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ARCTIC Refrigerator/Freezer (ARCTIC)
10.29.09
Scientists and payload developers can get more information on International Space Station research facilities by contacting the ISS Payloads Office or at 281-244-6187.

Overview | Description | Applications | Operations | Results | Publications | Images

Facility/Payload Overview

Brief Facility Summary

ARCTIC Refrigerator/Freezer (ARCTIC) provided a thermally-controlled environment for storing biological samples (prior to return to Earth) early in the building stages of the International Space Station (ISS). The ARCTIC Freezers supported several of these experiments on ISS during Expeditions 4 and 5.

Facility Manager(s)

  • Warren P. Ruemmele, Johnson Space Center, Houston, TX

    • Co-Facility Manager(s)

    Information Pending

    Facility Developer

    Oceaneering International, Inc., Houston, TX

    Sponsoring Agency

    National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA)

    Expeditions Assigned

    |4|5|6|

    Previous ISS Missions

    Information Pending

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    Facility/Payload Description

    Facility Summary

    • ARCTIC provided a middeck locker-size EXPRESS Rack compatible refrigerator/freezer for a variety of experiments needing temperatures ranging from -22 degrees C to +4 degrees C.

    Description

    The ARCTIC Refrigerator/Freezer (ARCTIC) units were operable as a refrigerator or freezer aboard ISS. Cooling was accomplished via thermoelectric elements (creation of a heat difference from an electric voltage). ARCTIC was capable of providing temperatures as cold as -25 degrees C while operating with ISS water cooling or -12 degrees C while operating with ISS air cooling.

    Two ARCTIC units supported the early biological experiments on ISS. The first unit, ARCTIC-1, was delivered to ISS during the 8A (STS-110) mission in April of 2002. The second unit, ARCTIC-2, was launched on UF2 (STS-111) in June 2002. ARCTIC-1 operated as a freezer with a set temperature -25 degrees C, while ARCTIC-2 operated in refrigerator mode at 4 degrees C.

    Together the ARCTIC units operated continuously for 6,870 hours during Expeditions 4 and 5 before malfunctioning and losing the ability to cool. During checkout operations on Expedition 4, ARCTIC-2 was unable to cool to freezing temperatures, but was able to operate at 4 degrees C.

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    Operations

    Facility Operations

    The ARCTIC units was transferred from the Space Shuttle to the International Space Station's Express Rack 4. There was a brief checkout to begin operations, and then minimal crew interaction with the ARCTIC units was required to place samples inside the ARCTIC units. The ARCTIC units provided a total of 38 liters of cold stowage on ISS.

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    Results/More Information

    Following the completion of Expedition 5, ARCTIC-2 was returned to Earth on 11A (STS-113). Analysis of the unit showed significant corrosion in the heat exchanger causing several of the thermoelectric elements within ARCTIC to fail. This corrosion was caused by the failure of the hermetic seals to lock out moisture with the unit. Following analysis of ARCTIC-2, ARCTIC-1 began to fail and was powered down.

    Based on the analysis of ARCTIC-2, procedures were developed and uplinked to Don Pettit, Expedition 6 NASA ISS Science Officer. Pettit performed various procedures to fix the ARCTIC. ARCTIC-1 gained cooling functionality as low as -5 degrees C for 24-hours before malfunctioning again. The second malfunction is believed to be an outgrowth of the initial malfunction. However, the ability of the crew to repair a unit that was not designed to be repaired on orbit without previous training shows the ability to carry out unpredicted repairs in space (Increment 4-6 30-Day Postflight Report). ARCTIC-1 was returned to Earth for assessment on LF-1 (STS-114).

    The lessons learned from operation of the ARCTIC units early in ISS assembly lead to the development of the next generation of cold stowage hardware, General Laboratory Active Cryogenic ISS Experiment Refrigerator (GLACIER) and Microgravity Experiment Research Locker Incubator (MERLIN) for use on the ISS.

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    Availability

  • Operated on ISS

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    Related Web Sites
  • NASA Fact Sheet

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    Publications

    Results Publications

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      Related Publications

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        Images

        imageNASA Image: ISS005E06719 - ARCTIC-1 and ARCTIC-2 units installed in EXPRESS Rack 4 during Expedition 5.
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        imageNASA Images: ISS006E46793, ISS006E46757, ISS006E46308 - Shows the disassembled ARCTIC-1 unit. The inset images are the corroded thermoelectric elements inside the ARCTIC.
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        Information Provided and Updated by the ISS Program Scientist's Office
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