ISS Daily Summary Report – 8/02/2018

Chemical Gardens: Today the crew removed the Chemical Gardens 2 ampoule kit from a Cargo Transfer Bag, broke the seal between the ampoules and mixed the contents of both. In the Chemical Gardens experiment, selected metal salts are added to an aqueous solution of sodium silicate (Na2SiO3), resulting in the formation of inorganic structures that resemble plant growth in a time span ranging from minutes to hours. On Earth, gravity-induced flow due to buoyancy differences between the reactants complicates our understanding of the physics behind these “chemical gardens”. Conducting this experiment in the microgravity environment onboard the ISS removes the gravity effects, ensures diffusion-controlled growth, and allows researchers a better assessment of initiation and evolution of chemical gardens.

European Space Agency (ESA) Education Payloads Operations (EPO) AstroPi: Today the crew recorded a message to support the kickoff of the 2018/19 European AstroPi competition. AstroPis are augmented Raspberry Pi computers equipped with the mighty Sense Hardware Attached on Top (HAT) that measure the environment inside the ISS, detect how the station moves through space, and pick up the Earth’s magnetic field. One of the AstroPis has an infrared camera and the other has a standard visible spectrum camera. 

Double Coldbag Packing: As part of the final Dragon packing operations, the crew packed time sensitive cold storage science items. The crew must pack these items late in the Dragon packing operations to minimize the amount of time the science samples are out of refrigeration prior to being delivered to the investigation teams on the ground.

Dragon Cargo Operations: Today the crew completed the last of the SpaceX-15 cargo transfer operations as they packed and loaded the final items slated for return on Dragon. As part of today’s cargo activities the crew ingressed the Bigelow Expandable Aerospace Module (BEAM) module to retrieve the degraded Space Station Remote Manipulator System (SSRMS) Latching End Effector (LEE) S/N 202 and packed it for return. While the crew had the hatch open to the BEAM module, they stowed the Treadmill Subject Loading System (SLS) into the BEAM.

United States On-orbit Segment (USOS) Hatch Depress Indicator (HDI) Zero G Testing: The USOS HDI is a new device that may be used in the future during a rapid spacecraft depressurization event to determine which side of a hatchway is the leak source. The first planned deployment into procedures and training will be for the first crewed demo mission of the United States Crew Vehicle (USCV). The USOS HDI has undergone ground testing; however, it is desired that the crew evaluate HDI behaviors in the zero-g environment so feedback can be supplied to future crews in training. This activity had the crew perform a demonstration of the USOS HDI in both flow and no-flow atmospheric conditions. They also performed a spatial-only assessment at other hatchways to check for interference and sufficient restraint/mobility aids.

Public Affairs Office (PAO) Educational Event:  Today, Drew Feustel participated in a PAO event with High school students representing Virginia Space Coast Scholars – a STEM focused 9-month course, which culminates in a one-week residential program at Wallops and Middle school students representing Virginia Space Flight Academy – a STEM focused summer camp experience at Wallops.

Today’s Planned Activities:
All activities are complete unless otherwise noted.

  • Inventory Management System (IMS) conference
  • Meteor Laptop Reboot
  • Soyuz 738 Kazbek Fit Check
  • DC1 EVA Support Panel Test.
  • Water Refill Kit Battery Charge
  • СОЖ maintenance
  • Chemical Gardens Procedure Review
  • Radio Frequency Identification Logistics CTB Relocate 2
  • Chemical Gardens MWA Preparation
  • ПхО EVA Support Panel (ПОВ) Checkout.
  • Chemical Gardens Mix Ops
  • EPO crew message recording
  • PEV Activation Test from DC1 EVA Support Panel.
  • PEV activation test from ПхО EVA Support Panel.
  • Micro-12 Sample Relocate
  • Cargo Transfer to Dragon
  • USOS Hatch Depress Indicator Demonstration
  • Setup and hookup of КСПЭ camcorder in DC1 for TV coverage of Gathering EVA Equipment
  • Staging EVA Equipment and EVA Tools, photo/video. TV Coverage Gathering EVA Equipment.
  • CIR Optics Tool Locate
  • Dragon Locker Install
  • Polar Express Rack Uninstall, Transfer, And Dragon Install
  • iPad Air 2 Charge
  • Flight Group 8 iPad Air 2 Initial Configuration
  • Double Coldbag Pack
  • Food Acceptability Questionnaire Subject
  • ARED Platform Fold
  • Bigelow Expandable Activity Module (BEAM) Node 3 Aft Unstow
  • Robotic Workstation (RWS) Setup
  • Staging EVA Equipment and EVA Tools, photo/video. TV Coverage Gathering EVA Equipment.
  • BEAM Ingress
  • Countermeasures System (CMS) Treadmill 2 System (T2) Monthly Inspection
  • Photo/TV Latching End Effector (LEE) Node 2 Video Setup
  • Latching End Effector (LEE) Flight Support Equipment (FSE) Assembly
  • Double Coldbag Transfer to Dragon
  • SLS Hardware Transfer
  • BEAM Cleanup and Egress
  • Photo/TV Latching End Effector (LEE) Node 2 Video Reconfig from JEM to Dragon view
  • Dragon LEE Installation Photos
  • Transfer Center Stack for LEE Install
  • Bigelow Expandable Activity Module (BEAM) Node 3 Aft Stow
  • Food Acceptability Questionnaire Subject
  • Verification of ИП-1 Flow Sensor
  • ARED Platform Unfold Back to Nominal Position
  • Photo/TV Node 3 Camcorder Deactivation
  • Environmental Health System (EHS) – Rad Detector Rotate
  • Dragon LEE Installation Photos
  • Dragon Cargo Operations Conference

Completed Task List Activities:

  • None

Ground Activities:
All activities are complete unless otherwise noted.

  • Dragon O2 Xfer and Flight Computer reboot

Three-Day Look Ahead:

  • Friday, 08/03: CBM Vestibule Ops, Dragon Unberth/Release, BCAT, ACE-M2 Sample, Habitat H2O Fill, USOS EVA tool gather for RS EVA, mobiPV, Chemical Garden
  • Saturday, 08/04: Weekly Housekeeping, Crew Off-Duty
  • Sunday, 08/04: Crew Off-Duty

QUICK ISS Status – Environmental Control Group:

Component Status
Elektron On
Vozdukh Manual
[СКВ] 1 – SM Air Conditioner System (“SKV1”) Off
[СКВ] 2 – SM Air Conditioner System (“SKV2”) On
Carbon Dioxide Removal Assembly (CDRA) Lab Operate
Carbon Dioxide Removal Assembly (CDRA) Node 3 Standby
Major Constituent Analyzer (MCA) Lab Operate
Major Constituent Analyzer (MCA) Node 3 Idle
Oxygen Generation Assembly (OGA) Process
Urine Processing Assembly (UPA) Standby
Trace Contaminant Control System (TCCS) Lab Full Up
Trace Contaminant Control System (TCCS) Node 3 Off