay), and Castries, St. Lucia (this tiny capital city of only about 11,000 is located on the NW coast of the island of St. Lucia, located near the center of the Lesser Antilles archipelago. As ISS tracked northeastward in mid-afternoon light with partly cloudy skies, the crew was to shoot nadir for this target).
ISS Orbit (as of this morning, 8:37am EDT [= epoch])
Mean altitude C 386.3 km
Apogee height C 395.1 km
Perigee height C 377.5 km
Period — 92.28 min.
Inclination (to Equator) — 51.64 deg
Eccentricity — 0.0012985
Solar Beta Angle — 46.2 deg (magnitude decreasing)
Orbits per 24-hr. day — 15.60
Mean altitude loss in the last 24 hours — 43 m
Revolutions since FGB/Zarya launch (Nov. 98) C 73,095
Significant Events Ahead (all dates Eastern Time and subject to change):
————–Six-crew operations————-
08/23/11 — Progress M-11M/43P undocking (5:34am EDT)
08/24/11 — Progress M-12M/44P launch (~9:00am)
08/26/11 — Progress M-12M/44P docking (SM aft) (~10:40am)
09/01/11 — Progress M-11M/43P deorbit (5:43am)
09/07/11 — Soyuz TMA-21/26S undock (11:51pm)
09/08/11 — Soyuz TMA-21/26S landing (~3:08am) (End of Increment 28)
————–Three-crew operations————-
09/21/11 — Soyuz TMA-03M/28S launch (9:34pm) C D.Burbank (CDR-30)/A.Shkaplerov/A.Ivanishin
09/23/11 — Soyuz TMA-03M/28S docking (MRM2) (~10:19pm)
————–Six-crew operations————-
10/25/11 — Progress M-10M/42P undocking
10/26/11 — Progress M-13M/45P launch
10/28/11 — Progress M-13M/45P docking (DC-1)
11/16/11 — Soyuz TMA-02M/27S undock/landing (End of Increment 29)
————–Three-crew operations————-
11/29/11 — Soyuz TMA-04M/29S launch C O.Kononenko (CDR-31)/A.Kuipers/D.Pettit
12/01/11 — Soyuz TMA-04M/29S docking (MRM1)
————–Six-crew operations—————-
12/26/11 — Progress M-13M/45P undock (a late January 2012?)
12/27/11 — Progress M-14M/46P launch (a late January 2012?)
12/29/11 — Progress M-14M/46P docking (DC-1) (a late January 2012?)
02/29/12 — ATV3 launch readiness
03/05/12 — Progress M-12M/44P undock
03/16/12 — Soyuz TMA-03M/28S undock/landing (End of Increment 30)
————–Three-crew operations————-
03/30/12 — Soyuz TMA-05M/30S launch C G.Padalka (CDR-32)/J.Acaba/K.Volkov
04/01/12 — Soyuz TMA-05M/30S docking (MRM2)
————–Six-crew operations—————-
05/05/12 — 3R Multipurpose Laboratory Module (MLM) w/ERA C launch on Proton (under review)
05/06/12 — Progress M-14M/46P undock
05/07/12 — 3R Multipurpose Laboratory Module (MLM) C docking (under review)
05/16/12 — Soyuz TMA-04M/29S undock/landing (End of Increment 31)
————–Three-crew operations————-
05/29/12 C Soyuz TMA-06M/31S launch C S.Williams (CDR-33)/Y.Malenchenko/A.Hoshide
05/31/12 C Soyuz TMA-06M/31S docking
————–Six-crew operations—————-
09/18/12 — Soyuz TMA-05M/30S undock/landing (End of Increment 32)
————–Three-crew operations————-
10/02/12 — Soyuz TMA-07M/32S launch C K.Ford (CDR-34)/O.Novitskiy/E.Tarelkin
10/04/12 C Soyuz TMA-07M/32S docking
————–Six-crew operations————-
11/16/12 — Soyuz TMA-06M/31S undock/landing (End of Increment 33)
————–Three-crew operations————-
11/30/12 — Soyuz TMA-08M/33S launch C C.Hadfield (CDR-35)/T.Mashburn/R.Romanenko
12/02/12 C Soyuz TMA-08M/33S docking
————–Six-crew operations————-
03/xx/13 — Soyuz TMA-07M/32S undock/landing (End of Increment 34)
————–Three-crew operations————-
03/xx/13 C Soyuz TMA-09M/34S launch C P.Vinogradov (CDR-36)/C.Cassidy/A.Misurkin
03/xx/13 C Soyuz TMA-09M/34S docking
————–Six-crew operations————-
05/xx/13 C Soyuz TMA-08M/33S undock/landing (End of Increment 35)
————–Three-crew operations————-
05/xx/13 C Soyuz TMA-10M/35S launch C M.Suraev (CDR-37)/K.Nyberg/L.Parmitano
05/xx/13 C Soyuz TMA-10M/35S docking
————–Six-crew operations————-
09/xx/13 C Soyuz TMA-09M/34S undock/landing (End of Increment 36)
————–Three-crew operations————-
09/xx/13 C Soyuz TMA-11M/36S launch C M.Hopkins/TBD (CDR-38)/TBD
09/xx/13 C Soyuz TMA-11M/36S docking
————–Six-crew operations————-
11/xx/13 C Soyuz TMA-10M/35S undock/landing (End of Increment 37)
————–Three-crew operations————-
11/xx/13 C Soyuz TMA-12M/37S launch C K.Wakata (CDR-39)/R.Mastracchio/TBD
11/xx/13 C Soyuz TMA-12M/37S docking
————–Six-crew operations————-
03/xx/14 C Soyuz TMA-11M/36S undock/landing (End of Increment 38)
————–Three-crew operations————-
