ISS Daily Summary Report – 3/11/2021

Exposed Pallet 9 (EP9) Jettison: At 7:30 AM CT today, robotics ground controllers commanded an SSRMS disposal jettison of the EP9, carrying old Nickel-Hydrogen batteries. The EP9 has the approximate mass of a large SUV and is predicted to re-enter Earth’s atmosphere in two-to-four years. The EP9 was delivered to the ISS inside of the Unpressurized Logistics Carrier (ULC) of HTV-9 (Kountori 9) on May 20th, 2020. The EP9 carried six Lithium-Ion battery Orbital Replacement Units (ORUs) which replaced existing ISS Nickel-Hydrogen batteries during the S6 Battery Extravehicular Activity (EVA) series (United States On-orbit Segment EVAs #65-#68).

Payloads

Collapsible Contingency Urinal (CCU): Following the 24 hour use of the CCU, crew provided feedback in the form of a questionnaire. The CCU is exploration hardware flown to ISS as a tech demo. The approach includes a fractal wetting design that incorporates smart capillary fluidics. This work could have a broad impact on capillary-based fluid management on spacecraft and on Earth.

Electromagnetic Levitator (EML): As part of the on-going science campaign, the crew changed the mode selection to RECAL on the EML High Speed Camera. The EML is a 360 kg multi-user facility designed for containerless materials processing in space. It supports research in the areas of meta-stable states and phases along with the measurement of highly accurate thermophysical properties of liquid metallic alloys at high temperatures. EML can accommodate up to 18 samples, each 5 to 8 mm in size. Heating rates of up to 100 Kelvin per second can be achieved with a maximum temperature of 2,100°C.

Human Research Facility-1 (HRF-1): The crew continued the troubleshooting efforts and were able to successfully resolve interference between the coolant hose and the improved Payload Ethernet Hub Gateway (iPEHG) power cable in the internal area of the rack. The crew was able to remove a clamp holding the coolant line, and then get the power cable connected. HRF-1 provides an on-orbit laboratory that enables scientists conducting human life science research to evaluate the physiological, behavioral, and chemical changes induced by space flight. Research performed using HRF-1 provides data to help scientists understand how the human body adapts to long-duration spaceflight.

ISS HAM pass: The crew participated in an ISS HAM pass with the Avoca State School, Bundaberg, QLD, Australia. Some of the questions asked by the 10-11 year old students included how long a typical mission is on the ISS, how the crew gets oxygen too breathe on the ISS, and why meteors don’t hit the ISS. ISS Ham Radio provides opportunities to engage and educate students, teachers, parents and other members of the community in science, technology, engineering and math by providing a means to communicate between astronauts and the ground HAM radio units.

JEM Airlock (JEMAL)/ JEM Small Satellite Orbital Deployer (J-SSOD)-16: The crew performed part 1 and 2 of the J-SSOD-16 installation onto the JEMAL slide table. Following the completion of the installation tomorrow, the slide table will be extended outside the ISS and the satellites will be deployed this weekend. The J-SSOD provides a novel, safe, and small satellite launching capability to the ISS. The J-SSOD is a unique satellite launcher, handled by the Japanese Experiment Module Remote Manipulator System (JEMRMS), which provides containment and deployment mechanisms for several individual small satellites.

Micro-16: The crew set up the appropriate hardware and performed microscopy observations on the sample modules. Loss of muscle mass and strength present a major challenge for astronauts on future long space voyages. Determining Muscle Strength in Space-flown Caenorhabditis elegans (Micro-16) uses this tiny worm to test whether decreased expression of muscle proteins is associated with decreased strength. The research team developed a new device to measure muscle strength in multiple generations of space-reared C. elegans worms and compare that strength to postflight muscle gene expression analyses.

Packed Bed Reactor Experiment – Water Recovery (PBRE-WR): The crew performed a routine inspection for water leakage during the PBRE-WR series of experiments. PBRE-WR examines flow rates of gas and liquid through a filtering substrate in the space station water processor, replacing oxygen with nitrogen. This investigation could help identify optimum conditions and enhance accuracy of models that predict simultaneous flow of gas and liquid (two-phase flow) in microgravity.

Solid Combustion Experiment Module (SCEM): The crew performed the activities necessary to connect a camera power cable. While in the area, they also performed inspections of several other connections. The SCEM facility will be used to support the FLARE investigation. Fundamental Research on International Standard of Fire Safety in Space – Base for Safety of Future Manned Missions (FLARE), a Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) investigation, explores the flammability of materials in microgravity. Various solid fuels are burned under different conditions and observed inside a flow tunnel. Microgravity significantly affects combustion phenomena and results are expected to contribute to the improvement of fire safety in space.

Transparent Alloys Hardware Locate: In preparation for an installation into the Microgravity Science Glovebox, the crew located the hardware associated with the Transparent Alloys experiment. A set of five experiments takes place in Transparent Alloys to improve the understanding of melting-solidification processes in plastics, which usually serves to gain experience on physical phenomena involved in metallic alloy processing.

Systems

EVA Preparations: The crew performed several activities in preparation for the ISS Upgrades 3.5 EVA. The crew configured EVA tools, printed Extravehicular Mobility Unit (EMU) cuff checklists, reviewed procedures, and participated in a conference with the ground. The ISS Upgrades 3.5 EVA is scheduled for Saturday, March 13th.

Crew-1 Dragon Space Station Computer (SSC) Wi-Fi Test: The crew performed a Wi-Fi characterization inside of the Crew-1 Dragon in order to test the Wi-Fi connection and signal strength on a wireless SSC. During the characterization, the crew moved an SSC to different locations within the vehicle and recorded signal strength at 2.4 GHZ and 5 GHZ.

Completed Task List Activities:

• None

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

• EP9 Jettison Commanding
• JEMAL and JEMRMS Commanding in Preparation for J-SSOD Deploy
• MPEG-2 TV D/L Test

Look Ahead Plan

Friday, March 12 (GMT 071)
Payloads:

• Astrobee Off
• FIR/LMM Troubleshooting
• Grape Microbiota
• JEMAL/J-SSOD-16 Install
• Micro-16
• PBRE-WR

Systems:

• EVA Procedure Review
• EVA Procedure Conference
• EVA Tool Configuration & Audit
• EVA Equipment Lock Preparation
• JPM CGSE Gas Line Switch
• WHC UR/IF R&R

Saturday, March 13 (GMT 072)
Payloads:

• AC Touch
• Grape Microbiota
• Micro-16
• PBRE-WR

Systems:

• ISS Upgrades 3.5 EVA

Sunday, March 14 (GMT 073)
Payloads:

• J-SSOD-16 Deploy
• Repository

Systems:

• EVA Debrief Conference
• EMU H2O Recharge
• CWC-I Gather & Degas

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

• PBRE/MSG Water Release Inspection/Cleanup
• ISS HAM Service Module Pass Kenwood
• Condensate Pumping Unit (БПК) Test
• JEM Airlock Slide Table (ST) Extension to JPM Side
• Waste and Hygiene Compartment (WHC) Manual Fill
• Health Maintenance System (HMS) ISS Food Intake Tracker (ISS FIT)
• Adlink Troubleshooting
• PROFILAKTIKA-2. MO-3 Protocol Locomotion Test in Passive Mode
• SM air sampling for CO using ИПД sampler
• Collecting SM and FGB air samples using АК-1М sampler
• Regenerative Environmental Control and Life Support System (ECLSS) Recycle Tank Leak Check
• “In Flight Maintenance (IFM) Human Research Facility (HRF) Thermal Control System (TCS) Troubleshooting”
• Multiple User System for Earth Sensing Server Vent Cleaning
• Combustion Integrated Rack Hardware Return
• Charging EVA Camera D4 Battery
• JEM Small Satellite Orbital Deployer (SSOD) (Resupply and Multi) onto Multi-Purpose Experiment Platform (MPEP) Installation
• Transparent Alloys Hardware Locate
• Solid Combustion Experiment Module (SCEM) Power Cable Reconnection
• Collapsible Contingency Urinal Questionnaire
• EML High Speed Camera Lens Switch
• Extravehicular Mobility Unit (EMU) Cuff Checklist Print
• Audit of disposable covers for Low-Noise Headsets ГНШ-К-24
• Food Acceptability Survey
• Micro-16 Microscopy Operations
• Extravehicular Activity (EVA) Tool Configuring
• JEM Airlock Slide Table (ST) Retraction from JPM Side
• JEM Small Satellite Orbital Deployer (SSOD) (Resupply and Multi) onto Multi-Purpose Experiment Platform (MPEP) Installation Satellite Check
• Environmental Health System (EHS) – Air Quality Monitor (AQM) Powercycle
• MPEG-2 TV downlink test via Ku-band prior to Soyuz 747 relocation.
• Crew-1 Station Support Computer (SSC) WiFi Test
• Micro-16 MELFI Culture Return Bag Insertion
• Food Physiology Crew Diet Briefing
• Health Maintenance System (HMS) Vision Test & Questionnaire
• Extravehicular Activity (EVA) Procedure Review
• Preventive maintenance of SM ventilation subsystem. Group B1
• Metal Oxide (METOX) Regeneration Termination
• Health Management Systems (HMS) Optical Coherence Tomography 2 (OCT2) Spectrometer Fan Filter Cleaning
• Water Recovery System Potable Bus Sample
• Extravehicular Activity (EVA) Procedure Conference
• Astrobee Stowage Clear
• Extravehicular Activity (EVA) Reminder for EVA In-Suit Light Exercise (ISLE) Preparation