NASA Space Station On-Orbit Status 31 July 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. Ahead: Week 15 for Increment 11. Flight Day 6 (FD6) of the STS-114/LF-1 mission.
After wake-up at 11:40pm EDT last night, CDR Krikalev and FE/SO Phillips, along with the Shuttle crew, spent the majority of the day on cargo transfers from MPLM Raffaello. [Water status: One CWC (collapsible water container) was filled by Shuttle CDR Eileen Collins and transferred to ISS. No leak was reported. A total of 8 CWCs have been transferred to ISS and of these, 5 are leaking. O2/N2 Transfer Status: O2 (oxygen) transfer is not planned for this flight. Shuttle pressurized the Shuttle/ISS stack with 6 mmHg oxygen today. 23.7 lbs of N2 (nitrogen) have been transferred. Transfer has been halted since the ODS hatch has been closed in preparation for tomorrow’s EVA 2. Transfer will continue post EVA. Middeck Transfer Status: There were no middeck items planned for transfer on FD6. 25% (based on time) of the middeck transfers are complete so far. This equates into 40% of the resupply items transferred to ISS and 4% of the return items transferred to Shuttle. MPLM Transfer Status: All hardware delivered on the MPLM has been transferred to ISS. Prepack bags have been prepositioned in the MPLM in preparation for stowage for return. The HRF-2 (Human Research Facility #2) rack was installed in the Lab, and its activation and checkout is planned to be completed during stage operations. 29% (based on time) of the MPLM transfers are complete so far. This equates into 98% of the resupply items transferred to ISS and 0% of the return items transferred to their final locations in the MPLM.]
The crew also successfully completed EVA preparations for tomorrow. [In preparation for EVA-2, the crew reviewed objectives and timeline, cleaned up and stowed all EVA-1 tools, configured and checked out tools for EVA-2, and pre-positioned the ISS SSRMS (Space Station Remote Manipulator System) to support the CMG-1 (control moment gyro #1) removal and replacement (R&R) with its camera views.]
ISS CMG-2 was successfully incorporated in the steering law today and the ISS control moment gyros are once again controlling the orientation of the mated vehicles. [CMG-3 has been removed from the attitude control system but is still spinning. Currently, the station is on 2-CMG attitude control, being provided by CMG-2 and CMG-4. After undocking, CMG-3 is planned to be added back into the steering law. With a successful CMG-1 replacement during tomorrow’s EVA, the ISS is expected to return to 4-CMG attitude control after LF-1.]
Because of the adequate fuel cell consumables (cryogenic O2 & H2) status on board the Discovery it was decided by the MMT (Mission Management Team) to add an extra docked day to the mission. With the extra flight day, the new Shuttle/ISS undocking time will be on FD12 (Saturday, August 6 at 3:22 am EDT), and the new Shuttle landing time will be on FD14 (Monday, August 8 at 4:47am EDT).
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A suspected slow leak from the ISS interior into the A/L C/L (Airlock Crewlock) of ~2.2 lbs/day appears to have stopped after an isolation valve was closed yesterday during crew ingress.
The TCCS (Trace Contaminant Control System) in the USOS (U.S. segment) has experienced periodic shutdowns due to a blockage in a control line. There were concerns that there would not be adequate trace contamination detection capability in the stack. The Russians have now confirmed that their similar system, BMP, working in conjunction with the US TCCS will provide adequate trace contamination capability for the stack.
At ~8:40am, Shuttle and ISS crew members participated in a PAO event with CBS, CNN and Discovery channels. [The crew was asked about their reaction to the piece of foam that struck the Orbiter and about potential launch delays. They expressed their disappointment but also their optimism that the problem will be solved, as well as their confidence in the Shuttle program’s ability to continue to support the station. They stated they have minimal concern about re-entry since the foam caused little damage to the orbiter.]
In the station, Krikalev completed the daily routine maintenance of the SM’s SOZh environment control & life support system, which today included the weekly collection of the toilet flush (SP) counter and water supply (SVO) readings for calldown to TsUP/Moscow. Sergei also prepared the IMS “delta” file for automated export/import top the three IMS databases.
Both crewmembers conducted 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 1 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 workouts on RED, followed by their erasure on the HRM storage medium (done six times a week).
The CDR also took care of the regular weekly maintenance reboot on the operational PCS (Portable Computer System) laptops.
Prior to sleep, the crews returned to their respective vehicles, closed the hatches, and depressed the Orbiter to 10.2 psi in preparation for the Shuttle airlock EVA-2 on FD7. [Depressurization of the Orbiter to 10.2 psi is required to enable the prebreathe protocol to denitrogenize body tissues to avoid decompression sickness.]
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Sleep period began for all nine crewmembers again this afternoon at 3:40pm EDT. Wakeup will be tonight at 11:40pm.
Update on Orbiter TPS inspection: Thorough inspection and analysis the Orbiter RCC (wing leading edges and nose cap) has been completed. There is one area on panel 10 of the port wing that requires revalidation; all other areas of the RCC are clear for a safe re?entry. With regard to two protrusions of TPS tile gap filler, potential aero?thermal effects of the heating that could occur with early boundary layer trip transition (from laminar to turbulent flow) are being analyzed in depth. Also under investigation are options to access and perform a repair to the protruding gap fillers, should it be required, and a risk evaluation of doing the EVA versus the risk of entry-as-is. The blanket damage near Orbiter window #1 has been cleared as a non-issue for re-entry for all thermal aspects. The possibility of the blanket detaching and becoming a debris threat to the Orbiter OMS pod is under review.
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:
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 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.
