[sarex] ISS STATUS REPORT #04-61

[Arthur Z Rowe <n1orc@xxxxxxxxxxxx>]

Submitted by Arthur N1ORC - Amsat A/C #31468

*International Space Station Status Report #04-61*
*4 p.m. CST, Friday, Nov. 12, 2004*
*Expedition 10 Crew*

Expedition 10 Commander Leroy Chiao this week extended his reach beyond 
the confines of the pressurized compartments of the International Space 
Station as he and Flight Engineer Salizhan Sharipov near the one month 
mark in space since launch Oct. 14.

As is the case with every Station crew, practice sessions with the 
station’s 58-foot robotic arm – Canadarm2 – are scheduled early in the 
increment to exercise the arm and provide practical training for 
astronauts. Monday, Chiao, in the Destiny Laboratory, used the arm to 
provide engineers in the Mission Evaluation Room of Mission Control 
video of a protective panel on the outside the module. A possible 
indentation was seen there in imagery from the most recent Space Shuttle 
mission to the Station in November 2002 (STS-113/11A).

Chiao positioned the arm so that cameras could zoom in on the area. The 
video helped engineers determine that the indentation was not caused by 
a micrometeoroid or debris strike. The flat spot on the lab shield 
appeared to be similar to flattened areas seen in shields on the Unity 
module.

Engineering analysis of the imagery showed these flat spots can occur on 
the forward and aft triangles of the shields possibly as the result of 
temperature changes. The shields' protective function and fit is not 
affected.

Earlier today, Chiao again took command of the robot arm and moved it 
into position to allow its cameras to view the relocation of the crew's 
Soyuz spacecraft, a maneuver scheduled for Nov. 29. The crew will fly 
the Soyuz from the Pirs Docking Compartment to a docking port on the 
Zarya Control Module. The move will clear the Pirs module for two 
Russian spacewalks in 2005.

While the crew continued routine housekeeping and exercise chores, 
scientific research work continued as well. The focus of attention this 
week was the Binary Colloidal Alloy Test (BCAT), which investigates 
long-term behavior of particles suspended in various liquids such as 
ink, paint and milk, in microgravity. Chiao worked with the experiment 
twice this week to assist investigators in determining what types of 
colloids should be studied by future crews. Ultimately, the data could 
help in development of new products for the communications and computer 
industries.

At midweek, Chiao tried to fix a faulty U.S. spacesuit pump that caused 
a lack of cooling as discovered in testing during Expedition 9 earlier 
this year. The work was halted when a small washer-shaped shim could not 
be found. Flight controllers ended the search Thursday and will evaluate 
the next course of action. The U.S. suits are not scheduled for use 
until Space Shuttle flights resume. A new shim may be delivered to the 
Station aboard the next Progress resupply craft in December.

On Thursday, a circuit breaker tripped aboard the Station that had been 
powering several pieces of crew equipment. The circuit breaker remains 
off while the crew and ground teams plan to check the equipment that had 
been powered. The equipment includes a laptop, the cycle ergometer and a 
light. Those items will be tested to ensure no problems with them caused 
the breaker to trip. Today, the crew took photos of the setup for 
engineers on the ground.

Among activities next week will be a reboost of the Station's altitude, 
a maneuver performed periodically to maintain the complex's orbit.

Information on the crew's activities aboard the Space Station, future 
launch dates, as well as Station sighting opportunities from anywhere on 
the Earth, is available on the Internet at:

http://spaceflight.nasa.gov/

The next ISS status report will be issued on Friday, Nov. 19, or earlier 
if events warrant.

###
----
Via the sarex mailing list at AMSAT.ORG courtesy of AMSAT-NA.
To unsubscribe, send "unsubscribe sarex" to Majordomo@amsat.org