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More Details for 2008-04-30

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Upon wake-up, FE-1 Kononenko terminated his first MBI-12 SONOKARD experiment session, started last night, by taking the recording device from his SONOKARD sports shirt pocket and later copying the measurements to the RSE-MED laptop for subsequent downlink to the ground.

At ~5:20pm EDT, just before sleep time, CDR Volkov will start his first overnight MBI-12 session. (SONOKARD objectives are stated to (1) study the feasibility of obtaining the maximum of data through computer processing of records obtained overnight, (2) systematically record the crewmember's physiological functions during sleep, (3) study the feasibility of obtaining real-time crew health data. Investigators believe that contactless acquisition of cardiorespiratory data over the night period could serve as a basis for developing efficient criteria for evaluating and predicting adaptive capability of human body in long-duration space flight.)

As part of regular preventive maintenance of RS (Russian Segment) ventilation systems, Volkov cleaned Group A, B & C fan screens in the SM (Service Module) and inspected close-by equipment & structural elements for residue and condensate, prepared to take photographs with the NIKON D2X for downlink if found.

Kononenko completed ventilation maintenance in the FGB (Functional Cargo Block), cleaning the mesh screens of its TsV1 ventilation fan.

In the COL (Columbus Orbital Laboratory), FE-2 Garrett Reisman continued troubleshooting the FSL (Fluid Science Laboratory), removing & replacing the facility's LAN (Local Area Network) P46 cable and MIL Bus 1553B-A jumper.

The FE-1 continued the transfer & installation in the FGB of the new stowage enclosures delivered by the ATV1 (Automated Transfer Vehicle 1), which were built in Russia to provide more efficient stowage spaces behind FGB panels and improve airflow/circulation. (Today's outfitting was in FGB Zone 23A (behind panel 412) and Zone 28B (panel 419).)

Reisman had 3 hrs. reserved which he spent in the US Airlock (A/L) for pre-gathering, collecting and configuring all EVA tools available for STS-124/1J. The A/L CCAA (Common Cabin Air Assembly) air conditioner was activated by ground command at ~7:15am to support Garrett's stay in the A/L.

Kononenko serviced the Matryoshka-R (RBO-3-2) radiation payload, which has taken over the ESA/RSC-Energia experiment ALTCRISS (Alteino Long Term monitoring of Cosmic Rays on the ISS) with its AST Spectrometer and ALC equipment on DC1 panel 429. (Oleg removed PCMCIA card #946 from the AST slot and replaced it with a new memory card, #947, from the ALC kit.)

Volkov completed the periodic (about twice a month) replenishing of the Elektron oxygen generator's water supply for electrolysis, filling the KOV EDV container with water collected in CWC (Contingency Water Container) #1076 from the Lab CCAA (Common Cabin Air Assembly) dehumidifier. (The 40-minute procedure is specially designed to prevent air bubbles larger than ~10 mm from getting into the BZh Liquid Unit where they could cause Elektron shutdown.)

Reisman set up the ELITE-S2 (Elaboratore Immagini Televisive - Space 2) payload in the ER2 (EXPRESS Rack 2) for his upcoming third session, connecting camera cables to the experiment's IMU (Interface Management Unit) and routing cables in the Lab for the ER2 configuration. (The Italian (ASI) experiment ELITE-S2 is a human motion analysis facility for technological characterization and potential application for multifactorial movement analysis, to study the connection between brain, visualization and motion in micro-G. By recording and analyzing the three-dimensional motion of astronauts, this study should help engineers apply ergonomics into future spacecraft designs and determine the effects of weightlessness on breathing mechanisms for long-duration missions.)

Afterwards, the FE-2 supported the CSLM-2 (Coarsening in Solid-Liquid Mixtures 2) experiment in the MSG (Microgravity Science Glovebox) facility, terminating the final vacuum draw started yesterday and initiating the first sample run, for SPU-7 (Sample Processing Unit 7). (SPU-7 will process for 24 hrs overnight before Garrett resumes activities tomorrow. CSLM-2 examines the kinetics of competitive particle growth within a liquid matrix. During this process, small particles shrink by losing atoms to larger particles, causing the larger particles to grow (coarsen) within a liquid lead/tin matrix. This study defined the mechanisms and rates of coarsening that govern the manufacture with metals from turbine blades to dental amalgam fillings.)

The CDR had another hour to continue his extensive periodic audit of SUBA (Onboard Equipment Control System) plug-in locations in the RS, started yesterday, supported by an uplinked 4-page checklist. (The standard audit establishes what hardware is plugged in at which electrical RS outlets. SUBA controls, monitors, and diagnoses RS systems status. It operates using sensor output signals and command radio link SM functional outputs, onboard computer system (BVS) units, SM control panels, and system relay outputs. Its software resides in the SM central computer (TsVM) and terminal computer (TVM). The BSKs are used to switch electrical power and protect electrical circuits with fuses against overloads.)

Sergey also conducted the routine maintenance of the SOZh system (Environment Control & Life Support System, ECLSS) in the SM, including ASU toilet facilities systems/replaceables.

Oleg performed the daily IMS (Inventory Management System) maintenance, updating/editing its standard 'delta file' including stowage locations, for the regular weekly automated export/import to its three databases on the ground (Houston, Moscow, Baikonur).

FE-2 Reisman conducted the weekly 10-min. CWC (Contingency Water Container) audit as part of on-going WDS (Water Delivery System) assessment of onboard water supplies. (Updated 'cue cards' based on the crew's water calldowns are sent up every other week. The current cue card (17-0002A) lists 38 CWCs (~1595.6 L total) for the four types of water identified on board: technical water (853.8 L, for Elektron, flushing, hygiene), potable water (647.2 L), condensate water (88.8 L), waste/EMU dump and other (5.8 L). Of the 38 containers, 15 CWCs with technical water (672.6 L) and 4 CWCs with potable water (176.3 L) must be cleared for Wautersia bacteria by MCC-H before use.)

The crew completed 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 (FE-2), TVIS treadmill (CDR, FE-1), RED resistive exerciser (FE-2) and VELO bike with bungee cord load trainer (CDR, FE-1). (The RED, as an anaerobic muscle exerciser, allows a variety of routines: squat, heel raises, bent-over rowing, abdominal crunches, deadlift, bench presses, upright rowing, etc. For Sergey & Oleg, who are using RED three times a week, each session features four different routines which vary from day to day to target different muscle groups.)

Afterwards, Reisman transferred the crew's exercise data file to the MEC (Medical Equipment Computer) laptop for downlinking, 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).

Volkov & Kononenko again had the regular full hour for themselves for general orientation (station familiarization & acclimatization) as is standard daily rule for fresh crewmembers for the first two weeks after starting station residency.

At ~8:30am EDT, the crew participated in a teleconference with MCC-Houston to discuss STS-124/1J prepacking requirements, based on an uplinked 1J Prepack List. (While at present only Garrett is scheduled for prepack activities, Sergey and Oleg will probably also be scheduled in the future.)

At ~10:20am, Volkov, Kononenko & Reisman joined in two separate televised PAO interview events, with KTRH Radio (J.P. Pritchard/Lana Hughes), Houston, and WINS Radio (Alice Stockton-Rossini), New York.

SKV-2 R&R Update: Yesterday, during the IFM (Inflight Maintenance) on the Russian SKV-2 air conditioner to replace its compressor with a spare, a Freon-218 spill occurred, releasing about 600 g of the refrigerant into the cabin (~1gram/cubic meter). To clean up quickly, the Russian BMP (Russian Harmful Impurities Removal System) was moded to regenerate its absorbent beds every 5 days instead of the regular 20 days, and all users have verified that no equipment on board is operating with internal temperatures above 600 degC (which would degrade the chemical). The US TCCS (Trace Contaminant Control System) operates nominally. (Freon-218 (Octafluoropropane/C3F8, Russian: Khladon) is safe (low toxicity, perhaps some irritation) and noncorrosive. Primary hazard is oxygen displacement, as witness the Ozone Layer, but there is not enough C3F8 on board the ISS to significantly deplete any atmospheric oxygen.)

PPS P6 Reconditioning: At ~11:00am EDT, reconditioning (discharge/recharge) maintenance has started on the truss P6 battery sets 2B3 (channel 2B) and 4B3 (channel 4B), simultaneously. The approximate timeframe for the reconditioning is about 5-7 days from today. After today's start of discharge, the batteries will be transitioned to recharge, followed by a second discharge/recharge cycle and a subsequent capacity test. (P6 battery sets 2B2 & 4B2 were reconditioned last January.)

CEO (Crew Earth Observations) photo targets uplinked for today were Tropical Cyclone Nargis, Bay of Bengal (Dynamic event. Looking right for this Category 4 storm which is starting to control the weather in the whole of the Bay of Bengal. Nargis is predicted to move towards Burma, but Bangladesh, situated at the head of the bay, fears Nargis may ruin this year's crops, as did Cyclone Sidr last November), Georgia Coastal Ecosystems (the study area is a barrier island and marsh complex located on the central Georgia coast in the vicinity of Sapelo Island, one of the largest and least developed rivers on the east coast of the United States), and Jornada Basin, New Mexico (this Long Term Ecological Research (LTER) project focuses on changes in the distribution of soil resources (soil color as seen from low earth orbit) as an index of vegetation change in semiarid lands. Look near nadir just after you cross the Rio Grande. Other visual cues are White Sands and Las Cruces, NM).