Williams Dave Credit - www.spacefacts.de

Personal: Male, Married, Two children. Born in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada. MD

Astronaut Career

Astronaut Group: Canada Group 2 - 1992, NASA Group 15 - 1995. Active Entered space service: 9 June 1992. Number of Flights: 2.00. Total Time: 28.66 days. Number of EVAs: 3.00. Total EVA Time: 0.74 days.

NAME: Dafydd (Dave) Rhys Williams (M.D.)

CSA Astronaut

PERSONAL DATA:

Born May 16, 1954, in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan. Married to the former Cathy Fraser of Pointe-Claire, Quebec. They have one son. Dr. Williams enjoys flying, scuba diving, hiking, sailing, kayaking, canoeing, downhill and cross-country skiing. His mother, Isobel Williams (nee Berger), resides in Williamsburg, Ontario. His father, William Williams, is deceased. Her father, Arthur Fraser, resides in Sechelt, British Columbia. Her mother, Olga Fraser (nee Bardahl), is deceased.

EDUCATION:

Attended High School in Beaconsfield, Quebec. Bachelor of science degree in biology from McGill University, Montreal, 1976.; Master of science degree in physiology, Doctorate of medicine, and Master of Surgery from McGill University, Montreal, in 1983. Completed residency in Family Practice in the Faculty of Medicine, University of Ottawa in 1985. Obtained Fellowship in Emergency Medicine from the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada, following completion of a Residency in Emergency Medicine at the University of Toronto, 1988.

ORGANIZATIONS:

Member, College of Physicians and Surgeons of Ontario, the Ontario Medical Association, the College of Family Physicians of Canada, the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada, the Canadian Association of Emergency Physicians, the Aerospace Medical Association, the Canadian Society for Aerospace Medicine and the Canadian Aeronautics and Space Institute. Past affiliations include: the Society for Neuroscience, the New York Academy of Science and the Montreal Physiological Society.

SPECIAL HONORS:

Awarded the Commonwealth Certificate of Thanks (1973) and the Commonwealth Recognition Award (1975) for his contribution to the Royal Life Saving Society of Canada. Academic awards include the A.S. Hill Bursary, McGill University, in 1980; the Walter Hoare Bursary, McGill University, in 1981; the J.W. McConnell Award, McGill University, 1981-1983. He was named Faculty Scholar, in 1982, and University Scholar, in 1983, by the Faculty of Medicine, McGill University. In 1983, he also received the Psychiatry Prize and the Wood Gold Medal from the Faculty of Medicine and was named on the Dean's Honor List by the Physiology Department, McGill University, for his postgraduate research. He was twice awarded the second prize for his participation in the University of Toronto Emergency Medicine Research Papers Program, in 1986 and 1988, and received top honors in that competition in 1987.

EXPERIENCE:

Dr. Williams received postgraduate training in advanced invertebrate physiology at the Friday Harbour Laboratories, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington. Subsequently, his interests switched to vertebrate neurophysiology when, for his Master's Thesis, he became involved in basic science research on the role of adrenal steroid hormones in modifying the activity of regions within the central nervous system involved in the regulation of sleep wake cycles. While working in the Neurophysiological Laboratories at the Allan Memorial Institute for Psychiatry, he assisted in clinical studies of slow wave potentials within the central nervous system.

His clinical research in Emergency Medicine has included studies evaluating the initial training and skill retention of cardiopulmonary resuscitation skills, patient survival from out-of-hospital cardiac arrest, the early identification of trauma patients at high risk and the efficacy of tetanus immunization in the elderly.

In 1988, he became an Emergency Physician with the Department of Emergency Services at Sunnybrook Health Science Centre as well as a Lecturer with the Department of Surgery, University of Toronto. He served as a member of the Air Ambulance Utilization Committee with the Ministry of Health in Ontario, both as an academic Emergency Physician and later as a representative of community Emergency Physicians. In addition, he has trained basic ambulance attendants, paramedics, nurses, residents and practicing physicians in cardiac and trauma resuscitation as a Course Director in Advanced Cardiac Life Support with the Canadian Heart and Stroke Foundation and in Advanced Trauma Life Support with the American College of Surgeons.

From 1989 to 1990, he served as an Emergency Physician with the Emergency Associates of Kitchener Waterloo and as Medical Director of the Westmount Urgent Care Clinic. In 1990, he returned to Sunnybrook as Medical Director of the ACLS Program and Coordinator of Postgraduate Training in Emergency Medicine. Subsequently, he became the Acting Director of the Department of Emergency Services at Sunnybrook Health Science Centre, Assistant Professor of Surgery, University of Toronto and Assistant Professor of Medicine, University of Toronto.

Dr. Williams was selected by the Canadian Space Agency in June 1992. He completed basic training and in May 1993 was appointed Manager of the Missions and Space Medicine Group within the Astronaut Program. His collateral duty assignments have included supervising the implementation of Operational Space Medicine activities within the Astronaut Program, and the coordination of the Canadian Astronaut Program Space Unit Life Simulation (CAPSULS) Project. In February 1994 he participated in a 7-day space mission simulation. During this CAPSULS Project, he was the principal investigator of a study to evaluate the initial training and retention of resuscitation skills by non-medical astronauts. He was also assigned as one of the crew members and acted as the crew medical officer.

He remains active in life science and space medicine research, both as a Principal Investigator and as a Co-investigator. He has recently been appointed as an Assistant Professor of Surgery, McGill University, and is participating in clinical activities at St. Mary's Hospital and at the Montreal General Hospital.

NASA EXPERIENCE:

In January 1995, Dr. Williams was selected to join the 1995 international class of NASA mission specialist astronaut candidates. He reported to the Johnson Space Center in March 1995 and completed training and evaluation in May 1996. On completing basic training, he was assigned to work technical issues for the Payloads/Habitability Branch of the Astronaut Office. Dr. Williams is currently assigned to the crew of STS-90, a 16-day Neurolab mission dedicated to investigations on the effects of microgravity on the nervous system. Launch is targeted for March 1998.

• 17 April 1998 Flight: STS-90. Flight Up: STS-90. Flight Back: STS-90. Flight Time: 15.91 days.

• 8 August 2007 Flight: STS-118. Flight Up: STS-118. Flight Back: STS-118. Flight Time: 12.75 days.

17 April 1998 - STS-90. Columbia rolled out to pad 39B on March 23. Payloads:

• Spacelab transfer tunnel
• Spacelab Long Module, with Neurolab experiments for the following life science studies:
  • Chronic Recording of Otolith Nerves in Microgravity
  • Development of the Aortic Baroreflex under Conditions of Microgravity
  • Neural-Thyroid Interaction on Skeletal Isomyosin Expression in OG
  • Spatial Orientation of the Vestibulo-Ocular Reflex and Velocity Storage
  • Autonomic Neuroplasticity in Weightlessness

• Extended Duration Orbiter pallet
• Two Get Away Special beams with canisters G-197, G-467, G-772 (Colorado's COLLIDE experiment, which collided small particles into each other to simulate the formation of planets and rings).

The Neurolab mission was managed by NASA-Johnson at Houston, unlike earlier Spacelab flights which were NASA-Marshall/Huntsville's responsibility. Landed at Kennedy Space Center May 3 1998.

During ascent a large chunk of external tank foam was observed to hit the underside of the orbiter. Examination in orbit using the robotic arm showed a hole in a heat shield tile that went down to the felt mounting pad. There was considerable press discussion of the danger, but as the mission drew to a close NASA decided that no lasting damage would be incurred during reentry to the orbiter structure, and called off a potential extra spacewalk to repair the tile.

Endeavour docked at the PMA-2 adapter on the Station at 18:02 GMT on 10 August; the hatches were opened at 20:04.

The 14036 kg of cargo broke down as follows:

• Bay 1-2: Orbiter Docking System, 1800 kg
• Bay 1-2: EMU 3010, 130 kg
• Bay 1-2: EMU 3017, 130 kg
• Bay 3: Tunnel Adapter, 112 kg
• Bay 5-7: Spacehab-SM Single Module, 5480 kg: Loaded with research experimental equipment and consumables to be left at the station.
• Bay 8P: SPDU: Station Power Distribution Unit, will be left at the ISS and allow the Orbiter to draw electricity from the station while docked, allowing longer missions
• Bay 8-10: S5 Truss, 1584 kg: a short spacer truss installed at the end of the ISS S4 truss during the mission, to eliminate interference with the S6 solar panels when they would be added later
• Bay 11-12: ESP-3, 3400 kg: External Stowage Platform 3, left at the ISS, provided external storage for spare parts, and was delivered with a spare nitrogen tank for the truss cooling system, a spare truss battery charge/discharge unit (BCDU), a spare Canadarm-2 robot arm pitch roll joint, and a replacement Control Moment Gyro for the Z1 truss
• Bay 11-12: CMG-3R ORU, 540 kg
• Sill: OBSS, 450 kg
• Sill: RMS 201, 410 kg

Following successful completion of all cargo delivery and station assembly tasks, the crew returned to Endeavour on 18 August, undocking the next day at 11:56 GMT. Landing was moved up a day ahead of schedule because of concern a hurricane might force evacuation of the Houston Control Center on the originally-planned return date. Endeavour began its deorbit burn at 15:25 GMT on August 21 and lowered its orbit from 336 x 347 km to -28 x 342 km. It landed on runway 15 at Kennedy Space Center at 16:32 GMT. Landing mass was 100,878 kg.

"Uborka", normally done on Saturdays, includes removal of food waste products, cleaning of compartments with vacuum cleaner, damp cleaning of the Service Module (SM) dining table, other frequently touched surfaces and surfaces where trash is collected, as well as the FE's sleep station 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.)

Additional Details: ISS On-Orbit Status 11/16/07.

During the spacewalk, Tani (EV1) & Whitson (EV2), supported by FE-1 Yuri Malenchenko as intravehicular (IV) crewmember, inspected the Stbd (right-side) 1A BGA (Beta Gimbal Assembly) and BMRMM (Bearing Motor Roll Ring Module), followed by a detailed investigation and photo documentation of the Stbd SARJ (Solar Alpha Rotary Joint).
Specifically, the spacewalkers -

Found no obvious signs of external damage on cables or hardware of the BGA & BMRMM that might have caused the repeated tripping of circuit breakers (RPCs/Remote Power Controllers), making it more likely that the issue is internal to the hardware or its electrical system;
Entered into the S5 truss to disconnect some wiring to allow the ground to perform diagnostic continuity tests, and later reconnected the cables;
Temporarily removed 22 protective MLI (Multi-Layer Insulation) covers to inspect the SARJ, its two DLAs (Drive Lock Assemblies), and its 12 TBAs (Trundle Bearing Assemblies), reattaching the covers afterwards,
Found most metal shavings around TBA-4 and TBA-5, i.e., metallic, magnetic contamination on the main gear bearing's outboard angled race ring as well as pitting and abrasions on the ring but no obvious damage on the inboard race ring or on the gear teeth themselves. DLA (Drive Lock Assembly) #2 appeared especially 'ugly', i.e., filled with contamination, and, according to the spacewalkers, the further away from the DLA, the less contamination was observed;
Took photographs, measured the depth of surface pits with a special probe and collected debris samples; and
Deinstalled and removed TBA-5 from its housing under cover #20, using a PGT (Pistol Grip Tool), then brought it inside in a bag for eventual return to Earth aboard STS-122/Atlantis (SARJ can function OK on only 11 TBAs).
(Official start time of the spacewalk was 4:50am EST, 70 minutes ahead of the timeline, ending at 11:46am. Total EVA duration (PET = Phase Elapsed Time) was 6h 56min. It was the 100th spacewalk for ISS assembly & maintenance and the 72nd from the station (28 from Shuttle, 50 from Quest, 22 from Pirs) totaling 436h 3m, and the 4th for Expedition 16 (totaling 28h 11m. During the spacewalk, her fifth, Peggy Whitson set a new record of aggregated EVA time by a woman (of 32h 36m) when she exceeded the 29h 18m held by Sunita Williams. After today's EVA, a total of 121 spacewalkers (90 NASA astronauts, 21 Russians, and ten astronauts representing Japan-1, Canada-4, France-1, Germany-1 and Sweden-3) have logged a total of 624h 25m outside the station on building, outfitting and servicing. It was also the 122nd spacewalk by U.S. astronauts. The 100th EVA dedicated to ISS assembly & maintenance originally was to have been conducted by Rex Walheim & Hans Schlegel of the delayed STS-122/1E mission.)

Additional Details: ISS On-Orbit Status 12/18/07.

After wakeup and before breakfast, FE-2 Dan Tani again accessed the SLEEP experiment (Sleep-Wake Actigraphy & Light Exposure during Spaceflight) software for data logging and completing questionnaire entries in the experiment's laptop session file on the HRF-1 laptop for later downlink. (To monitor the crewmember's sleep/wake patterns and light exposure, Dan wears a special Actiwatch device which measures the light levels encountered by him as well as his patterns of sleep and activity throughout the Expedition. The log entries are done within 15 minutes of final awakening for seven consecutive days, as part of the crew's discretionary 'job jar' task list.)

Additional Details: ISS On-Orbit Status 12/20/07.

After wakeup and before breakfast, FE-2 Dan Tani again accessed the SLEEP experiment (Sleep-Wake Actigraphy & Light Exposure during Spaceflight) software for data logging and completing questionnaire entries in the experiment's laptop session file on the HRF-1 laptop for later downlink. (To monitor the crewmember's sleep/wake patterns and light exposure, Dan wears a special Actiwatch device which measures the light levels encountered by him as well as his patterns of sleep and activity throughout the Expedition. The log entries are done within 15 minutes of final awakening for seven consecutive days, as part of the crew's discretionary 'job jar' task list.)

Additional Details: ISS On-Orbit Status 12/21/07.

Merry Christmas and Great Holidays to everyone!

Progress M-62/27P is continuing its 3-day flight to the ISS for docking Wednesday morning (12/26) at ~3:25am EST at the DC1 nadir port. All onboard tests (TV, KURS, TORU), performed today during RGS (Russian ground site) passes, were without issues.

Before breakfast, FE-2 Dan Tani and CDR Peggy Whitson completed their daily access of the SLEEP experiment (Sleep-Wake Actigraphy & Light Exposure during Spaceflight) software for data logging and filling in questionnaire entries in the experiment's laptop session file on the HRF-1 laptop for downlink. (To monitor the crewmembers' sleep/wake patterns and light exposure, Dan and Peggy wear a special Actiwatch device which measures the light levels encountered by him as well as his patterns of sleep and activity throughout the Expedition. The log entries are done within 15 minutes of final awakening for seven consecutive days, as part of the crew's discretionary 'job jar' task list.)

Additional Details: ISS On-Orbit Status 12/24/07.

Whitson and Tani began the day with the daily reading of SLEEP (Sleep-Wake Actigraphy & Light Exposure during Spaceflight) experiment data accumulated during the night, for logging and filling in questionnaire entries in the experiment's session file on the HRF-1 laptop for downlink. (To monitor the crewmembers' sleep/wake patterns and light exposure, Dan and Peggy wear a special Actiwatch device which measures the light levels encountered by him as well as his patterns of sleep and activity throughout the Expedition. The log entries are done within 15 minutes of final awakening for seven consecutive days, as part of the crew's discretionary 'job jar' task list.)

Additional Details: ISS On-Orbit Status 12/29/07.

Peggy and Dan began the New Year with the daily reading of SLEEP (Sleep-Wake Actigraphy & Light Exposure during Spaceflight) experiment data accumulated during the night, for logging and filling in questionnaire entries in the experiment's session file on the HRF-1 laptop for downlink. (To monitor the crewmembers' sleep/wake patterns and light exposure, Dan and Peggy wear a special Actiwatch device which measures the light levels encountered by him as well as his patterns of sleep and activity throughout the Expedition. The log entries are done within 15 minutes of final awakening for seven consecutive days, as part of the crew's discretionary 'job jar' task list.)

Additional Details: ISS On-Orbit Status 01/01/08.

(To monitor the crewmembers' sleep/wake patterns and light exposure, Dan and Peggy wear a special Actiwatch device which measures the light levels encountered by him as well as his patterns of sleep and activity throughout the Expedition. The log entries are done within 15 minutes of final awakening for seven consecutive days, as part of the crew's discretionary 'job jar' task list.)

Peggy and Dan spent several hours getting 'the broom out of the closet', i.e., accessing the PMA-3 (Pressurized Mating Adapter 3) at the Node-1 nadir port and retrieving the spare BMRMM (Bearing Motor Roll Ring Module) for its planned installation at the Stbd (right-side) 1A BGA (Beta Gimbal Assembly) on the S4 truss in an upcoming EVA, replacing the failed BMRRM. The following steps were successfully executed to retrieve the spare part:

Additional Details: ISS On-Orbit Status 01/02/08.

(To monitor the crewmembers' sleep/wake patterns and light exposure, Dan and Peggy wear a special Actiwatch device which measures the light levels encountered by him as well as his patterns of sleep and activity throughout the Expedition. The log entries are done within 15 minutes of final awakening for seven consecutive days, as part of the crew's discretionary 'job jar' task list.)

Dr. Whitson conducted her first clinical blood analysis of the US PHS (Periodic Health Status) with Blood Labs exam. Afterwards, all PHS hardware was stowed again. (The PHS exam, with PCBA (Portable Clinical Blood Analyzer) analysis and clinical evaluation, is guided by special software (IFEP, in-flight examination program) on the MEC (Medical Equipment Computer). While PCBA analyzes total blood composition, the blood's hematocrit is particularly measured by the Russian MO-10 protocol.)

Additional Details: ISS On-Orbit Status 01/03/08.

(To monitor the crewmembers' sleep/wake patterns and light exposure, Dan and Peggy wear a special Actiwatch device which measures the light levels encountered by him as well as his patterns of sleep and activity throughout the Expedition. The log entries are done within 15 minutes of final awakening for seven consecutive days, as part of the crew's discretionary 'job jar' task list.)

Also before breakfast, Peggy Whitson, Yuri Malenchenko and Dan Tani performed the periodic Russian biomedical routine assessments PZEh-MO-7/Calf Volume Measurement and PZEh-MO-8/Body Mass Measurement (5th for CDR & FE-1, 4th for FE-2), using the IM mass measurement device which Malenchenko afterwards broke down for stowage. (Calf measurements (left leg only) are taken with the IZOG device, a custom-sewn fabric cuff that fits over the calf, using the knee and lower foot as fixed reference pints, to provide a rough index of deconditioning in zero-G and effectiveness of countermeasures. For determining body mass in zero-G, where things are weightless but not massless, the Russian IM "scales" measure the inertial forces that arise during the oscillatory motion of a mass driven by two helical metering springs with known spring constants. By measuring the time period of each oscillation of the unknown mass (the crewmember) and comparing it to the period of a known mass, the crewmember's mass is calculated by the computer and displayed.)

Additional Details: ISS On-Orbit Status 01/04/08.

CDR Whitson & FE-2 Tani started out with the daily reading of SLEEP (Sleep-Wake Actigraphy & Light Exposure during Spaceflight) experiment data accumulated during the night, for logging and filling in questionnaire entries in the SLEEP session file on the HRF-1 laptop for downlink. (To monitor the crewmembers' sleep/wake patterns and light exposure, Dan and Peggy wear a special Actiwatch device which measures the light levels encountered by him as well as his patterns of sleep and activity throughout the Expedition. The log entries are done within 15 minutes of final awakening for seven consecutive days, as part of the crew's discretionary 'job jar' task list.)

Additional Details: ISS On-Orbit Status 01/05/08.

(To monitor the crewmembers' sleep/wake patterns and light exposure, Dan and Peggy wear a special Actiwatch device which measures the light levels encountered by him as well as his patterns of sleep and activity throughout the Expedition. The log entries are done within 15 minutes of final awakening for seven consecutive days, as part of the crew's discretionary 'job jar' task list.)

Working in the DC1 Docking Compartment, FE-1 Malenchenko, later joined by CDR Whitson, started a three-day maintenance activity on three Russian Orlan-M spacesuits (#25, #26, #27), first initiating discharge of 825M3 Orlan battery pack #1, then scrubbing and degassing the Orlan water loops, followed by the coolant loops in the DC1 and SM PkhO (Service Module Transfer Compartment) BSS Orlan Interface Units. (Functional inspection & checkout of the suits and their spare parts, including bladder leak tests, are scheduled tomorrow & Thursday.)

Additional Details: ISS On-Orbit Status 01/08/08.

(To monitor the crewmembers' sleep/wake patterns and light exposure, Dan and Peggy wear a special Actiwatch device which measures the light levels encountered by him as well as his patterns of sleep and activity throughout the Expedition. The log entries are done within 15 minutes of final awakening for seven consecutive days, as part of the crew's discretionary 'job jar' task list.)

The FE-2 worked in the Airlock (A/L), starting on a lengthy (2h 25m) troubleshooting procedure on the EACP (EVA/EMU Audio Control Panel), first setting up comm from the A/L, then activating the EACP and connecting it via the 'low clearance' Y-cable to ATU-4 (Audio Terminal Unit, #4) and ATU-6 on the A/L Avionics Rack. After initial testing, the EACP was turned off again. (ATU-6 was installed by Clay Anderson on 10/11/07 in place of a failed unit, and the failed ATU-6 was returned on 10A. The new ATU-6 has been experiencing periodic lockups and PBIT (passive built-in test) faults. Engineering analysis and testing indicate that these issues may be caused by improperly mated J3 & J4 connections, a problem with the address connector, or a dirty fiber-optic connector. There are 3 ATUs in the A/L, one of which must be functional for EVAs, so long as the suited EVA crew has established UHF (Ultra High Frequency) radio communication.)

Additional Details: ISS On-Orbit Status 01/09/08.

(To monitor the crewmembers' sleep/wake patterns and light exposure, Dan and Peggy wear a special Actiwatch device which measures the light levels encountered by him as well as his patterns of sleep and activity throughout the Expedition. The log entries are done within 15 minutes of final awakening for seven consecutive days, as part of the crew's discretionary 'job jar' task list.)

At ~3:10am EST, the FE-2 activated the VDS MPC (Video Distribution System/Multi-Purpose Converter) with its four downlinks to allow the ground to conduct HDTV (high-definition TV) playback and downlink operations. Later (~11:30am), the MPC was powered off again.

Additional Details: ISS On-Orbit Status 01/11/08.

Saturday -- off-duty day for CDR Whitson, FE-1 Malenchenko and FE-2 Tani except for housekeeping and voluntary work. "CDR Whitson & FE-2 Tani started out with the daily reading of SLEEP (Sleep-Wake Actigraphy & Light Exposure during Spaceflight) experiment data accumulated during the night, for logging and filling in questionnaire entries in the SLEEP session file on the HRF-1 laptop for downlink. (To monitor the crewmembers ' sleep/wake patterns and light exposure, Dan and Peggy wear a special Actiwatch device which measures the light levels encountered by him as well as his patterns of sleep and activity throughout the Expedition. The log entries are done within 15 minutes of final awakening for seven consecutive days, as part of the crew 's discretionary 'job jar' task list.)

Additional Details: ISS On-Orbit Status 01/12/08.

CDR Whitson & FE-2 Tani started out with the daily reading of SLEEP (Sleep-Wake Actigraphy & Light Exposure during Spaceflight) experiment data accumulated during the night, for logging and filling in questionnaire entries in the SLEEP session file on the HRF-1 laptop for downlink. (To monitor the crewmembers' sleep/wake patterns and light exposure, Dan and Peggy wear a special Actiwatch device which measures the light levels encountered by him as well as his patterns of sleep and activity throughout the Expedition. The log entries are done within 15 minutes of final awakening for seven consecutive days, as part of the crew's discretionary 'job jar' task list.)

Additional Details: ISS On-Orbit Status 01/14/08.

(To monitor the crewmembers' sleep/wake patterns and light exposure, Dan and Peggy wear a special Actiwatch device which measures the light levels encountered by him as well as his patterns of sleep and activity throughout the Expedition. The log entries are done within 15 minutes of final awakening for seven consecutive days, as part of the crew's discretionary "job jar" task list.)

FE-1 Malenchenko serviced the Russian BMP (Harmful Impurities Removal System), starting the "bake-out" cycle to vacuum on absorbent bed #1 of the regenerable dual-channel filtration system. The regen process will be terminated before sleeptime, at ~2:20pm EST. Regeneration of bed #2 follows tomorrow. (Regeneration of each of the two cartridges takes about 12 hours and is conducted only during crew awake periods.)

Additional Details: ISS On-Orbit Status 01/15/08.

(To monitor the crewmembers' sleep/wake patterns and light exposure, Dan and Peggy wear a special Actiwatch device which measures the light levels encountered by him as well as his patterns of sleep and activity throughout the Expedition. The log entries are done within 15 minutes of final awakening for seven consecutive days, as part of the crew's discretionary 'job jar' task list.)

FE-1 Malenchenko serviced the Russian BMP (Harmful Impurities Removal System), starting the "bake-out" cycle to vacuum on absorbent bed #2 of the regenerable dual-channel filtration system. The regen process was terminated at ~2:00 EST. (Regeneration of each of the two cartridges takes about 12 hours and is conducted only during crew awake periods. Filter bed 1 was regenerated yesterday.)

Additional Details: ISS On-Orbit Status 01/16/08.

Ahead: Week 14 of Increment 16.

For today's VolSci (Voluntary Weekend Science) program, CDR Whitson continued her work with the MSG (Microgravity Science Glovebox) and the InSPACE-2 (Investigating the Structure of Paramagnetic Aggregates from Colloidal Emulsions) experiment, today conducting runs #18, #19, and #20, then powered down the payload and switched the MSG to standby. (After activation of MSG plus InSPACE & InSPACE-2 equipment, Peggy checked on alignment & focusing of MSG video cams, switched the magnetic field between runs, today pulsing the field at 2 Hz (Hertz) instead of 20 Hz as she did previously. Peggy also repositioned the sample vial (VA-004) by 90 deg, used camera 2 & recorder 2 in the vial position 2 starting with run #19, changed out video recorder tapes and later deactivated InSPACE & MSG. InSPACE, conducted last in June 2006 by Jeff Williams on Increment 13, obtains basic data on magnetorheological fluids, i.e., a new class of "smart materials" that can be used to improve or develop new brake systems, seat suspensions robotics, clutches, airplane landing gear, and vibration damper systems. The dispersed particles are contained in CAs (Coil Assemblies) in the MSG that subject them to electric fields of certain strength and frequencies.)

FE-2 Dan Tani completed his daily status check on the BCAT-3 (Binary Colloidal Alloy Test-3) science payload, running by itself in Node-2 since 12/13/07 (briefly interrupted for EVA-13 photo support). (The status check, conducted on the last image taken by the DCS 760 digital still camera which is controlled by EarthKAM software on an A31p laptop, is to verify proper image focus and camera alignment. The SSC (Station Support Computer) is taking photography of the phase separation occurring in the BCAT Sample 3, with the photo flash going off every half hour.)

FE-1 Malenchenko conducted today's routine maintenance of the SOZh system (Environment Control & Life Support System, ECLSS) in the Service Module (SM), including ASU toilet facilities systems/replaceables, the weekly collection of the toilet flush (SP) counter and water supply (SVO) readings for calldown to TsUP.

The crewmembers performed their regular 2.5-hr physical workout program (about half of which is used for setup & post-exercise personal hygiene) on the CEVIS cycle ergometer (CDR), TVIS treadmill (FE-1, FE-2), RED (CDR, FE-2) and VELO bike with bungee cord load trainer (FE-1).

At ~9:30am EST, Yuri had his PFC (Private Family Conference) via S-band/audio and Ku-band/MS-NetMeeting application (which displays the uplinked ground video on the SSC-10 laptop).

At ~2:22pm, Dan had his PFC.

With the Elektron-VM O2 (oxygen) generator currently off, a 5-min cabin air refresh is to be performed by the FE-1 (off his voluntary task list) from Progress M-62/27P storage (SrPK) as required.

MPC HDTV Update: Dan Tani was lauded by the ground for his great work on 1/17 verifying the MPC HDTV (Multi-Purpose Converter/High-Definition TV) capability all the way to the NASA TV satellite. The test was very successful, yielding an overall end-to-end audio latency (delay) for the MPC System of 3.2 seconds. This is the delay from the crewmember to JSC/MCC-H to NASA Headquarters and out to the NASA TV satellite in high definition, i.e. the sum total of the audio delay the interviewer and interviewee will "feel" during an interactive event. This Japan/JAXA originated system will be utilized soon for downlink messages and in-flight interviews based on client capability.

No CEO photo targets uplinked for today. (Due to the Martin Luther King Federal Holiday tomorrow (1/21), the next CEO observations will be conducted on 1/23 (targets uplinked 1/22).)

(To monitor the crewmembers' sleep/wake patterns and light exposure, Dan and Peggy wear a special Actiwatch device which measures the light levels encountered by him as well as his patterns of sleep and activity throughout the Expedition. The log entries are done within 15 minutes of final awakening for seven consecutive days, as part of the crew's discretionary 'job jar' task list.)

At ~2:55am EST, the FE-2 again activated the VDS MPC (Video Distribution System/Multi-Purpose Converter) with its four downlinks to allow the ground to conduct HDTV (high-definition TV) playback and downlink operations. Later (~12:15pm), the MPC was powered off again. (The end-to-end test of the system, conducted by the crew and ground specialists on 1/17 to verify the MPC HDTV (Multi-Purpose Converter/High-Definition TV) capability all the way to the NASA TV satellite, was very successful, yielding an overall end-to-end audio latency (delay) for the MPC System of 3.2 seconds. This is the delay from the crewmember to JSC/MCC-H to NASA Headquarters and out to the NASA TV satellite in high definition (including, but are not limited to, CNNHD, ABC, NBC, CBS, and Discovery HD Theater), i.e. the sum total of the audio delay the interviewer and interviewee will "feel" during an interactive event. This Japan/JAXA originated system will be utilized soon for downlink messages and in-flight interviews based on client capability.)

Additional Details: ISS On-Orbit Status 01/22/08.

(To monitor the crewmembers' sleep/wake patterns and light exposure, Dan and Peggy wear a special Actiwatch device which measures the light levels encountered by him as well as his patterns of sleep and activity throughout the Expedition. The log entries are done within 15 minutes of final awakening for seven consecutive days, as part of the crew's discretionary 'job jar' task list.)

Peggy Whitson continued her work with the InSPACE-2 (Investigating the Structure of Paramagnetic Aggregates from Colloidal Emulsions) experiment in the MSG (Microgravity Science Glovebox), today conducting runs #23 and #24, then powering down the payload and switching the MSG to standby. (After activation of MSG plus InSPACE & InSPACE-2 equipment, Peggy checked on alignment & focusing of MSG video cam #2, repositioned the sample vial, changed out video recorder tapes and later deactivated InSPACE & MSG. InSPACE, conducted last in June 2006 by Jeff Williams on Increment 13, obtains basic data on magnetorheological fluids, i.e., a new class of "smart materials" that can be used to improve or develop new brake systems, seat suspensions robotics, clutches, airplane landing gear, and vibration damper systems. The dispersed particles are contained in CAs (Coil Assemblies) in the MSG that subject them to electric fields of certain strength and frequencies.)

Additional Details: ISS On-Orbit Status 01/23/08.

FE-1 Malenchenko finished Part 2 of his first stress test plus saliva and blood sampling of the ESA/Russian biomed experiment 'IMMUNO' (Neuroendocrine & Immune Responses in Humans During & After Long Term Stay at ISS), today completing remaining urine sample collections. Specimens were then stowed in a special urine containment bag (blood samples were secured yesterday in the MELFI {Minus Eighty Degree Celsius Laboratory Freezer for ISS} in cold packs). (IMMUNO is a 24-hr. test of human immune system changes, with the objective to investigate immune neuro-endocrine reactions in the space environment by studying samples of saliva, blood and urine using collection kits and the biomedical (MBI) protection kit. Also included are entries in a fluid/medications intact log, and a stress-test questionnaire to be filled out by the subject at begin and end of the first day.)

Additional Details: ISS On-Orbit Status 01/26/08.

Ahead: Week 15 of Increment 16.

FE-2 Tani started out with the daily reading of SLEEP (Sleep-Wake Actigraphy & Light Exposure during Spaceflight) experiment data accumulated during the night on his Actiwatch, for logging and filling in questionnaire entries in the SLEEP session file on the HRF-1 laptop for downlink.

The crew performed the regular weekly three-hour task of thorough station cleaning. ("Uborka", usually done on Saturdays, includes removal of food waste products, cleaning of compartments with vacuum cleaner, damp cleaning of the Service Module (SM) dining table, other frequently touched surfaces and surfaces where trash is collected, as well as the CDR's sleep station 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.)

Additional Details: ISS On-Orbit Status 01/27/08.

Ahead: Week 16 of Increment 16.

FE-2 Tani started out with the daily reading of SLEEP (Sleep-Wake Actigraphy & Light Exposure during Spaceflight) experiment data accumulated during the night, for logging and filling in questionnaire entries in the SLEEP session file on the HRF-1 laptop for downlink. (To monitor the crewmembers' sleep/wake patterns and light exposure, Dan wears a special Actiwatch device which measures the light levels encountered by him as well as his patterns of sleep and activity throughout the Expedition. The log entries are done within 15 minutes of final awakening for seven consecutive days, as part of the crew's discretionary 'job jar' task list.)

Additional Details: ISS On-Orbit Status 02/03/08.

Space shuttle Atlantis will deliver the new module and a new crew member to the station when it docks at 11:25 a.m. CST to begin 6 days of docked operations.

Today's wakeup song, played for Commander Steve Frick, at 3:45 a.m. CST was the theme song from Garrison Keillor's radio variety show 'A Prairie Home Companion.' The song is the Spencer Williams composition "Tishomingo Blues," but with lyrics written especially for the show.

Frick and his shuttle crewmates begin rendezvous operations at 5:30 a.m. CST. At 10:23 a.m., at a range of 600 feet below the station, Frick will command Atlantis to perform a back flip so ISS Commander Peggy Whitson and Flight Engineer Yuri Malenchenko can photograph the thermal tiles on the shuttle's underside. Those digital images will be sent to Mission Control for analysis.

With the pitch maneuver complete, Frick will then fly the shuttle ahead of the station and slowly ease the orbiter back to a docking with the space station.

After hatch opening, the crew members will begin moving spacewalking equipment into the Quest airlock to prepare for the first excursion on Sunday. Mission Specialists Rex Walheim and Hans Schlegel will go outside to prepare the Columbus module to be grappled by the station's robotic arm, lifted from Atlantis' payload bay, and installed on the starboard side of Harmony.

The official exchange of Atlantis crewmember LĂ(c)opold Eyharts with space station Flight Engineer Dan Tani, who arrived at the station in October, is planned for 6 a.m. CST Sunday. The transfer becomes official with the installation of Eyharts' customized seat liner in the Soyuz.

The STS-122 crew is on an 11-day mission to install and activate Columbus. The new laboratory is Europe's largest contribution to the construction of the station, adding 2,648 cubic feet of pressurized volume, four science experiment racks and one storage rack to the orbiting complex.

US Holiday (President's Day).

STS-122/Atlantis and ISS are flying in separate orbits again (Flight Day 12 for STS-122/1E)

After final preparations on both sides of the hatches (closed yesterday on ISS side at 1:03pm EST), Atlantis this morning undocked smoothly at 4:27am from PMA-2 (Pressurized Mating Adapter 2), after a total docked time of 11d 13h 42m. (For undocking, the station was turned from -XVV through ~180 deg to +XVV ZLV (+x-axis in velocity vector, z-axis in local vertical) at ~3:30am, put briefly on free drift for the undocking, and then maneuvered to 1E Stage attitude of +XVV TEA attitude at 5:06am.) See picture from Atlantis flight deck, below.

Additional Details: ISS On-Orbit Status 02/18/08.

Today is Kononenko's 44th birthday.

Happy Birthday, Oleg Dmitriyevich!

Volkov & Kononenko completed a review of flight procedures plus the standard 3-hr. training drill for a Soyuz TMA-12/16S relocation from the DC1 Docking Module to the FGB nadir port, supported by ground specialists via tagup on S-band/VHF-audio. (Should 'Pirs' fail to repressurize after ingress of the two spacewalkers on 7/11, a relocation of the Soyuz, docked to the DC1 nadir port with FE-2 Chamitoff already safely locked out in the 16S Descent Module, would become necessary. In addition, for the relocation the three crewmembers and the spacecraft will have to be prepared for a return to Earth in the event of a no-docking contingency, and the station has to be configured for uncrewed operation (for which intense planning is underway at NASA, ESA, and TsUP-Moscow). Today's 3-hr. OBT (on-board training) included Soyuz procedures and data analysis for ascent/descent, orbital flight and relocation as contained in RODF (Russian Operations Data File) books, tag-up with instructor, OBT simulator work on the RSK1 laptop, etc. It is assumed that Soyuz activation would be performed on 7/11 over RGS (Russian Groundsite) on DO13 (Daily Orbit 13), closure of hatch on DO15, undocking from DC1 on DO2 (~5:28pm EDT on 7/11), flyaround (~5:34pm) and redocking at FGB at ~5:56pm (DO2).)

Additional Details: ISS On-Orbit Status 06/21/08.