ISS On-Orbit Status 03/19/10 All ISS systems continue to function nominally, except those noted previously or below.
Last day of Winter. At wake-up (back at normal 2:00am EDT), CDR Kotov performed the regular daily early-morning check of the aerosol filters at the Russian Elektron O
2 generator which Maxim Suraev had installed on 10/19 in gaps between the BZh Liquid Unit and the oxygen outlet pipe (filter FA-K) plus hydrogen outlet pipe (filter FA-V).
[FE-4 again inspected the filters before bedtime this morning, currently a daily requirement per plan, with photographs to be taken if the filter packing is discolored.] Afterwards, Kotov had about 2 hrs for setting up and running a short test of the ASN-M Satellite Navigation System, switching NPM (Navigation Receiver Module) connections in a new configuration which includes the MRM2 “Poisk” module along with the SM (Service Module) with its RSE1 control laptop, but no visiting vehicle as yet.
[The ASN-M will eventually be needed for the proximity operations of the second ATV (Automated Transfer Vehicle), currently expected in December of this year. An ATV-2 Interface Test between TsUP/Moscow, ATV-CC/Toulouse & MCC/Houston was conducted overnight from 3/16 to 3/17. A full-fledged ATV-RGPS (Relative Global Positioning System) test is scheduled for 3/22, requiring some powerdowns in the USOS (US Segment) & RS (Russian Segment).] Later, Oleg continued the extended leak integrity checking of the spare BZh Liquid Unit (#056) for the Elektron O
2 generator, recharged on 1/16 with nitrogen (N
2) to 1 atm (1 kg/cm
2), by conducting the usual pressure check and repressing it to verify the unit’s hermeticity. (Last time: 2/18).
[Objective of the monthly checkout of the spare BZh, which has been in stowage since March 2007, is to check for leakage and good water passage through the feed line inside of the BZh (from ZL1 connector to the buffer tank) and to check the response of the Electronics Unit’s micro switches (signaling “Buffer Tank is Empty” & “Buffer Tank is Full”. During Elektron operation, the inert gas locked up in the BZh has the purpose to prevent dangerous O2/H2 mixing. A leaking BZh cannot be used.] With the station crew reduced to three persons, the CDR checked for the change in ventilation by conducting the periodic inspection & performance verification of IP-1 airflow sensors in the various RS hatchways.
[Inspected IP-1s are in the passageways PrK (SM Transfer Tunnel)–RO (SM Working Compartment), PrK-SU (Soyuz), PkhO (SM Transfer Compartment)–RO, PkhO–DC1, PkhO–FGB PGO, PkhO-MRM2, FGB PGO–FGB GA, and FGB GA–Node-1.] FE-5 Noguchi worked several hours on getting the T2/COLBERT treadmill back up to full functionality.
[Activities included first installation of an IWIS (Internal Wireless Instrumentation System) accelerometer (transferred from a Node-2 RSU/Remote Sensor Unit) near the portside forward snubber cup of the T2, then removing (later re-installing) the safety wires & tie wraps around the Y-axis jam nuts & thumbwheels, then realigning the snubber pins within their cups and finally re-centering the T2 rack with its isolators.] To allow the T2 alignment & centering in Node-2, FE-6 Creamer uninstalled the CQ (Crew Quarters) “bumpout” structure in Node-2, putting it temporarily aside and later re-installing it after T2 work close-out.
Creamer took photographs of the TEPC (Tissue Equivalent Proportional Counter) detector at Node-2 P5, in order to document the current location of the radiation measurement instrument after the T2 activities.
The FE-6 continued MELFI- preparations for the upcoming Stage 19A period, retrieving 4 “ice bricks” (-32 degC) and inserting two each into sections of Dewar 3/Tray D.
With the UPA (Urine Processor Assembly) continuing to run nominally, producing water from urine, Timothy performed another fill of the UPA WSTA (Wastewater Storage Tank Assembly), from a Russian EDV-U (urine collector-water container), using an electric pump.
TJ also re-installed the PaRIS (Passive Rack Isolation System) lock-down alignment guides on the FCF (Fluids & Combustion Facility) in the CIR (Combustion Integrated Rack) which he had removed yesterday to allow PaRIS activation for ground-commanded FCF ops in micro-G.
In the SM, Kotov completed the routine daily servicing of the SOZh system (Environment Control & Life Support System, ECLSS).
[Regular daily SOZh maintenance consists, among else, of checking the ASU toilet facilities, replacement of the KTO & KBO solid waste containers and replacement of EDV-SV waste water and EDV-U urine containers.] At ~4:15am EDT, the crew held the regular (nominally weekly) tagup with the Russian Flight Control Team (GOGU), including Shift Flight Director (SRP), at TsUP via S-band/audio, phone-patched from Houston and Moscow.
At ~7:12am, Oleg Kotov supported a PAO TV event, downlinking a message of congratulations and greetings to famed MAI (Moscow Aviation Institute) on its 80
th Anniversary tomorrow (3/20). Festivities dedicated to this event will be held on 3/25 at the MAI Palace of Culture.
[“…We do not know when the orchards will bloom on Mars, but we are certain that these orchards will be planted by MAI folks. Happy Birthday to you, dear MAI! Stay forever young and successful in a cosmic way!...”] At ~10:00am, Soichi Noguchi linked up with Houston stowage specialists via S-band to discuss inventory & stowage issues, equipment locations and cargo transfers.
At ~3:05pm, the ISS crew is scheduled for their regular weekly tagup with the Lead Flight Director at JSC/MCC-H via S-band/audio.
[S/G-2 (Space-to-Ground 2) phone patch via SSC (Station Support Computer).] The crewmembers performed abbreviated physical exercise workouts on the TVIS treadmill with vibration isolation (CDR), ARED advanced resistive device (FE-5, FE-6), T2/COLBERT advanced treadmill (FE-5, FE-6) and VELO ergometer bike with bungee cord load trainer (CDR)..
WRM Update: A new WRM (Water Recovery Management) “cue card” was uplinked to the crew for their reference, updated with their latest CWC (Contingency Water Container) water audit.
[The updated card (23-0003) lists 95 CWCs (2,366.8 L total) for the five types of water now identified on board: 1. technical water (20 CWCs with 781.3 L, for Elektron electrolysis, incl. 87.5 L in 4 bags containing Wautersia bacteria, 134.2 L in 3 clean bags for contingency use, 559.6 L in 13 bags still requiring sample analysis, 2. potable water (9 CWCs with 366.7 L, of which 1 bag with 23.0 L contains Wautersia, 1 bag with 43.6 L requires sample analysis & 129.3 L in 3 bags are good for contingency use, 3. iodinated water (58 CWCs with 1089.1 L), 4. condensate water (4 bags with 105.4 L; 2 empty CWCs), and 5. waste/EMU dump and other (2 CWCs with 24.3 L). Wautersia bacteria are typical water-borne microorganisms that have been seen previously in ISS water sources. These isolates pose no threat to human health.] CEO (Crew Earth Observation) photo targets uplinked for today were
Windhoek, Namibia (this capital city of over 250,000 is located in the Khomas Highland of central Namibia. ISS had a mid-morning pass in fair weather. After tracking over the coast from the SW, the crew was to begin looking nadir for this remote urban area), Doha, Qatar (ISS had a midday pass in clear weather over this target. On approaching the coast of the Persian Gulf from the SW, the crew was to aim just left of track for the capital city of Qatar. Doha, with a population of over a million, is located on the east coast of the peninsula comprising Qatar), Tripoli, Libya (this capital city of 1.69 million has been occupied since its founding in the 7th century BC. It lies on a gentle bulge in the Libyan coastline. Approaching the Mediterranean coast from the SW at midday in fair weather, the crew should have found this low-contrast target near nadir), Brasilia, Brazil (some scattered clouds may have been present over the capital city of Brazil on this mid-morning pass as ISS approached from the SW. Brasilia is considered a prime example of 20th century urban planning. It was developed in 1956 and became the capital in 1960. Trying for a nadir context view of the city and its surroundings), and
Paramaribo, Suriname (a late morning pass in partly cloudy weather over the capital and largest city of Suriname. This city of about one quarter of a million is located on the banks of the Suriname River approximately 15 km inland from the Atlantic Ocean. Looking nadir as on approaching the coast). ISS Orbit (as of this morning, 3:00am EDT [= epoch])
Mean altitude – 346.8 km
Apogee height – 352.0 km
Perigee height – 341.6 km
Period -- 91.47 min.
Inclination (to Equator) -- 51.65 deg
Eccentricity -- 0.0007732
Solar Beta Angle -- -20.9 deg (magnitude increasing)
Orbits per 24-hr. day -- 15.74
Mean altitude loss in the last 24 hours -- 140 m
Revolutions since FGB/Zarya launch (Nov. 98) – 64,931
Significant Events Ahead (all dates Eastern Time and subject to change): --------------Three-crew operations-------------
04/02/10 -- Soyuz TMA-18/22S launch –
Skvortsov (CDR-24)/Caldwell/Kornienko – 12:04:34am EDT 04/04/10 -- Soyuz TMA-18/22S docking –
~1:28am --------------Six-crew operations-----------------
04/05/10 -- STS-131/Discovery/19A – MPLM(P), LMC –
launch 6:21:21am 04/07/10 -- STS-131/Discovery/19A – MPLM(P), LMC –
docking 3:46am 04/16/10 -- STS-131/Discovery/19A – MPLM(P), LMC –
undocking 4:01am 04/18/10 -- STS-131/Discovery/19A – MPLM(P), LMC –
land/KSC 8:35am 04/27/10 -- Progress M-03M/35P undock
04/28/10 -- Progress M-05M/37P launch
04/30/10 -- Progress M-05M/37P docking
05/10/10 -- Progress M-04M/36P undock
05/12/10 -- Soyuz 21S relocation (FGB Nadir to SM Aft)
05/14/10 -- STS-132/Atlantis/ULF4 – ICC-VLD, MRM-1 “Rassvet”
06/02/10 -- Soyuz TMA-17/21S undock/landing
(End of Increment 23) --------------Three-crew operations-------------
06/14/10 -- Soyuz TMA-19/23S launch –
Wheelock (CDR-25)/Walker/Yurchikhin 06/16/10 -- Soyuz TMA-19/23S docking
--------------Six-crew operations-----------------
06/28/10 -- Progress M-06M/38P launch
06/30/10 -- Progress M-06M/38P docking
07/07/10 -- US EVA-15
(Caldwell/Wheelock) 07/23/10 -- Russian EVA-25
(Yurchikhin/Kornienko) 07/26/10 -- Progress M-05M/37P undock
07/29/10 -- STS-134/Endeavour (ULF6 – ELC3, AMS-02)
08/30/10 -- Progress M-06M/38P undock
08/31/10 -- Progress M-07M/39P launch
09/02/10 -- Progress M-07M/39P docking
09/16/10 -- Soyuz TMA-18/22S undock/landing
(End of Increment 24) 09/16/10 -- STS-133/Discovery (ULF5 – ELC4, PMM)
09/18/10 -- STS-133/Discovery (ULF5 – ELC4, PMM) docking
09/22/10 -- STS-133/Discovery (ULF5 – ELC4, PMM) undock
09/30/10 -- Soyuz TMA-20/24S launch –
Kelly (CDR-26)/Kaleri/Skripochka 10/xx/10 -- Russian EVA-26
10/27/10 -- Progress M-08M/40P launch
10/29/10 -- Progress M-08M/40P docking
11/26/10 -- Soyuz TMA-19/23S undock/landing
(End of Increment 25) 12/10/10 -- Soyuz TMA-21/25S launch –
Kondratyev (CDR-27)/Coleman/Nespoli 12/15/10 -- Progress M-07M/39P undock
12/26/10 -- Progress M-08M/40P undock
12/27/10 -- Progress M-09M/41P launch
12/29/10 -- Progress M-09M/41P docking
03/16/11 -- Soyuz TMA-20/24S undock/landing
(End of Increment 26) 03/30/11 -- Soyuz TMA-22/26S launch –
A. Borisienko (CDR-28)/R, Garan/A.Samokutayev 04/01/11 -- Soyuz TMA-22/26S docking
04/27/11 -- Progress M-09M/41P undock
04/28/11 -- Progress M-10M/42P launch
04/30/11 -- Progress M-10M/42P docking
05/17/11 -- Soyuz TMA-21/25S undock/landing
(End of Increment 27) 05/31/11 -- Soyuz TMA-23/27S launch –
M. Fossum (CDR-29)/S. Furukawa/S. Volkov 06/02/11 -- Soyuz TMA-23/27S docking
06/21/11 -- Progress M-11M/43P launch
06/23/11 -- Progress M-11M/43P docking
08/30/11 -- Progress M-12M/44P launch
09/01/11 -- Progress M-12M/44P docking
09/30/11 -- Soyuz TMA-24/28S launch
10/28/11 -- Progress M-13M/45P launch
10/30/11 -- Progress M-13M/45P docking
11/25/11 -- Soyuz TMA-25/29S launch
11/27/11 -- Soyuz TMA-25/29S docking
12/??/11 -- 3R Multipurpose Laboratory Module (MLM) w/ERA – on Proton.
