08-08-2010
August 08, 2010
All ISS systems continue to function nominally, except those noted previously or below.
Sunday – crew rest day. Ahead: Week 10 of Increment 24. Upon wake-up, CDR Skvortsov performed the regular daily early-morning check of the aerosol filters at the Russian Elektron O
2 generator which Maxim Suraev had installed on 10/19/09 in gaps between the BZh Liquid Unit and the oxygen outlet pipe (filter FA-K) plus hydrogen outlet pipe (filter FA-V).
[The CDR will inspect the filters again before bedtime, currently a daily requirement per plan, with photographs to be taken if the filter packing is discolored.] The six station residents completed the regular weekly three-hour task of thorough cleaning of their home, including COL (Columbus Orbital Laboratory) and Kibo JPM (JEM Pressurized Module).
["Uborka", usually done on Saturdays, includes removal of food waste products, cleaning of compartments with vacuum cleaner, damp cleaning of the SM (Service Module) dining table, other frequently touched surfaces and surfaces where trash is collected, as well as the sleep stations with a standard cleaning solution; also, fan screens and grilles are cleaned to avoid temperature rises. Special cleaning is also done every 90 days on the HEPA (high-efficiency particulate air) bacteria filters in the Lab.] As part of the uborka house cleaning, the Russian crewmembers conducted regular maintenance inspection & cleaning of fan screens in the FGB (TsV2) and Group E fan grills in the SM (VPkhO, FS5, FS6, VP).
Skvortsov later completed the routine daily servicing of the SOZh system (Environment Control & Life Support System, ECLSS) in the SM, including the weekly collection of the toilet flush (SP) counter and water supply (SVO) readings for calldown to TsUP-Moscow.
[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.] Alex also checked up on the Russian POTOK-150MK (150 micron) air filter unit of the SM’s SOGS air revitalization subsystem, gathering weekly data on total operating time & “On” durations for reporting to TsUP.
An additional task for Sasha in the SM was a routine inspection of the SVO SRV-K2M Condensate Water Processor hoses from the MFR Diaphragm Separator Filter to the BRPK Condensate Separation & Pumping Unit (the latter was replaced on 12/21/09).
FE-2 Caldwell-Dyson completed the usual post-EVA activities in the A/L (Airlock), including –
· Recharging the EMUs (Extravehicular Mobility Units) with water, using PWR (Payload Water Reservoir) #1023, #1027 (backup, may have required degassing) & CWC (Contingency Water Container) #1059,
· Initiating recharge of EVA batteries in the BSA (Battery Stowage Assembly) for EVA-16 – i.e., EMU batteries #2086 & #2088 plus 4 HL (Helmet Light), 2 PGT (Pistol Grip Tool) & 2 REBA (Rechargeable EVA Battery) units, and
· Deconfiguring the A/L after the spacewalk.
Doug Wheelock meanwhile had ~90 min to go through an uplinked listing to verify EVA tools left at various sites outside or brought inside after the excursion, such as tethers. The review included an inspection of the tethers brought back.
At ~11:45am EDT, Tracy, Shannon & Doug joined for a one-hour debrief on yesterday’s EVA-15 with ground specialists, answering & discussing a number of questions on the balky & leaky M3 QD (Quick Disconnect), EVA suit fit, socks/boot fit & comm cap issues, etc.
FE-6 Walker filled out her weekly FFQ (Food Frequency Questionnaire) on the MEC (Medical Equipment Computer).
[On the FFQs, NASA astronauts keep a personalized log of their nutritional intake over time on special MEC software. Recorded are the amounts consumed during the past week of such food items as beverages, cereals, grains, eggs, breads, snacks, sweets, fruit, beans, soup, vegetables, dairy, fish, meat, chicken, sauces & spreads, and vitamins. The FFQ is performed once a week to estimate nutrient intake from the previous week and to give recommendations to ground specialists that help maintain optimal crew health. Weekly estimation has been verified to be reliable enough that nutrients do not need to be tracked daily.] CDR, FE-2, FE-4 & FE-6 had their weekly PFCs (Private Family Conferences) via S-band/audio and Ku-band/MS-NetMeeting application (which displays the uplinked ground video on an SSC laptop), Alex at ~7:00am, Wheels at ~10:10am, Shannon at ~10:59am, Tracy at ~1:10pm EDT.
Fyodor Yurchikhin set up the video equipment to capture his workout session on the ARED advanced resistive exerciser for subsequent biomechanical evaluation of the crewmember and hardware status at MCC-H.
The crew worked out on today’s 2-hr physical exercise protocol on the CEVIS cycle ergometer with vibration isolation (FE-2), TVIS treadmill with vibration isolation (CDR, FE-3, FE-5), ARED advanced resistive exercise device (FE-2, FE-4, FE-5, FE-6), T2/COLBERT advanced treadmill (FE-4, FE-6) and VELO ergometer bike with bungee cord load trainer (CDR, FE-3).
[T2 snubber arm inspection is no longer needed after every T2 session but must be done after the last T2 session of the day.] At ~5:12am, Doug Wheelock used the SM's amateur radio equipment (Kenwood VHF transceiver with manual frequency selection, headset, & power supply) to conduct a ham radio session with kids at a Boy Scout Space Jamboree in Rantoul, IL.
[This year one thousand youths participated from 8 states. “Boy and Girl Scouts and Cub Scouts kids from the Don Moyers Boys and Girls Club are in attendance. We are confident that at least one of the youth here today will become an astronaut.”] Current Station Status: The Loop A PCVP (Pump & Control Valve Package) of the ETCS (External Thermal Control System) is “hard” failed, requiring replacement (four spares are on orbit). Loop B continues to function nominally, at zero fault tolerance (i.e., no backup). The Lab Contingency Truss Jumper is installed, and a number of DDCUs (DC-to-DC Converter Units) and their associated loads continue to be unpowered to prevent overheating. This especially impacts the science program.
[Note: While the ETCS is using toxic NH3 (ammonia) as coolant, no NH3 is used inside the station. Instead, ITCS (Internal TCS) cooling consists of nine separate water-based fluid circuits, each with an LTL (Low Temperature Loop) and an MTL (Moderate Temperature Loop), that circulate in the station’s interior to collect excess heat from the electronic & experiment equipment and carry this heat to IFHX (Interface Heat Exchangers) units which transfer the heat to the ETCS and its two ammonia loops. There are ten IFHXs, located on the Lab, Node-2 & Node-3. The pump-driven heated ammonia circulates through huge radiator panels located on the exterior of the ISS, releasing the heat as infrared radiation and cooling as it flows. It high-pressure ammonia then returns to the heat exchangers.] No CEO (Crew Earth Observation) photo targets uplinked for today.
ISS Orbit (as of this morning, 8:33am EDT [= epoch]) Mean altitude – 354.2 km
Apogee height – 358.7 km
Perigee height – 349.7 km
Period -- 91.62 min.
Inclination (to Equator) -- 51.65 deg
Eccentricity -- 0.0006689
Solar Beta Angle -- 6.4 deg (magnitude increasing)
Orbits per 24-hr. day -- 15.72
Mean altitude loss in the last 24 hours – 105 m
Revolutions since FGB/Zarya launch (Nov. 98) – 67,170.
Significant Events Ahead (all dates Eastern Time and subject to change):
--------------Six-crew operations-----------------
08/11/10 -- US EVA-16
(Caldwell/Wheelock) 09/07/10 -- Progress M-06M/38P undock
09/08/10 -- Progress M-07M/39P launch
09/10/10 -- Progress M-07M/39P docking
09/24/10 -- Soyuz TMA-18/22S undock/landing
(End of Increment 24) --------------
Three-crew operations-------------
10/08/10 -- Soyuz TMA-20/24S launch –
Kelly (CDR-26)/Kaleri/Skripochka 10/10/10 -- Soyuz TMA-20/24S docking
--------------
Six-crew operations-------------
10/26/10 -- Progress M-05M/37P undock
10/27/10 -- Progress M-08M/40P launch
10/29/10 -- Progress M-08M/40P docking
11/01/10 -- STS-133/Discovery launch (ULF5 – ELC4, PMM)
~4:33pm EDT –
“target” 11/10/10 -- Russian EVA-26
11/17/10 -- Russian EVA-27
11/26/10 -- Soyuz TMA-19/23S undock/landing
(End of Increment 25) --------------
Three-crew operations-------------
12/10/10 -- Soyuz TMA-21/25S launch –
Kondratyev (CDR-27)/Coleman/Nespoli 12/12/10 -- Soyuz TMA-21/25S docking
--------------
Six-crew operations-------------
12/15/10 -- Progress M-07M/39P undock
12/xx/10 -- Russian EVA-28
12/26/10 -- Progress M-08M/40P undock
12/27/10 -- Progress M-09M/41P launch
12/29/10 -- Progress M-09M/41P docking
02/26/11 -- STS-134/Endeavour (ULF6 – ELC3, AMS-02)
~4:19pm EDT –
“target” 03/16/11 -- Soyuz TMA-20/24S undock/landing
(End of Increment 26) --------------
Three-crew operations-------------
03/30/11 -- Soyuz TMA-22/26S launch –
A. Borisienko (CDR-28)/R, Garan/A.Samokutayev 04/01/11 -- Soyuz TMA-22/26S docking
--------------
Six-crew operations-------------
04/26/11 -- Progress M-09M/41P undock
04/27/11 -- Progress M-10M/42P launch
04/29/11 -- Progress M-10M/42P docking
05/16/11 -- Soyuz TMA-21/25S undock/landing
(End of Increment 27) --------------
Three-crew operations-------------
05/31/11 -- Soyuz TMA-23/27S launch –
M. Fossum (CDR-29)/S. Furukawa/S. Volkov 06/01/11 -- Soyuz TMA-23/27S docking
--------------
Six-crew operations-------------
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
09/16/11 – Soyuz TMA-22/26S undock/landing
(End of Increment 28) --------------
Three-crew operations-------------
09/30/11 -- Soyuz TMA-24/28S launch
10/02/11 – Soyuz TMA-24/28S docking
--------------
Six-crew operations-------------
10/20/11 -- Progress M-10M/42P undocking
10/21/11 -- Progress M-13M/45P launch
10/23/11 -- Progress M-13M/45P docking
11/16/11 -- Soyuz TMA-23/27S undock/landing
(End of Increment 29) --------------
Three-crew operations-------------
11/30/11 -- Soyuz TMA-25/29S launch
12/02/11 -- Soyuz TMA-25/29S docking
--------------
Six-crew operations-------------
12/??/11 -- 3R Multipurpose Laboratory Module (MLM) w/ERA – on Proton.
12/26/11 -- Progress M-13M/45P undock.
