NASA ISS On-Orbit Status 9 May 2009
All ISS systems continue to function nominally, except those noted previously or below. Saturday – half-duty day for the crew.
Mike Barratt & Koichi Wakata began the second day of their session with the NASA/JSC experiment NUTRITION w/Repository, after the 8-hr overnight fast. This was an all-day session, the third for both, of urine sample collections for both several times until termination tomorrow after 24 hrs. Barratt also assisted the FE-2 in his blood draw. Mike’s phlebotomy (blood sample collection) from an arm vein is scheduled tomorrow. [The NUTRITION project is the most comprehensive in-flight study done by NASA to date of human physiologic changes during long-duration space flight. It includes measures of bone metabolism, oxidative damage, nutritional assessments, and hormonal changes, expanding the previous Clinical Nutritional Assessment profile (MR016L) testing in three ways: Addition of in-flight blood & urine collection (made possible by supercold MELFI dewars), normative markers of nutritional assessment, and a return session plus 30-day (R+30) session to allow evaluation of post-flight nutrition and implications for rehabilitation.]
The crew performed the regular weekly three-hour task of thorough station cleaning. [“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 FE’s sleep station 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 house cleaning, Padalka conducted regular maintenance inspection & cleaning on fan screens in the FGB (TsV2), DC1 (V3), and SM (VPkhO, VPrK, FS5, FS6 & FS9).
CDR Padalka 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 and replacement of EDV-SV waste water and EDV-U urine containers.]
Mike performed the daily procedure of flushing the PWD (Potable Water Dispenser) ambient line with ~50mL of water (into a towel/Ziploc bag). PWD water is currently cleared only for hygienic use, pending Russian approval.
The FE-1 also conducted the daily status check on the BCAT (Binary Colloidal Alloy Test) science payload, running by itself since 5/2. [The status check, conducted on the last image taken by the DCS 760 digital still camera which is controlled by EarthKAM software on an A31p laptop, is to verify proper image focus and camera alignment. The SSC (Station Support Computer) is taking photography of the phase separation occurring in the BCAT Sample 3, with the photo flash going off every half hour.]
The FE-2 completed the monthly reboot of all active US PCS (Portable Computer System) and COL PWS (Portable Workstation) laptops and recorded the battery SOC (state of charge) of each active PCS.
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 TVIS treadmill (CDR, FE-1, FE-2) and ARED advanced resistive exercise device (CDR, FE-1, FE-2) and VELO bike with bungee cord load trainer (CDR).
Afterwards, Barratt downloaded the exercise data file to the MEC (Medical Equipment Computer) for downlink, including the daily wristband HRM (Heart Rate Monitor) data of the workouts on ARED, followed by their erasure on the HRM storage medium (done six times a week).
At ~5:00pm, the CDR powered up the SM’s amateur radio equipment (Kenwood VHF transceiver with manual frequency selection, headset, & power supply) and at ~5:05pm conducted a ham radio session with veterans of the Second World War and students at Kursk University
CEO (Crew Earth Observation) Note: In recent days, ISS daylight-awake orbit tracks have shifted rapidly into the Southern Hemisphere which is now some six weeks into the fall season, and both day length and sun elevation are significantly lowering. This situation along with deteriorating seasonal weather greatly limits good view opportunities for targets. The situation is further aggravated by the fact that the ISS orbit tracks nearly parallel with the terminator. The consequence is very low light right of track, low light near nadir, and adequate to good light left of track. Beginning today and for the next 5 to 7 days, there may be no targets with suitable illumination or weather.
CEO photography can be studied at this “Gateway” website:
http://eol.jsc.nasa.gov (as of 9/1/08, this database contained 770,668 views of the Earth from space, with 324,812 from the ISS alone).
Significant Events Ahead (all dates Eastern Time, some changes possible!):
05/11/09 — STS-125/Atlantis Hubble Space Telescope Service Mission 4 (SM4) — fifth service mission to HST (2:01pm EDT)
05/12/09 — Progress M-02M/33P docking (~3:23pm EDT)
05/18/09 — Progress M-01M/32P deorbit (~3:00pm EDT)
05/27/09 — Soyuz TMA-15/19S launch
05/29/09 — Soyuz TMA-15/19S docking (FGB nadir)
Six-person crew on ISS
06/05/09 — Russian EVA-22
06/10/09 — Russian EVA-23
06/13/09 — STS-127/Endeavour/2J/A launch – JEM EF, ELM-ES, ICC-VLD
07/17/09 – Progress M-02M/33P undock & deorbit
07/20/09 — Soyuz TMA-14/18S relocation (from SM aft to DC1)
07/24/09 — Progress 34P launch
07/26/09 — Progress 34P docking (SM aft)
08/06/09 — STS-128/Discovery/17A – MPLM (P), LMC
09/01/09 — H-IIB (JAXA HTV-1) launch – tentative
09/07/09 — H-IIB (JAXA HTV-1) berth
09/30/09 — Soyuz TMA-16/20S launch
10/02/09 — Soyuz TMA-16/20S docking (SM aft, until MRM2 w/new port)
10/08/09 — H-IIB (JAXA HTV-1) unberth
10/11/09 – Soyuz TMA-14/18S undock
10/15/09 — Progress 35P launch
11/10/09 — 5R/MRM2 (Russian Mini Research Module, MIM2) on Proton — tentative
11/12/09 — STS-129/Atlantis/ULF3 – ELC1, ELC2
12/07/09 — Soyuz TMA-17/21S launch
12/26/09 — Progress 36P launch
02/03/10 — Progress 37P launch
02/??/10 — STS-130/Endeavour/20A – Node-3 + Cupola — tentative
02/11/10 — STS-131/Atlantis/19A – MPLM(P), LMC — tentative
04/02/10 — Soyuz TMA-18/22S launch
04/08/10 — STS-132/Discovery/ULF4 – ICC-VLD, MRM1 — tentative
04/27/10 — Progress 38P launch
05/29/10 — Soyuz TMA-19/23S launch
05/31/10 — STS-133/Endeavour/ULF5 – ELC3, ELC4 — tentative
06/??/10 – ATV2 – Ariane 5 (ESA)
06/25/10 — Progress 39P launch
08/11/10 — Progress 40P launch
09/29/10 — Soyuz TMA-20/24S launch
12/??/11 — Proton 3R/MLM w/ERA.
10/19/10 — Progress 41P launch
12/??/11 – 3R Multipurpose Laboratory Module (MLM) w/ERA – on Proton
