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04 May 2003

ISS On-Orbit Status 3 May 2003

Part 1 of 3

Day 162 for Expedition 6 (since STS-113 launch on 11/23/02 [160 days
aboard ISS]).  Last day of Increment 6.

All ISS systems continue to function nominally, except as noted
previously or below.

Undocking of 5S/Soyuz TMA-1 with Nikolai Budarin, Kenneth Bowersox
and Donald Pettit occurred right on time at 6:43pm EDT in local
daylight. [Separation springs imparted the spacecraft a delta-V of
0.12 m/s, followed three minutes later by a separation burn of 0.574
m/s delta-V.  The spacecraft was visible to the ISS crew through
nadir-facing windows until the station maneuvered from undock
attitude back to LVLH duty attitude at 6:48pm EDT.  The five-minute
deorbit burn will be at 9:12pm, providing a directed braking impulse
of 115.2 m/s delta-V in orbital nighttime, followed by entry
interface at 9:43pm shortly after orbital sunrise.  Landing site will
be at 51.2 NLat, 67.1 ELong, near the city of Arkhalyk in Turgay
province of Kazakhstan (capital: Astana).  There were two
additional/backup landing opportunities on subsequent orbits.  Time
of landing: ~10:06pm EDT (8:06am local time, 5/4).  At the landing
site, NASA personnel, including medical personnel and ISS Program
Director, will be present by helicopter.] 

After wakeup at a sleep-cycle-shifted 7am (sleep time 10pm), followed
by breakfast, work prep and DPC (daily planning conference), the crew
had a busy day with final packing, transfers and preparations for the
undocking. 

As a regular medical pre-return tradition, FE-1 Nikolai Budarin
collected oral samples for the Russian MBI-3 Parodont experiment,
stowing the saliva sample test tubes and Parodont kit in Soyuz/5S for
return, labeled as "urgent cargo".  [Parodont is an experiment of
human periodontal tissue research.]

Afterwards, Budarin also completed the scheduled Russian MedOps
(SZM-MO-22) sanitary-epidemiological status experiment, taking
samples from cabin surfaces, to be returned to the ground on 5S for
sanitation and disease studies.

Other Russian experiments deactivated, transferred and stowed aboard
the TMA-1 Descent Module (DM) were BTKh-10 Conjugation (hybridizer
samples stowed in fresh frozen ice packs, from Cryogem-03, in the
Biokont-T stowage and return container); BTKh-32 MSK ("Embryon" stem
cell and postfusional cell samples retrieved from Akvarius-B
equipment and stowed in 5S DM); BIO-1 Poligen (Drosophilae [fruit
flies] in their kits, photo- and video-imaged before stowage to show
effectiveness of blocking their food access prior to return to
gravity, plus stowage of film and videocassette used); BIO-10
Intercellular Interaction (ESA experiment of cytotoxicity of human
blood lymphocyte with joint cultivation of gonocyte culture under
microgravity conditions, performed in the Microgravity Science
Glovebox, stowed in KV-03 container and stowed in 5S); GCF-N
Counterdiffusion Crystallization of Biological Macromolecules
(Granada Crystallization Facility 02,or "N", arrived in Progress 10P
in February '03, transferred and secured in 5S DM). 

CDR-7 Yuri Malenchenko completed the regular inspection of the BRPK
air/liquid condensate separator system in the Service Module (SM).

Yuri also, for the first time, conducted the daily checkup of the
continuing BIO-5 "Rasteniya-2/Lada-2" zero-G plant growth experiment.

FE-1-7 Edward Lu deactivated, deinstalled and stowed the EarthKAM
equipment. [So far, there have been over 1600 images received on the
ground, with 26 schools participating.  In gratitude, the EarthKAM
team uplinked stunning images of Quebec/Rupert Bay in Canada, Sicily
with smoking Mt. Etna, Kazakhstan with Caspian Sea, and the Nile
River with Sudan, Nubian Desert and Egypt.]

Later in the day, Ed Lu and Malenchenko configured the IWIS (internal
wireless instrumentation system) with radio-linked RSUs (remote
sensor units) plus their radio antennae installed in Lab and SM for
recording of structural dynamics (vibratory) resulting from the Soyuz
undocking. 

Also for structural acceleration measurements during the undocking
event, MC C-H remote-commanded a data take of the external SDMS
(structural dynamics measurement system) on the S0 truss segment.

For observing the Soyuz thruster plumes during the deorbit maneuvers
and the Earth's limb, Malenchenko installed the geo-physical GFI-1
Relaksatsiya ("relaxation") experiment, reconfiguring the Russian
payload laptop 3 for the experiment and mounting the ultraviolet (UV)
camera with spectrometer unit at SM window #9.  [Relaksatsiya deals
with the study of the chemoluminescent chemical reactions and
atmospheric light phenomena (emissions) that occur during
high-velocity interaction between the exhaust products from space
vehicles and the atmosphere at orbital altitude and during the entry
of space vehicles into the Earth's upper atmosphere. Purpose of the
current experiment is to record the TMA-1 thruster plumes (by
UV-video) at 9:12pm and the emission layer of the atmosphere at the
Earth's limb at 9:17pm.  After Soyuz' entry, the experiment will be
torn down and stowed again.]

Shortly before final farewell ceremonies, Nikolai performed the
regular pre-undocking air sampling in the SM.  [He first used the
standard Russian AK-1M sampler device; then, to test for Freon
traces, the AK-1M-F air sampler.  Later, testing for carbon monoxide
(CO) and nitrous gases (NH3), he collected air samples in the SM with
the IPD Draeger tubes sampler.]
 
The traditional Change of Command Ceremony took place on time, at
~2:10pm, topped off by a congratulatory call from NASA Administrator
Sean O'Keefe at MCC-Moscow/TsUP.

At ~2:20pm CDR-7 Yuri Malenchenko and Nikolai Budarin set up and
tested the communications configuration (STTS) for Soyuz undocking
and descent, followed by Budarin and CDR Ken Bowersox activating the
TMA-1 spacecraft for the undocking and return.     The returning
Expedition 6 crew then entered the Soyuz spacecraft via the DC-1
"Pirs" docking module.  Hatch closure occurred on time at 3:38pm,
marking the official end of Increment 6. There followed leak check
operations of about 50 minutes, with 30 minutes of no pressure change
of the docking vestibule (transfer tunnel between SM and Soyuz)
signifying seal pressure tightness. 

DC-1 hooks opening took place at ~5:10pm, after ISS went to free
drift for ten minutes during the opening of the hooks.  Maneuver to
5S undocking attitude then followed at 6:10pm.  The undock signal was
uplinked at 6:40pm, and physical separation occurred on time at
6:43pm.

For the reentry, all crewmembers are wearing the Russian Kentavr
anti-G suit.  [The Russian Kentavr garment is a protective anti-g
suit ensemble to facilitate the return of a long-duration crewmember
into the Earth gravity. Consisting of shorts, gaiters, underpants,
jersey and socks, it acts as countermeasure for circulatory
disturbance, prevents crewmember from overloading during descent and
increases orthostatic tolerance during post-flight adaptation.]

How will the crew experience the ballistic reentry in the Soyuz 5S
Descent Module, a First for Bowersox and Pettit  as well as for the
TMA model?  See Appendix, below.

 - Continued -

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