NASA Space Station On-Orbit Status 29 July 2004
SpaceRef note: This NASA Headquarters internal status report, as presented here, contains additional, original material produced by SpaceRef.com (copyright © 2004) to enhance access to related status reports and NASA activities.
All ISS systems continue to function nominally except those noted previously or below.
Tomorrow morning Progress M-49/14P undocks. Physical separation & departure are scheduled for 2:05am EDT. [Late tonight 14P will transfer from SM power to autonomous battery power. Station attitude control will be handed over to Russian thrusters at 11:45pm, after which ISS maneuvers to duty attitude, later to undock attitude. Subsequently, the U.S. P6 solar array wings (SAWs) will be feathered in Directed position as protection against plume impingement. The ISS will mode to Free Drift at ~2:03am, followed 90 sec later by 14P undocking, after which the SAWs are returned to Autotrack. Attitude control is handed back to U.S. CMGs thereafter.]
After yesterday’s removal of the US-21 matching unit from 14P, the crew today continued preparations for Progress undock by first installing the docking mechanism (StM) of the SSVP docking & internal transfer system in the hatchway between the Progress vehicle and the SM aft end. [The StM is the “classic” probe-and-cone type, consisting of an active docking assembly (ASA) with a probe (SSh), which fits into the cone (SK) on the passive docking assembly (PSA). The ASA is mounted on the Progress’ cargo module (GrO), while the PSA sits on the docking ports of the SM, FGB and DC-1.]
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This was followed by dismantling and removal of the Progress’ LKT local temperature sensor commutator (TA251M1B) of the BITS2-12 onboard telemetry system and its TA765B ROM (read-only memory) unit, now no longer required and to be reused in the future.
Next, after 14P activation Gennady disassembled the air duct in the hatchway to the SM PkhO (Service Module transfer compartment).
The crew then removed the threaded quick-disconnect (QD) screw clamps of the SM SSVP, which rigidized the mating surfaces. The interface was visually inspected and video-recorded with the U.S. DVCAM to make sure that there is no damage to the cords, snap hooks or rings on the latches and to the slots for the clamps in the SSVP’s internal flanges. The videotape was downlinked via U.S. Ku- and S-band.
At ~9:00am EDT, the crew were scheduled to close the hatches between Progress and SM, followed by depressurization of the SM-to-Progress vestibule for the purpose of leak checking. The SM thrusters, which had been inhibited prior to the QD clamps removal, were then re-enabled. About four hours before undocking tomorrow morning, charging of Progress 14P’s primary and backup batteries from SM power will be initiated, to get the cargo ship ready for autonomous power for the post-undock flight phase.
Continuing preparations for EVA-10 on 8/3, the crew also worked on their Orlan-M suits, today filling the DIDBs (disposable in-suit drink bags) and installing them in the suits. Afterwards, Padalka and Fincke equipped the suits with their consumable/replaceable ORU elements. [Orlan ORUs are LiOH canisters (LP-9), primary & backup oxygen tanks (BK-3), moisture collectors, feedwater filters (FOR), CO2 measuring unit (IK) filter, filtration & separation units (BOS), and the newly charged 825M1 storage batteries.]
Padalka and Fincke performed the full regimen of physical exercise on VELO with force loader, RED (resistive exercise device) and TVIS (treadmill with vibration isolation and stabilization), and Fincke also completed scheduled RED inspection as well as the monthly tightening of the RED’s bolts.
The CDR restarted the current operations and measurement session with the Molniya-SM/LSO hardware from SM window #3, with the French-provided EGE-1 laptop running the latest NORAD orbital parameters (TLEs, two-line elements). Begun on 7/25, the payload worked automatically until today. Gennady then restarted it for additional measurements, to run until 8/1 when it will be torn down.
At 5:55am, the crew was scheduled for a 10-min. ARISS ham radio session with Habikigaoka Elementary School in Japan.
Also, at 12:55pm EDT, both crewmembers participated in an interactive televised PAO/educational event at the NASA Goddard Space Flight Center (GSFC), Greenbelt, MD, where team leads of regional NASA Explorer Schools were gathered. [Questions uplinked to the crew beforehand were taken from the students of the 2004 participating NES schools. The questions were submitted from NASA Explorer School teams from all over the United States. They were to be asked by NES attendees (teachers and administrators) of a NES summer workshop occurring at GSFC. NES summer workshop participants at GSFC, ARC, JPL, and JSC will view the downlink.]
Mike Fincke performed the regular daily maintenance of the SM’s SOZh life support system.
Yesterday’s second oxygen refreshing of the station atmosphere yielded approximately 3.9 mmHg (Torr) of Progress O2, bringing the total pressure to 758 mmHg. The MCA (Mass Constituent Analyzer) ppO2 reading after repress was approximately 23.9%.
The “Aeolus” scope meter (for voltage/current measurements) has not held its charge for more than 10-15 minutes during the last couple of usages. This scope meter arrived on 13P (1/30/04) and should be holding a charge for up to 4 hours. A spare scope meter battery will be installed when the procedure is available.
TsUP/Moscow yesterday began troubleshooting on the internal thermal loop 2 in the SM for
Pump Panel #1. One of the two pumps is not operating properly and is exhibiting the same signature that was seen with the pump failure two weeks ago.
At ~1:30pm yesterday, the U.S. ITCS (Internal Thermal Control System) was transitioned to the single MTL (Moderate Temperature Loop) to support an ITCS accumulator water transfer from the MTL to the LTL (Low Temperature) loop, which was successfully completed. Following the transfer ITCS was transitioned to dual loop mode in preparation for the upcoming EVA. [During previous mode transitions and “jumpering” for the unmanned EVA configuration, a slight amount of water was transferred from the LTL to the MTL. The result was that the MT accumulator quantity has risen to the level associated with an ammonia leak warning (90%). The water was transferred back to LTL to avoid these warning messages and the associated FDIR event.]
Major upcoming events:
- Progress 14P undocking — 7/30 (2:05am EDT)
- Orlan training run, battery charging, camera prep — 7/30;
- EVA timeline review — 8/1;
- OpsLan reconfig, etc. — 8/2;
- Orlan EVA-10 from DC-1 — 8/3 (hatch open: 2:50am EDT);
- EVA debrief, etc. — 8/4;
- Progress 15P launch — 8/11 (1:01am EDT);
- Progress 15P docking — 8/14 (2:05am EDT).
Expedition 9 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.
Today’s CEO photo targets, in the current LVLH attitude no longer limited by flight rule constraints on the use of the Lab nadir/science window, except for the shutter closure and condensation-prevention plan (limited to 90 min. in 24 hours), were Typhoon Namtheun, Japan (this Category 3 storm is moving west along the south coast of Japan. Lightning was visible mainly left of track looking towards the eye of the storm), Aurora australis, Australia (looking right for several minutes. Scientist colleagues cannot predict the intensity one day ahead. Local midnight is the best time since the oval of auroral activity is largest in the midnight sector. Local midnight south of Australia and over the US Midwest are the best locations since they lie at the highest geomagnetic latitude and hence closest to the aurora), Riyadh, Saudi Arabia (nadir pass), Khartoum, Sudan (nadir pass. Khartoum and its sister city on the west side of the Nile may be easier to locate at night), Casablanca, Morocco (nadir pass), and Beira, Mozambique (this small port city lies at the mouth of the Zambezi River and is the ancient Arab trading city known as Sofala, about the southernmost point on the African coast of the pre-European Indian Ocean trading network. Nadir pass.)
CEO images can be viewed at these websites:
See also the website “Space Station Challenge” at:
To view the latest photos taken by the expedition 9 crew visit:
- http://spaceflight.nasa.gov/gallery/images/station/crew-9/ndxpage1.html at NASA’s Human Spaceflight website.
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ISS Orbit (as of this morning, 9:14am EDT [= epoch]):
- Mean altitude — 357.6 km
- Apogee height — 361.8 km
- Perigee height — 353.5km
- Period — 91.7 min.
- Inclination (to Equator) — 51.63 deg
- Eccentricity — 0.0006282
- Solar Beta Angle — -1.7 deg
- Orbits per 24-hr. day — 15.70
- Mean altitude loss in last 24 hours — 100 m
- Revolutions since FGB/Zarya launch (Nov. ’98) — 32497
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.
