NASA Space Station On-Orbit Status 3 October 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.  Underway: Week 24 for Increment 11. Tonight Expedition 11 completes 172 days in space (170 aboard ISS), with seven days to go.

This morning at 1:27am EDT Soyuz TMA-7/11S docked smoothly at the DC1 “Pirs” Docking Compartment, five minutes ahead of schedule, under automatic “Kurs” control, with Valery Tokarev, William McArthur and Gregory Olsen. After successful leak checks on both sides, hatches were opened at ~4:13am, followed by crew transfer and installation of the BZV clamps (QD, quick disconnect) at ~4:55am (picture see below).  [After successful “kasaniye” (contact), automatic “sborka” (closing of Soyuz & DC1 hooks & latches) and Soyuz-217 deactivation came shortly thereafter. Soyuz hatch opening took unusual effort by both crews, and ground teams at MCC-H & TsUP/Moscow are reviewing data to investigate. Service Module (SM) thrusters were disabled during Soyuz volume pressurization & clamp installation and returned to active attitude control after sborka. Before hatch opening, the crew performed leak checks of the Soyuz modules and the Soyuz/ISS interface vestibule, doffed their Sokol suits, then replaced the Soyuz ECLSS LiOH cartridges and put the spacecraft into conservation mode, on ISS integrated power.]

After the arrival and crew greetings, which were downlinked from the Russian segment (RS) via US assets and Ku-band, CDR-11 Krikalev reestablished nominal comm configuration (STTS), and the crew immediately began with payload transfers for the VC9 science program.  [Scheduled today were about 30 minutes of Soyuz unpacking, involving transfer of VC9 experiment equipment and samples from the Soyuz spacecraft to the ISS, with more hours timelined in the week ahead.]

Sergei Krikalev transferred the TMA-7 payload container and experiments to the ISS. Transfers were tracked with IMS (Inventory Management System).  [High-priority transfers and activations involved the payloads Konyugatsiya (Conjugation) for operation in the BIOCONT-T cold storage, Regeneratsiya (Regeneration, to study how zero gravity impacts structural and functional recovery of damaged organs and tissues in Planaria {water flatworms}) in the Cryogem-3M cooler/glove box, Intercellular Interactions (BIO-10) and its activation in the glove box, set to -22 degC, for 24 hours plus photography, activation of the KUBIC AMBER cooler at +6 degC, and Greg Olsen filling out his log/questionnaires for the LBP (Low Back Pain Muscle) and Motion Perception (MOP) experiments.]

Meanwhile, CDR-12 McArthur initiated and in the course of the day completed the dryout of the three 11S crew’s Sokol spacesuits and, separately, their gloves.

After the docking, Krikalev powered down the Elektron oxygen (O2) generator and started purging of the unit with nitrogen gas.  [Reason for the shutdown was the need for another regeneration of the BMP two-bed harmful impurities removal system, which uses the same vacuum exhaust line as the Elektron. Estimates are that it will take 3.5 days to reach the lower limit for O2 concentration of 146 mmHg; thus, there should be no need to repress the ISS with stored O2 from Progress 19 before Elektron s reactivation on 10/6 (Thursday), but it remains available if needed.]

At ~8:30am, after the more pressing payload activations, the five crewmembers “walked” through the usual emergency evacuation drill, to acquaint the new arrivals with the general interior layout and sharpen their readiness for possible station evacuation in the two Soyuz vehicles (one docked at the DC-1, the other at the FGB nadir port) in case of a contingency.  [More extensive crew safety topics will be part of the E11/E12 handover activities during the docked period, including such topics as Depressurization, Fire, Toxic Release, Generic Procedures & Equipment, Visiting Vehicles Docking/Undocking, Crew Life Support, Computers, Communications, Medical Equipment & Provisions, etc.]

At ~2:00am, the ground turned the external MISSE-5 materials payload back on and powered up the CCAA (common cabin air assembly) conditioner in the Airlock at ~2:20am.

  The crewmembers also started initial handover activities that will dominate, along with the VC9 program, the week ahead. US crewmembers Phillips and McArthur reviewed an uplinked detailed ops plan to familiarize themselves with formalized crew handover activities in the RS.

John Phillips, observed by McArthur, performed the daily routine maintenance of the SM’s SOZh environment control & life support system, including the ASU toilet system, as well as the weekly inspection of the BRPK air/liquid condensate separator apparatus.

Also as handover demonstration, John conducted the periodic checkout/verification of IP-1 airflow sensors in the various RS hatchways, including the SM-to-Soyuz tunnel, and the FGB-to-Node passageway.

Afterwards, the two US crewmembers reconnected the TCS LTL (thermal control system/low temperature loop) jumper at the Lab ARS (Atmosphere Revitalization Rack) to support the subsequent activation of the CDRA (carbon dioxide removal assembly) by the ground (at ~9:00am).

FE-12 Valery Tokarev swapped out Greg Olsen s IELK (individual equipment & liner kit, Russian: USIL) between the two Soyuz vehicles, 10S & 11S, including the tailored Sokol spacesuit after its dryout, and installed Olsen s personal seat liner in his couch in 10S. He also relocated the ISS Emergency Book from the 11S spacecraft into the 10S vehicle.  [A crewmember is not considered transferred until her/his IELK, AMP (ambulatory medical pack) and ALSP (advanced life support pack) drug kit are transferred. After today’s installation of the VC-9 IELK, Olsen is now considered 10S crew, and Expedition 12 has technically begun its residence aboard ISS.]

Sergei and John completed their regular 2.5-hr. physical exercise program on the TVIS treadmill, RED resistive machine and VELO bike with bungee cord load trainer.  [Sergei s daily protocol prescribes a strict four-day microcycle exercise with 1.5 hr on the treadmill and one hour on VELO plus load trainer (today: Day 3 of a new set).]

Afterwards, John transferred the exercise data files to the MEC (Medical Equipment Computer) for downlink, as well as the daily wristband HRM (heart rate monitor) data of the RED workouts, followed by their erasure on the HRM storage medium (done six times a week).

Working off his voluntary time available task list, Sergei conducted the regular daily inspection of the BIO-5 Rasteniya-2 (“Plants-2”) experiment, including filling its water canister for the Lada-7 greenhouse as required.

Sleep Cycle Shift: For the Soyuz docking and subsequent handover period, crew wake-up was last night at 9:30pm (instead of 2:00am this morning), with sleep time today set at 3:30pm. For the remainder of the 11S/10S dual ops period, station day hours will be from 3:30am 7:00pm EDT.

Station Flight Attitude:  After docking and return of attitude control authority to US MCS/CMGs (motion control system/control moment gyros), flight attitude remains in LVLH YVV (local vertical local horizontal/y-axis in velocity vector). On 10/5, the station will turn 90 deg to LVLH XVV (x-axis on velocity vector), and it will go back to XPOP (x-axis perpendicular to orbit plane) on 10/18 after the ISS reboost.

No CEO (crew earth observations) photo targets uplinked today.

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 11 crew visit:

• http://spaceflight.nasa.gov/gallery/images/station/crew-11/ndxpage1.html at NASA’s Human Spaceflight website.

Expedition 11 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.

ISS Orbit  (as of this morning, 7:38am EDT [= epoch]):

• Mean altitude — 348.5 km
• Apogee height — 349.6 km
• Perigee height — 347.4 km
• Period — 91.51 min.
• Inclination (to Equator) — 51.64 deg
• Eccentricity — 0.0001673
• Solar Beta Angle — -45.2 deg (magnitude decreasing)
• Orbits per 24-hr. day — 15.74
• Mean altitude loss in last 24 hours — 80 m
• Revolutions since FGB/Zarya launch (Nov. 98) — 39272

Expedition 11 Flight Timelines:

• Soyuz 10S (Expedition 11+1; Sergei Krikalev, John Phillips, Gregory Olsen):
• Undocking from FGB — 10/10 (Mon., Columbus Day), 5:40pm EDT (undock command);
• Sep Burn #1 (manual) — 5:46pm;
• Deorbiting Burn — 8:21pm (4 min 23 sec; delta-V 115.2 m/s);
• Landing before dawn — 10/10 (Mon.) 9:08pm EDT; 7:08am (10/11) local Kustanai/Kazakhstan;
• Sunrise at Kustanai landing site — 7:47am local. [Note: Kazakhstan remains on Standard Time; thus: local time = GMT+5].

Other Upcoming Events (all times EDT):

• 10/18/05 — ISS Reboost
• 11/18/05 — Soyuz TMA-7/11S relocation (from DC-1 to FGB nadir port)
• 12/20/05 Progress M-54/19P undocking & reentry
• 12/21/05 Progress M-55/20P launch
• 12/23/05 — Progress M-55/20P docking
• 01/09/06 — 100 days for Expedition 12.

E11/E12 aboard ISS (10/3/05):

• Expedition 11 and 12 crewmembers

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.