NASA ISS On-Orbit Status 28 October 2010
All ISS systems continue to function nominally, except those noted previously or below.
At wake-up, FE-5 Yurchikhin conducted the regular daily early-morning check of the aerosol filters at the Russian Elektron O2 generator which Maxim Suraev had installed on 10/19/09 in gaps between the BZh Liquid Unit and the oxygen outlet pipe (filter FA-K) plus hydrogen outlet pipe (filter FA-V). [Fyodor again inspects the filters before bedtime tonight, currently a daily requirement per plan, with photographs to be taken if the filter packing is discolored.]
Also at day’s begin, Alex Kaleri terminated his 2nd experiment session, started last night, for the long-term Russian sleep study MBI-12/Sonokard, taking the recording device from his Sonokard sports shirt pocket and later copying the measurements to the RSE-Med laptop for subsequent downlink to the ground. [Sonokard objectives are stated to (1) study the feasibility of obtaining the maximum of data through computer processing of records obtained overnight, (2) systematically record the crewmember’s physiological functions during sleep, (3) study the feasibility of obtaining real-time crew health data. Investigators believe that contactless acquisition of cardiorespiratory data over the night period could serve as a basis for developing efficient criteria for evaluating and predicting adaptive capability of human body in long-duration space flight.]
CDR Wheelock set up & prepared the PPFS (Portable Pulmonary Function System) hardware in COL (Columbus Orbital Laboratory), including MBS (Mixing Bag System), for his 5th session with the VO2max assessment, integrated with Thermolab. After concluding without issues, Wheels downloaded the data, including Thermolab, to a PCS (Portable Computer System) laptop, powered down, cleaned up and temporarily moved all hardware aside for subsequent crew operation (except for MBS which was fully stowed). [The experiment VO2max uses the PPFS, CEVIS ergometer cycle, PFS (Pulmonary Function System) gas cylinders and mixing bag system, plus multiple other pieces of hardware to measure oxygen uptake, cardiac output, and more. The exercise protocol consists of a 2-min rest period, then three 5-min stages at workloads eliciting 25%, 50% & 75% of aerobic capacity as measured pre-flight, followed by a 25-watt increase in workload every minute until the crewmember reaches maximum exercise capacity. At that point, CEVIS workload increase is stopped, and a 5-min cool down period follows at the 25% load. Rebreathing measurements are initiated by the subject during the last minute of each stage. Constraints are: no food 2 hrs prior to exercise start, no caffeine 8 hrs prior to exercise, and must be well hydrated.]
With VCA1 (Video Camera Assembly 1) adjusted to cover his activities for the ground, FE-3 Kelly conducted a photo shoot of the ESA Biolab LSM QD (Life Support Module Quick Disconnect) of the loc. B6 EC (Experiment Container).
Kelly later supported payload ground controllers by powering up, later turning off, the SpaceDRUMS/SDRM (Space Dynamically Responding Ultrasonic Matrix System) payload. [Supporting the ground to continue verification with manual testing of the MHS (Material Handling System). Manual operations will focus on extracting pellets from the pellet storage carousel and returning pellets to the pellet storage carousel. The feasibility of manual operation of the MHS for manual processing of pellets is now being evaluated.]
FE-6 Walker worked on the WPA (Water Processor Assembly) Multifiltration bed #2, using the CSA (Condensate Sampling Adapter) assembly to draw samples of the WPA effluent after purging for post-flight chemical analysis, to be return on ULF-5. [Access was provided by the process line D on the WRS-2 (Water Recovery System 2) Rack interface panel.]
Later, Walker cleaned out the D2 rack space in Node-2 in support of upcoming CBCS (Centerline Berthing Camera System) installation and PMM (Permanent Multipurpose Module) berthing (except for three CTBs/Cargo Transfer Bags and the vacuum cleaner).
FE-1 Kaleri, FE-2 Skripochka & FE-5 Yurchikhin took turns to conduct the periodic (generally monthly) health test with the cardiological experiment PZEh MO-1 (“Study of the Bioelectric Activity of the Heart at Rest”) on exercise equipment, Alex’ & Oleg’s first session, Fyodor’s 3rd. [Equipment used was VPG/Temporal Pulsogram and 8-channel ECG/Electrocardiogram Data Output Devices (USI). The test took place during an RGS (Russian Groundsite) overflight window (~5:26am EDT) via VHF for data downlink from the VPG and Gamma-1M ECG for about 5-6 minutes.]
Working in the SM (Service Module) on the SOTR Thermal Control System, Yurchikhin replaced dampers at the VV1RO fan screen and SKV2 air conditioner VTK2 fan.
Afterwards, Yurchikhin & Kaleri jointly checked out the SPGS Gas-Mixture Supply System regulator in Soyuz TMA-19/23S.
Oleg Skripochka performed his first onboard session of the Russian MedOps assessment MO-12, (“Study of the Veins in the Lower Extremities”), using the KARDIOMED (Cardiomed) complex with orthogonal leads which Oleg Kotov had unloaded from Progress 36P on 2/26 and installed in the SM. [After loading the RSE-med laptop with the Cardiomed software, Fyodor set up the equipment, which involves KARDIOMED-TsB, KARDIOMED-KP, KARDIOMED-PMO and KARDIOMED-KRM assemblies with ECG (electrocardiogram) electrodes in a HOLTER monitor harness, a PLETISMOGRAF (Plethysmograph) instrument with calf measuring cuff, pneumatic hose, thigh occlusion cuff, hand pump & valve, and a DOPPLER complex. A Plethysmograph (sometimes called a “body box”) is an instrument for measuring changes in volume within an organ or the whole body (usually resulting from fluctuations in the amount of blood or air it contains).]
Kaleri installed the hardware of the GFI-1 “Relaksatsiya” (Relaxation) Earth Observation experiment at SM window #1 and then used it for another observation and measurement of the high-rate interaction spectra of the Earth’s ionosphere. Skripochka shot video footage during these activities for Russian PAO use. [Using the GFI-1 UFK “Fialka” ultraviolet camera, SP spectrometer and HD (High Definition) camcorder, the experiment observes the Earth atmosphere and surface from window #1, with spectrometer measurements controlled from Laptop 3. “Relaxation”, in Physics, is the transition of an atom or molecule from a higher energy level to a lower one, emitting radiative energy in the process as equilibrium is achieved.]
In preparation for the arrival of Progress 40P on Saturday, Wheelock & Kaleri set up the Ku-band video “scheme” for a communications test of converting the RS (Russian Segment) video signal from the SONY HDV camera to U.S. NTSC format and Ku-band from FGB & SM, for downlinking “streaming video” packets via U.S. OpsLAN and Ku-band. [For the test, Doug configured the SSC-1 (Station Support Computer 1) A31p laptop in the FGB and activated the VWS (Video Streaming Workstation) laptop for both the conversion and the “streaming” MPEG2 (Moving Pictures Expert Group 2) encoding, with Fyodor running the video test from the RS.]
Fyodor performed periodic service of the RS (Russian Segment) radiation payload suite “Matryoshka-R” (RBO-3-2), reading the recorded radiation traces of eight Bubble dosimeters, then initializing & re-deploying the detectors and verifying proper function of the setup with the LULIN-5 electronics box. [A total of eight Bubble dosimeter detectors (A21-A28) were initialized in the Bubble dosimeter reader in the SM and positioned at new exposure locations. The deployment locations of the detectors were photo-documented with the NIKON D2X camera and also reported with initialization data to TsUP via log sheet via OCA. The complex Matryoshka payload suite is designed for sophisticated radiation studies. Note: Matryoshka is the name for the traditional Russian set of nested dolls],
As a regular periodic task, Fyodor tightened the ZVB quick-release screw clamps on the SSVP docking mechanism at the MRM1 Rassvet and Soyuz 23S interface.
Alex & Oleg reviewed VKS Computer System procedural material to familiarize themselves with the onboard laptops and LAN computer network, including the Ethernet and auxiliary laptops, antivirus update procedures, etc.
Shannon had 1h25m set aside to continue prepacking cargo for STS-133/ULF-5.
Scott Kelly broke out and set up the equipment for his first blood sample collection, scheduled tomorrow. [Assisted by Shannon Walker as CMO (Crew Medical Officer) for the phlebotomy, Scott will then use the RC (Refrigerated Centrifuge) for spinning the samples prior to stowing them in the MELFI (Minus Eighty Laboratory Freezer for ISS). Based on crew feedback, new cold stowage hardware, and IPV (International Procedures Viewer) capabilities, the generic blood & urine procedures for the HRP (Human Research Program) payloads were created to allow an individual crewmember to select their payload complement and see specific requirements populated. Individual crewmembers will select their specific parameter in the procedures to reflect their science complement. Different crewmembers will have different required tubes and hardware configurations, so they should verify their choice selection before continuing with operations to ensure their specific instruction.]
FE-3 Kelly had ~3hrs reserved for setting up the equipment, cameras & beacons in the Kibo JPM (JEM Pressurized Module) work areas for the experiment SPHERES (Synchronized Position Hold, Engage, Reorient, Experimental Satellites) and conducted a test run of Session 25 involving Fluid Slosh, Formation Flight, Human Machine Interaction, and HS Zero Robotics. With dimmed GLAs (General Luminaire Assemblies), the satellite(s) were programmed & deployed and then commanded through their tests from an SSC (Station Support Computer) laptop. [SPHERES was originally developed to demonstrate the basics of formation flight and autonomous docking, using beacons as reference for the satellites, to fly formation with or dock to the beacon. A number of programs define various incremental tests including attitude control (performing a series of rotations), attitude-only tracking, attitude and range tracking, docking with handheld and mounted beacons, etc. The payload consists of up to three self-contained 8-inch dia. free-floating satellites which perform the various algorithms (control sequences), commanded and observed by the crew members which provide feedback to shape algorithm development. Each satellite has 12 thrusters and a tank with CO2 for propellant. The first tests, in May 2006, used only one satellite (plus two beacons – one mounted and one hand-held); a second satellite arrived on ULF1.1, the third on 12A.1. Formation flight and autonomous docking are important enabling technologies for distributed architectures.]
Yurchikhin set up the Russian DZZ-12 RUSALKA (“Mermaid”) hardware at SM window #9 for another sun-glint observation session, using the hand-held spectrometer (without use of the TIUS three-stage rate sensor), synchronized with the coaxially mounted NIKON D2X camera for taking snapshots, and later downloaded the data to laptop RS1 for subsequent downlink via OCA. [RUSALKA is a micro spectrometer for collecting detailed information on observed spectral radiance in the near IR (Infrared) waveband for measurement of greenhouse gas concentrations in the Earth atmosphere.]
Yurchikhin completed the daily IMS (Inventory Management System) maintenance by 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).
Fyodor also did 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 and replacement of EDV-SV waste water and EDV-U urine containers.]
Before crew sleep time, Shannon again was the subject for the PanOptic eye test which requires application of eye drops (Tropicamide [Mydriacyl]) causing eye dilation for subsequent ophthalmic examination, performed by Scott as CMO with an ophthalmoscope. [The procedure, guided by special software on the T61p RoBOT laptop (#1026), captures still & video images of the eye, including the posterior poles, macula & optic disc with the optic nerve, for downlink and expert analysis.]
At ~4:15am, the entire crew held the regular (nominally weekly) tagup with the Russian Flight Control Team (GOGU/Glavnaya operativnaya gruppa upravleniya), including Shift Flight Director (SRP), at TsUP-Moscow via S-band/audio, phone-patched from Houston and Moscow.
At ~8:35am, Wheelock, Kelly & Walker held a teleconference with the crew of STS-133/Discovery, due to launch on 11/1 (Monday).
At ~10:35am, Wheels, Shannon & Scott supported a PAO TV interview for the Voice of America, Washington D.C. (Suzanne Presto).
At ~10:55am, the six crewmembers joined for a Russian PAO TV event, downlinking greetings to a public meeting celebrating the 10th anniversary of the first crew, Expedition-1, arriving at the ISS. [ISS became permanently manned on 11/2/2000 when Soyuz TM-31 with ISS-1 crew – William Sheppard, Sergei Krikalev and Yuri Gidzenko successfully docked to the SM. The meeting took place in the Moscow Lomonosov State University under the aegis of Russian Space Agency. Among the participants were NASA representatives, cosmonauts V. Soloviev, S. Krikalev and Yu.Gidzenko, principals and students of Lomonosov Moscow State University, Moscow Bauman State Technical University, and Moscow Aviation Institute.]
Scott Kelly set up the video equipment to capture his workout session on the T2 treadmill for subsequent biomechanical evaluation of the crewmember and hardware status at MCC-H.
The crew worked out on today’s 2-hr physical exercise protocol on the CEVIS cycle ergometer with vibration isolation (CDR), TVIS treadmill with vibration isolation & stabilization (FE-1, FE-2, FE-5), ARED advanced resistive exercise device (CDR, FE-3, FE-5, FE-6), T2/COLBERT advanced treadmill (FE-3, FE-6) and VELO ergometer bike with bungee cord load trainer (FE-1, FE-2). [T2 snubber arm inspection is no longer needed after every T2 session but must be done after the last T2 session of the day.]
CEO (Crew Earth Observation) photo targets uplinked for today were Goat Paddock Impact Crater, W. Australia (overlapping images just right of track should have acquired this small, hard-to-find young impact site located in NW Australia near the confluence of Margaret River and a tributary. Goat Paddock is only 5.1-km in diameter and less than 50 million years old), North Coast, Mauritius (HMS Beagle Site: As ISS track entered the Indian Ocean from the southwest, the crew was to look well right of track for Mauritius. Darwin landed at Port Louis on the northwest coast on April 29, 1836. Concentrating on the Port Louis area), and Johannesburg, South Africa (Johannesburg lies in the middle of a 100-mile-long string of gold-mining cities, all right of track. From orbit the cities appear mainly as numerous “mine dumps” of light-toned mine waste. Shooting margins of the built-up areas).
ISS Orbit (as of this morning, 7.46am EDT [= epoch])
Mean altitude – 353.1 km
Apogee height – 358.6 km
Perigee height – 347.7 km
Period — 91.60 min.
Inclination (to Equator) — 51.65 deg
Eccentricity — 0.0007966
Solar Beta Angle — 28.7 deg (magnitude decreasing)
Orbits per 24-hr. day — 15.72
Mean altitude loss in the last 24 hours – 88 m
Revolutions since FGB/Zarya launch (Nov. 98) – 68,444.
Significant Events Ahead (all dates Eastern Time and subject to change):
————–Six-crew operations————-
10/30/10 — Progress M-08M/40P docking (~12:39:30pm EDT)
11/01/10 — STS-133/Discovery launch (ULF5 – ELC4, PMM) ~4:40pm EDT
11/03/10 — STS-133/Discovery docking ~1:13pm EDT
11/07/10 — ————–Daylight Saving Time ends———–
11/10/10 — STS-133/Discovery undock ~5:40am EST
11/12/10 — STS-133/Discovery landing (KSC) ~10:39am EST
11/15/10 — Progress M-05M/37P deorbit
11/15/10 — Russian EVA-26
11/30/10 — Soyuz TMA-19/23S undock/landing (End of Increment 25)
————–Three-crew operations————-
12/13/10 — Soyuz TMA-20/25S launch – Kondratyev (CDR-27)/Coleman/Nespoli
12/15/10 — Soyuz TMA-20/25S docking
————–Six-crew operations————-
12/20/10 — Progress M-07M/39P undock
01/24/11 — Progress M-08M/40P undock
01/28/11 — Progress M-09M/41P launch
01/31/11 — Progress M-09M/41P docking
02/xx/11 — Russian EVA-28
02/15/11 — ATV-2 “Johannes Kepler” launch
02/27/11 — STS-134/Endeavour (ULF6 – ELC3, AMS-02)
03/16/11 — Soyuz TMA-01M/24S undock/landing (End of Increment 26)
————–Three-crew operations————-
03/20/11 — Soyuz TMA-21/26S launch – A. Borisienko (CDR-28)/R.Garan/A.Samokutayev
03/22/11 — Soyuz TMA-21/26S docking
————–Six-crew operations————-
04/26/11 — Progress M-09M/41P undock
04/27/11 — Progress M-10M/42P launch
04/29/11 — Progress M-10M/42P docking
05/xx/11 — Russian EVA-29
05/16/11 — Soyuz TMA-20/25S undock/landing (End of Increment 27)
————–Three-crew operations————-
05/30/11 — Soyuz TMA-22/27S launch – M. Fossum (CDR-29)/S. Furukawa/S. Volkov
06/01/11 — Soyuz TMA-22/27S docking
————–Six-crew operations————-
06/21/11 — Progress M-11M/43P launch
06/23/11 — Progress M-11M/43P docking
08/29/11 — Progress M-11M/43P undocking
08/30/11 — Progress M-12M/44P launch
09/01/11 — Progress M-12M/44P docking
09/16/11 – Soyuz TMA-21/26S undock/landing (End of Increment 28)
————–Three-crew operations————-
09/30/11 — Soyuz TMA-23/28S launch – D.Burbank (CDR-30)/A.Shkaplerov/A.Ivanishin
10/02/11 – Soyuz TMA-23/28S docking
————–Six-crew operations————-
10/20/11 — Progress M-10M/42P undocking
10/21/11 — Progress M-13M/45P launch
10/23/11 — Progress M-13M/45P docking
11/16/11 — Soyuz TMA-22/27S undock/landing (End of Increment 29)
————–Three-crew operations————-
11/30/11 — Soyuz TMA-24/29S launch – O.Kononenko (CDR-31)/A.Kuipers/D.Pettit
12/02/11 — Soyuz TMA-24/29S docking
————–Six-crew operations—————-
12/??/11 — 3R Multipurpose Laboratory Module (MLM) w/ERA – on Proton.
12/26/11 — Progress M-13M/45P undock
03/14/12 — Soyuz TMA-23/28S undock/landing (End of Increment 30)
————–Three-crew operations————-
03/26/12 — Soyuz TMA-25/30S launch – G.Padalka (CDR-32)/J.Acaba/K.Valkov
03/28/12 — Soyuz TMA-25/30S docking
————–Six-crew operations—————-
05/15/12 — Soyuz TMA-24/29S undock/landing (End of Increment 31)
————–Three-crew operations————-
05/29/12 – Soyuz TMA-26/31S launch – S.Williams (CDR-33)/Y.Malenchenko/A.Hoshide
05/31/12 – Soyuz TMA-26/31S docking
————–Six-crew operations—————-
09/09/12 — Soyuz TMA-25/30S undock/landing (End of Increment 32)
————–Three-crew operations————-
09/23/12 — Soyuz TMA-27/32S launch – K.Ford (CDR-34)/O. Novitskiy/E.Tarelkin
09/25/12 – Soyuz TMA-27/32S docking
————–Six-crew operations————-
10/07/12 — Soyuz TMA-26/31S undock/landing (End of Increment 33)
————–Three-crew operations————-
11/xx/12 — Soyuz TMA-28/33S launch – C.Hadfield (CDR-35)/T.Mashburn/R.Romanenko
11/xx/12 – Soyuz TMA-28/33S docking
————–Six-crew operations————-
03/xx/12 — Soyuz TMA-27/32S undock/landing (End of Increment 34)
————–Three-crew operations————-
03/xx/12 – Soyuz TMA-29/34S launch.
03/xx/12 – Soyuz TMA-29/34S docking
————–Six-crew operations————-
