NASA Space Station On-Orbit Status 19 March 2005

SpaceRef note: This NASA Headquarters internal status report, as presented here, contains additional, original material produced by SpaceRef.com (copyright © 2005) to enhance access to related status reports and NASA activities.

All ISS systems continue to function nominally, except those noted previously or below.

CDR/SO Chiao and FE Sharipov completed the regular weekly 3-hour task of thorough station cleaning, wearing protective garment. [“Uborka”, done every Saturday, includes removal of food waste products, cleaning of compartments with vacuum cleaner, wet cleaning of the Service Module (SM) dining table and other surfaces with “Fungistat” disinfectant and cleaning fan screens to avoid temperature rises.]

Chiao collected the periodic reading of the cabin air’s current CO2 partial pressure in the SM and Lab, using the U.S. CDMK (carbon dioxide monitoring kit, #1009), for calldown (along with the battery status) for use in trending analyses.

Leroy also completed the regular weekly maintenance reboot on the operational PCS (portable computer system) laptops and the bi-monthly restart of the OCA comm router laptop.

Working off the Russian discretionary job jar, Sharipov completed the regular daily inspection of the Lada-5 greenhouse equipment, including filling its water canister as required.

Also off his task list, Salizhan conducted a new session with the “Uragan” (hurricane) earth-imaging program that had him focus the Kodak 760 electronic still camera from SM window #9 on targets specified on an uplinked list. [Targets for today were a scenic view of the Volga river delta (looking for spring fires harmful to fauna), the Andes volcanoes, i.e., the chain of snow-capped peaks not far off the Pacific coast, with the Huascaran volcano as main target, possibly with close-up photography of each volcano, and views of Sharipov’s homeland Kyrgyzstan in nadir.]

A third item from the Russian task list for today, at Salizhan’s leisure, was another one of the regular monthly sessions of the VC6 “Delta” program’s ETD experiment (Investigation of the Coordination of Eye and Head Movements). [After a calibration with the calibrating unit, the experiment investigates horizontal eye and head movement coordination, measured Listing’s plane, and determined the orientation of the vestibulo-ocular coordinate system, using five target marks on the horizontal plane. Each step required another prior calibration run, using visual target cues or the calibration unit.]

Still open on the FE’s task list is an inventory/audit of onboard equipment for recording ASN-M (satellite navigation system) data to Laptop 3 by ESA cosmonaut Roberto Vittori during his upcoming VC8 visit.

For his “Saturday Science” program, the Science Officer today conducted another session of the BCSS-FDI (Biotechnology Cell Science Stowage-Fluid Dynamics Investigation) payload, today setting up and refilling Tissue Culture Module (TCM) #A2.

The crew performed their regular daily 2.5-hr. physical exercise program on TVIS, RED exerciser, and VELO cycle with bungee cord load trainer, plus a session on CEVIS (cycle ergometer with vibration isolation) for Leroy. [Salizhan’s daily protocol currently prescribes a four-day microcycle exercise with 1.5 hr on the treadmill and one hour on VELO (today: Day 3 of a new set).]

The CDR/SO then transferred the daily TVIS and RED exercise data files to the MEC (medical equipment computer) for downlink, as well as the daily wristband HRM (heart rate monitor) data, followed by their erasure on the HRM storage medium.

The FE completed the routine SOZh/ECLSS servicing/inspection in the SM, including the ASU toilet facilities.

At ~9:10am EST, Chiao and Sharipov engaged in their weekly planning conference (WPC) 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.

Elektron is currently off. After it shut down again on Thursday evening (4:55pm EST), the crew attempted to restart it yesterday without success. [TsUP/Moscow plans are to attempt to reactivate the oxygen generator system one more time after the BMP (Micropurification Unit) regeneration scheduled for next week (both systems still use the same vacuum vent valve/line). No other troubleshooting is planned until after EVA-13. There is sufficient O2 onboard Progress 17 for replenishing if necessary to allow troubleshooting and repair activities with Elektron off)]

MCC-Houston today is conducting the periodic solar array efficiency test. This requires redirecting (“shunting”) the output of the P6 2B & 4B wings for 11 minutes of each sunlight (“insolation”) pass for three consecutive orbits to measure the total current being produced by the solar arrays. [The photovoltaic cells of the solar arrays experience an (expected) degradation over time. Performing a biannual test of their performance allows engineers to track the performance over time and compare degradation trends against expected curves.]

Last night (9:01pm), the European/Russian laser-beam experiment SPQR (Specular Point-like Quick Reference) was conducted for the third time. Today it will performed a fourth time at 3:05pm, during a 5-min. “window” each. One more opportunity is scheduled tomorrow at 1:57pm. [SPQR, installed at SM window #3 along with its Nikon D1X camera, tests a ground-based imaging system, using special optics and image processing, to determine the feasibility of detecting external damage to a spacecraft in orbit from the ground. It uses a pyramidal corner reflector (CCR, Cube Corner Reflector) at the SM window, to reflect a laser beam emitted by a ground station back to the ground. The crew was advised not to look out the portholes during the sessions, the times of which were uplinked, and there are no CEO targets scheduled during the brief sessions. The SPQR Hazard Report indicates that the laser power at the ISS remains well below the threshold for injury.]

Weekly Science Update (Expedition Ten — 20th):

GASMAP: Dr. Chiao was thanked for his continued support of GASMAP.

Human Research Facility/Workstation (HRF WS): Continuing.

Advanced Ultrasound (ADUM): Nothing new.

Hand Posture Analyzer (HPA: Nothing new.

In-Space Soldering Investigation (ISSI): Operations are complete. –>For a descriptive article on ISSI background & early surprising results, see AIAA’s “Aerospace America” Magazine, March 2005 issue (page 24)

Pore Formation and Mobility Investigation (PFMI): Nothing new.

Space Acceleration Measurement System (SAMS): SAMS remains in nominal operations.

Microgravity Acceleration Measurement System (MAMS): MAMS remains in nominal operations.

Protein Crystal Growth-Single Locker Thermal Enclosure System (PCG-STES): PCG-STES is performing nominally.

Protein Crystal Growth Monitoring by Digital Holographic Microscope (PromISS): Nothing new.

Investigating the Structure of Paramagnetic Aggregates from Colloidal Emulsions (InSPACE): Nothing new.

Binary Colloidal Alloy Test-3 (BCAT-3): Nothing new.

Renal Stone (RS): Nothing new.

Synchronized Position Hold, Engage, Reorient, Experimental Satellites (SHERES): Nothing new.

Foot/Ground Reaction Forces during Space Flight (FOOT): Nothing new.

Materials ISS Experiment (MISSE): In progress. Deployed outside on the U.S. Airlock. Nominal and collecting data.

Cellular Biotechnology Support Systems-Fluid Dynamics Investigation (CBOSS-FDI): In progress.

Dust and Aerosol Measurement Feasibility Test (DAFT): The DAFT team is in the process of analyzing the downlinked data.

Biotechnology Specimen Temperature Controller (BSTC): Nothing new.

Yeast Group Activation Packs (Yeast GAP): Nothing new.

Earth Knowledge Acquired by Middle School Students (EarthKAM): Nothing new.

Earth Science Toward Exploration Research (ESTER): Nothing new.

Serial Network Flow Monitor (SNFM): Nothing new.

Fluid Merging Viscosity Measurement (FMVM): Looking forward to future experiments with honey samples.

Space Experiment Module (SEM): Nothing new.

Viscous Liquid Foam–Bulk Metallic Glass (Foam): Nothing new.

Effects of Prolonged Space Flight on Human Skeletal Muscle (BIOPSY): Nothing new.

Coarsening in Solid-Liquid Mixtures-2 (CSLM-2): Planned.

Commercial Generic Bioprocessing Apparatus (CGBA): Nothing new.

Miscible Fluids in Microgravity (MFMG): Nothing new.

Educational Payload Operations (EPO): Nothing new.

Capillary Flow Experiment (CFE): Nothing new.

Crew Earth Observations (CEO): As of 3/17, the ground has received a total of 12,350 CEO images from Expedition 10. After the vernal equinox early next week, there should be rapidly improving lighting conditions in the Northern Hemisphere for acquiring CEO targets there. Thank you to the crew for a prompt response in resetting the date on camera K760C-05160.

Today’s CEO (crew earth observations) photo targets, in the current LVLH attitude no longer limited by flight rule constraints on the use of the Lab nadir/science window, were Internal waves, Yellow Sea (this overpass brought ISS over the central Yellow Sea for internal wave photography. The sunglint point was almost directly below the station. Inclusion of land features if possible [or overlapping mapping swaths extending from a shoreline] will aid in cataloging of internal wave images), and Tigris River flooding, Iraq (Dynamic Event. Heavy rainfall and snowmelt has lead to swelling of the Tigris River and subsequent flooding. Looking to the left of track and to the SE of Baghdad for standing water in the Tigris river floodplain).

CEO photography can be viewed and studied at the websites:

• http://eol.jsc.nasa.gov
• http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov
• http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/Study/AstronautPhotography/

See also the website “Space Station Challenge” at:

• http://voyager.cet.edu/iss/

To view the latest photos taken by the expedition 10 crew visit:

• http://spaceflight.nasa.gov/gallery/images/station/crew-10/ndxpage1.html at NASA’s Human Spaceflight website.

Expedition 10 Flight Crew Plans can be found at http://spaceflight.nasa.gov/station/timelines/

Previous NASA ISS On-orbit Status Reports can be found here. Previous NASA Space Station Status Reports can be found here. Previous NASA Space Shuttle Processing Status Reports can be found here. A collection of all of these reports and other materials relating to Return to Flight for the Space Shuttle fleet can be found here.

Upcoming Key Events:

• Reboost — 3/25 (5:00am EST; ~1.65 m/s, for 10S rendezvous & 9S landing phasing);
• EVA-13 — 3/28;
• Soyuz TMA-6 (10S) launch — 4/15 with Expedition 11 (CDR Sergei Krikalev, FE/SO John Phillips & VC8 cosmonaut Roberto Vittori/ESA-Italy);
• Soyuz TMA-6 docking – 4/17;
• Soyuz TMA-5 (9S) undocking — 4/25 with Exp. 10 crew (after 193 days on orbit, 191 days on board ISS) and VC8 cosmonaut Vittori;
• LF1 (STS-114) — NET 5/12;
• Progress M-53 (18P) launch — 6/10;
• ULF1.1 (STS-121) — NET 7/10;
• Progress M-54 (19P) launch — 8/24;
• Soyuz TMA-7 (11S) launch — 9/27.

ISS Orbit (as of this morning, 7:10am EST [= epoch]):

• Mean altitude — 355.7 km
• Apogee height — 358.0 km
• Perigee height — 353.3 km
• Period — 91.65 min.
• Inclination (to Equator) — 51.65 deg
• Eccentricity — 0.0003504
• Solar Beta Angle — 1.1 deg (magnitude decreasing)
• Orbits per 24-hr. day — 15.71
• Mean altitude loss in last 24 hours — 130 m
• Revolutions since FGB/Zarya launch (Nov. 98) — 36157

ISS Altitude History

Apogee height — Mean Altitude — Perigee height

For more on ISS orbit and worldwide ISS naked-eye visibility dates/times, see http://www.hq.nasa.gov/osf/station/viewing/issvis.html. In addition, information on International Space Station sighting opportunities can be found at http://spaceflight.nasa.gov/realdata/sightings/ on NASA’s Human Spaceflight website. The current location of the International Space Station can be found at http://science.nasa.gov/temp/StationLoc.html at NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center. Additional satellite tracking resources can be found at http://www.spaceref.com/iss/tracking.html.