October 2006 - Sarex (INACTIVE)

EXP 14 CREW EXTENDED ONE MONTH
by Arthur Rowe 28 Nov '06

28 Nov '06

SUBMITTED BY ARTHUR N1ORC - AMSAT A/C #31468 Astronauts currently working on the International Space Station will have their six-month mission extended by another month to avoid early spring flooding on the Kazakh steppe, where they are due to land, a Russian space official said last Wednesday. According to a revised schedule, U.S. astronaut Michael Lopez-Alegria and Russian cosmonaut Mikhail Tyurin of the Expedition 14 crew, who began working on the world's sole orbital station September 20, will return to Earth in April instead of March. They will be joined by the fifth space tourist on their return trip, Hungarian-born American software billionaire Charles Simonyi, who is expected to arrive at the ISS with the 15th crew. The flooding makes it "extremely hard to find a dry place for a capsule with astronauts to land on, and landing on a flooded steppe may be quite dangerous," he said. European Space Agency astronaut Thomas Reiter of Germany, who has been on board the station since July, will work as part of the Expedition 14 crew until December and will then hand off to astronaut Sunita Williams.

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2 Line ISS Keps 10-31
by Dave Larsen PhD 30 Oct '06

30 Oct '06

ISS 1 25544U 98067A 06304.04280258 .00019307 00000-0 11714-3 0 9630 2 25544 051.6339 207.4189 0012422 155.0964 286.5786 15.77468291454590

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FUTURE LIFE SUPPORT FOR ISS
by Arthur Rowe 30 Oct '06

30 Oct '06

SUBMITTED BY ARTHUR N1ORC - AMSAT A/C #31468 Sci-fi Life Support 10.30.2006 Oct. 30, 2006: In Frank Herbert's epic ecological novel Dune (1965), set on the fictitious desert planet Arrakis in another star system, water is so precious that even perspiration and breath moisture are captured and purified for drinking. On real-life voyages to the Moon and Mars, science fact may end up imitating science fiction. Indeed, scientists and engineers at NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center (MSFC) are putting the finishing touches on systems for capturing exhaled carbon dioxide and urine and turning them into breathable oxygen and drinking water. "Early space missions—Mercury, Gemini, Apollo—took with them all the water and oxygen they needed and discarded liquid and gaseous wastes into space," explains Robert Bagdigian of the MSFC. In short, the astronauts' life-support systems were "open-loop"—meaning they relied on resupply from Earth, something still true for the International Space Station, today. But for any long-duration missions to the Moon or Mars, "it makes sense to close the loop"—that is, to recycle air and waste water instead of just discarding them. Soon the ISS will be testing just such a regenerative system. Sign up for EXPRESS SCIENCE NEWS delivery The name of the project is Environmental Control and Life Support Systems--better known by its acronym ECLSS (pronounced"EE-cliss"). Bagdigian is the ECLSS project manager. "The Russians are ahead of us," says Robyn Carrasquillo, engineering manager for ECLSS. "The original Salyut and Mir spacecraft were able to condense humidity right out of the air and use electrolysis—an electric current run through the water—to produce oxygen for breathing." NASA's new regenerative ECLSS, to be launched to ISS in 2008, goes further: "it can recover urine in addition to humidity." Urine recovery is an engineering challenge: "Urine is so much dirtier than ordinary humidity," Carrasquillo explains. "It can corrode hardware and clog hoses." ECLSS uses a purification process called vapor compression distillation: urine is boiled until the water in it turns to steam. The steam—essentially clean water vapor except for some traces of ammonia and other gases—rises into a distillation chamber, leaving behind a concentrated brown soup of impurities and salts that Carrasquillo charitably calls "brine" (which is discarded). The steam is cooled and condenses back into liquid. This steam distillate is then mixed with the humidity condensate, and the water further purified to become potable. ECLSS can recover 100 percent of moisture in the air, and 85 percent of the water in urine, resulting in a net overall recovery efficiency of about 93 percent. Stepping-stone to the stars. Regenerative ECLSS will get a field test onboard the ISS That's how it works on Earth. In space, there's an additional challenge: "steam doesn't rise." Buoyancy requires gravity, and in the microgravity of a spaceship, steam just "sits there." It doesn't rise naturally into the distillation chamber. So in the version of ECLSS being completed at Marshall for ISS, "we spin the entire distillation system to create artificial gravity to separate the steam from the brine," says Carrasquillo. Moreover, in microgravity human hairs, skin cells, lint, and other impurities float around in the air instead of falling to the floor. Thus, the processor requires an impressive filtration system. When clean water emerges at the end, iodine is added to retard the growth of microbes (chlorine, used to purify water on Earth, is too reactive and hazardous to store and handle in space). ECLSS hardwareThe regenerative water recovery system for ISS, weighing about a ton and a half, will "produce half a gallon an hour, more than the current of crew three needs," Carrasquillo says. "This will enable the space station to support a total of six astronauts continuously." The system is designed to produce potable water "meeting purity standards better than most municipal water systems on the ground," Bagdigian adds. In addition to providing drinking water for the crew, the water recovery system will supply water to the other half of ECLSS: the oxygen generation system (OGS). The OGS operates by electrolysis. It splits water molecules into oxygen for breathing and hydrogen, which is vented outside the spacecraft. "The air loop needs pretty clean water, so the electrolyte cells don't get contaminated and foul," Bagdigian points out. "Regeneration is far more cost-effective than resupplying the station with water from Earth," Carrasquillo says, especially after the space shuttle is retired in 2010. Recycling up to 93 percent wastewater is impressive. But for missions of months or years to the Moon or Mars, some later version of ECLSS must achieve closer to 100 percent efficiency. Then, astronauts would be ready to survive on our own solar system's versions of Dune. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ ECLSS in Iraq--Since April 2006, an Earth-bound application of a portion of the ECLSS water recovery system has been being trucked from one rural village to another in northern Iraq to filter particulates and contaminants out of dirty groundwater or well water to provide residents with clean drinking water. That portable system—about half the size of a refrigerator including all its pumps and computer controls—purifies water at a good clip of 4 gallons a minute, for a cost of only about two cents a gallon. Technical details of ECLSS appear in "Status of the Regenerative ECLSS Water Recovery and Oxygen Generation Systems" by Robert M. Bagdigian, Dale Cloud, and John Bedard (Paper 2006-01-2057) and in NASA Facts "International Space Station Environmental Control and Life Support System" (Pub 8-40399, May 2005). ECLSS fact sheet The Vision for Space Exploration

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After Delay, ISS Crew Opens Hatch to Cargo Supply Ship
by Arthur Rowe 28 Oct '06

28 Oct '06

SUBMITTED BY ARTHUR N1ORC - AMSAT A/C #31468 After Delay, Space Station Crew Opens Hatch to Cargo Supply Ship 27 October 2006 International Space Station A technical problem that plagued Thursday's docking of a Russian cargo ship to the orbiting International Space Station has been resolved, allowing the crew to unload fresh supplies. After several hours of checking that the cargo ship was securely docked to the station, mission control gave the go-ahead for the crew to begin unloading fuel, food and water from the cargo ship, which blasted off from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan earlier this week. The move was only possible after it was determined the unmanned Russian spacecraft had properly latched onto the orbiting outpost. During an initial docking attempt Thursday, the supply craft failed to latch completely. Russian Space Agency official Nikolai Sevasteenov says the concerns stemmed from Mission Control's inability to determine whether the cargo ship's antenna had folded properly, as is required for a secure docking. With the trouble solved, the three-man crew of the International Space Station was happy to open the hatches and begin unloading. Russian space agency officials stress similar problems have been encountered before. They say, at no time was the crew in any danger. Friday's delivery means the crew can look forward to enjoying videos and letters from home. American astronaut Michael Lopez-Alegria, Russian cosmonaut Mikhail Tyurin, and German astronaut Thomas Reiter have logged a little over a month in space as part of a six-month tour to the International Space Station.

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Upcoming ARISS Contact Schedule as of 2006-10-27 20:45 UTC
by AJ9N＠aol.com 27 Oct '06

27 Oct '06

Upcoming ARISS Contact Schedule as of 2006-10-27 20:45 UTC Quick list of scheduled contacts and events: Flanders Science Festival, Ghent, Belgium Contact postponed Fri 2006-10-27 10:36 UTC 20 deg via WH6PN (***) Contact will be simulcast on IRLP, Echolink, and the web. During Expedition 14, ARISS expects to have one ARISS school contact per month rather than approximately one per week. It is also anticipated that there many not be many general contacts. Total number of ARISS school contacts is 255. QSL information may be found at: http://www.arrl.org/ARISS/arissfaq.html http://www.rac.ca/ariss/oindex.htm#QSL's ISS callsigns: DP0ISS, NA1SS, RS0ISS ***************************************************************************** The schedule page has been updated as of 2006-10-27 20:45 UTC. Here you will find a listing of all scheduled school contacts and questions, other ISS related websites, IRLP and Echolink websites, and instructions for any contact that may be streamed live. http://www.amsat.org/amsat/ariss/news/arissnews.txt The successful school list has been updated as of 2006-09-27 02:00 UTC http://www.amsat.org/amsat/ariss/news/Successful_ARISS_schools.rtf Frequency chart for packet, voice, and crossband repeater modes showing Doppler correction as of 2005-07-29 04:00 UTC http://www.amsat.org/amsat/ariss/news/ISS_frequencies_and_Doppler_correctio… tf Listing of ARISS related magazine articles as of 2006-07-10 03:30 UTC: http://www.amsat.org/amsat/ariss/news/ARISS_magazine_articles.rtf ***************************************************************************** There has been a rumor that the ISS was having direct contacts on the 40 meter band. There is no HF radio equipment on board and available yet. The HF antenna is mounted. Sometimes WA3NAN will retransmit shuttle audio. ***************************************************************************** Expedition 13/14 on orbit: Thomas Reiter DF4TR Expedition 14 on orbit: Michael Lopez-Alegria KE5GTK Mikhail Tyurin, RZ3FT Expedition 14 future: Sunita Williams, KD5PLB ***************************************************************************** 73, Charlie Sufana AJ9N One of the ARISS operation team mentors

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ISS STATUS REPORT #06-47
by Arthur Rowe 27 Oct '06

27 Oct '06

SUBMITTED BY ARTHUR N1ORC - AMSAT A/C #31468 *International Space Station Status Report #06-47* *4:30 p.m. CDT, Thursday, Oct. 26, 2006* *Expedition 13 Crew* New supplies arrived at the International Space Station Thursday as an unpiloted Russian cargo spacecraft docked to the aft port of the Zvezda Service Module. With almost 2.5 tons of food, fuel and supplies for the station's Expedition 14 crew, the ISS Progress 23 automatically docked to Zvezda at 9:29 a.m. CDT as the spacecraft and the station flew 220 miles above Italy. The 23rd Progress to visit the station was launched Monday from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan. Following the initial docking, the final latching of the Progress craft to the station was delayed by about three and a half hours as Russian flight controllers evaluated potential interference by an antenna on the spacecraft. At the time of docking, flight controllers could not confirm that the antenna used by the Progress' Kurs automated docking system had retracted as commanded. If the antenna had remained extended, it could have interfered with the final latching of the supply ship to the station. After reviewing data, Mission Control Moscow commanded the Progress' docking probe to slowly retract, pulling the ship firmly into the port and aligning the hooks and latches that hold it secure. Latches for the craft on the station were secured at about 1 p.m. CDT. Flight controllers will command additional latches on the Progress to close Friday. This allows the operation to be completed in a normal manner over Russian communications sites. During the hours between initial docking and final latching, the station's orientation was allowed to drift to avoid any disturbance of the softly docked cargo ship. The station's drift resulted in lower power generation by the solar arrays. The crew then powered off several pieces of non-critical equipment as outlined in a standard procedure that reduces power consumption. Soon after the latches were closed, however, the station's attitude control was restored and power generation was returned to normal. Due to the long operations Thursday, Expedition 14 Commander Mike Lopez-Alegria and flight engineers Mikhail Tyurin and Thomas Reiter will open the hatch to the supply ship on Friday. Supplies on the Progress include food, fuel, oxygen and air, clothing, experiment hardware and spare parts, as well as personal items from the crew's families. The new Progress joins an older Progress supply ship that arrived at the station’s Pirs Docking Compartment in June. Progress 22 will remain docked until mid-January. It will be used to stow trash, and its supply of oxygen will help replenish the station’s atmosphere when required. ISS Progress 23 holds 1,918 pounds of propellant for the Russian thrusters, 110 pounds of oxygen and almost 2,800 pounds of spare parts, experiment hardware and life support components, including parts for the Russian Elektron oxygen-generation system. The system has been inoperable since last month, and Tyurin is expected to resume repairs on the unit next week. Engineers continue to review data from the station’s S-band communications system, which experienced dropouts late last week in the transmission link of one of two redundant channels used for voice and commanding capability. After collecting data last weekend from “string 1” of the S-band system, its transmitter was reactivated Wednesday, but the communications problem occurred once again. “String 2” of the system is being used for voice and commanding with no impact to station activities. Flight controllers are analyzing the problem to determine if any procedural adjustments must be made for the upcoming flight of Discovery to the station on the STS-116 mission. In other activities, the crew conducted sound level measurements in the station’s modules and installed cables in the Russian segment of the station. They performed regular station maintenance and took time to chat with a reporter from the Orange County Register in California on Tuesday. Reiter continued his work with European plant growth experiments while throughout the week Lopez-Alegria did log entries for a sleep experiment. In two weeks, the crew will begin preparations for a spacewalk Nov. 22 by Tyurin and Lopez-Alegria in Russian Orlan suits from the Pirs Docking Compartment to replace and retrieve several science experiments from the hull of the Zvezda Service Module. Tyurin also plans to hit a golf ball from a bracket on Pirs as part of a Russian commercial activity. The next station status report will be issued Nov. 3 or earlier if events warrant. For more about the crew's activities and station sighting opportunities: http://www.nasa.gov/station

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ARISS Event - Flanders Science Festival , Transinne, Belgium, , Fri (Oct 27) at 10:36 UTC
by Ransom, Kenneth G. (JSC-OC)[BAR] 27 Oct '06

27 Oct '06

An International Space Station Expedition 14 ARISS school contact has been planned with participants at the Flanders Science Festival in Transinne, Belgium on Friday, 27 Oct 2006. The event is scheduled to begin at approximately 10:36 UTC. The contact will be a telebridge between stations NA1SS and WH6PN. The contact should be audible to anyone in Hawaii. Interested parties are invited to listen in on the 145.80 MHz downlink. Additional listening options are listed below. The participants are expected to conduct the conversation in English. IRLP - Connect to the IRLP reflector 9010. You may also connect via the IRLP Discovery website at http://www.discoveryreflector.ca/listen.htm. EchoLink - The audio from this contact will be available on the EchoLink *AMSAT* (node 101 377) and the *JK1ZRW* (node 277 208) conference rooms. Please connect to the *JK1ZRW* server to keep the load light on the *AMSAT* server. This will ensure good audio quality for all listeners. _________________________________ AUDIO STREAMING AND AUDIO REPLAY PARTICIPANT INFORMATION: To join the event: URL: https://e-meetings.mci.com <https://mail01.ndc.nasa.gov/exchweb/bin/redir.asp?URL=https://e-meetings.mc…> CONFERENCE NUMBER: 2128780 PASSCODE: SPACE STATIO To access the Audio Replay of this call, all parties can: 1. Go to the URL listed above. 2. Choose Audio Streaming under Join Events. 3. Enter the conference number and passcode. (Note that if this is a recurring event, multiple dates may be listed.) Replays are available for 30 days after the live event._________________________________ Students will ask as many of the following questions as time allows: 1. Do you miss your family up there? 2. Is it difficult to walk on an E.V.A? 3. How does it feel like to sleep in space? 4. What is the view outside looking like (dark, shiny)? 5. Can you see the opening in the ozone layer on earth, from there up? 6. What kind of tests or work you have to do? 7. What was the feeling the first time you where in space? 8. What do you miss the most in space? 9. Can you see meteorological events on earth up there? 10. How does your family react when you are so far away? 11. What are you going to miss most when you are back from space? 12. Do you ever feel scared? 13. What was the most beautiful thing you saw in space? 14. Can you use your own senses to feel ? 15. Why did NASA prefer to send people instead of robots? 16. Has this spacetrip made your dream come through? 17. Would you like to live up there for a longer time? 18. Why did the agencies choose this crew for this mission? 19. What do you do in your spare time in space? 20. Are you feeling sick sometimes when you are moving around all the time? Please note, the amateur equipment on the ISS has not been functioning in the automatic modes properly and may be silent more than usual. Information about the next scheduled ARISS contact can be found at http://www.rac.ca/ariss/upcoming.htm#NextContact . Next planned event(s): TBD ARISS is an international educational outreach program partnering the participating space agencies, NASA, Russian Space Agency, ESA, CNES, JAXA, and CSA, with the AMSAT and IARU organizations from participating countries. ARISS offers an opportunity for students to experience the excitement of Amateur Radio by talking directly with crewmembers on-board the International Space Station. Teachers, parents and communities see, first hand, how Amateur Radio and crewmembers on ISS can energize youngsters' interest in science, technology, and learning. Further information on the ARISS program is available on the website http://www.rac.ca/ariss (graciously hosted by the Radio Amateurs of Canada). Thank you & 73, Kenneth - N5VHO

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Upcoming ARISS Contact Schedule as of 2006-10-26 03:00 UTC
by AJ9N＠aol.com 25 Oct '06

25 Oct '06

Upcoming ARISS Contact Schedule as of 2006-10-26 03:00 UTC Quick list of scheduled contacts and events: Flanders Science Festival, Ghent, Belgium, via telebridge WH6PN (***) Fri 2006-10-27 10:36 UTC 20 deg via WH6PN Contact will be simulcast on IRLP, Echolink, and the web. (***) During Expedition 14, ARISS expects to have one ARISS school contact per month rather than approximately one per week. It is also anticipated that there many not be many general contacts. Total number of ARISS school contacts is 255. QSL information may be found at: http://www.arrl.org/ARISS/arissfaq.html http://www.rac.ca/ariss/oindex.htm#QSL's ISS callsigns: DP0ISS, NA1SS, RS0ISS ***************************************************************************** The schedule page has been updated as of 2006-10-26 03:00 UTC. Here you will find a listing of all scheduled school contacts and questions, other ISS related websites, IRLP and Echolink websites, and instructions for any contact that may be streamed live. http://www.amsat.org/amsat/ariss/news/arissnews.txt The successful school list has been updated as of 2006-09-27 02:00 UTC http://www.amsat.org/amsat/ariss/news/Successful_ARISS_schools.rtf Frequency chart for packet, voice, and crossband repeater modes showing Doppler correction as of 2005-07-29 04:00 UTC http://www.amsat.org/amsat/ariss/news/ISS_frequencies_and_Doppler_correctio… tf Listing of ARISS related magazine articles as of 2006-07-10 03:30 UTC: http://www.amsat.org/amsat/ariss/news/ARISS_magazine_articles.rtf ***************************************************************************** There has been a rumor that the ISS was having direct contacts on the 40 meter band. There is no HF radio equipment on board and available yet. The HF antenna is mounted. Sometimes WA3NAN will retransmit shuttle audio. ***************************************************************************** Expedition 13/14 on orbit: Thomas Reiter DF4TR Expedition 14 on orbit: Michael Lopez-Alegria KE5GTK Mikhail Tyurin, RZ3FT Expedition 14 future: Sunita Williams, KD5PLB ***************************************************************************** 73, Charlie Sufana AJ9N One of the ARISS operation team mentors

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Alaska Native to Discuss Role as Pilot of NASA's Next Shuttle
by Arthur Rowe 25 Oct '06

25 Oct '06

SUBMITTED BY ARTHUR N1ORC - AMSAT A/C #31468 > Oct. 24, 2006 > > Katherine Trinidad > Headquarters, Washington > 202-358-3749 > > James Hartsfield > Johnson Space Center, Houston > 281-483-5111 > > > ALASKA NATIVE TO DISCUSS ROLE AS PILOT OF NASA'S NEXT SHUTTLE > > Alaska native and former float plane pilot Bill Oefelein, who will > serve as pilot of the Space Shuttle Discovery in December, will be > available for interviews by satellite from 5:30 to 7 p.m. EDT Friday, > Oct. 27. > > > Oefelein, a U.S. Navy commander, considers Anchorage, Alaska, his > hometown. He credits his youth in Alaska with helping foster his > interest in flying. While there, he obtained a private pilot's > license with a float plane rating. He went on to become a Navy > fighter and test pilot. Oefelein has logged more than 3,000 hours in > 50 different types of aircraft. > > Oefelein received a bachelor's from Oregon State University, > Corvallis, Ore., and a master's from the University of Tennessee > Space Institute, Knoxville, Tenn. > > He will be making his first spaceflight on Discovery on STS-116, an > 11-day mission to the International Space Station. The mission will > rearrange the complex's power and cooling systems to bring online > electricity generated by new solar arrays delivered to the station in > September. > > Along with Oefelein, Discovery's crew includes STS-116 Commander Mark > Polansky and mission specialists Bob Curbeam, Joan Higginbotham, Nick > Patrick, Suni Williams and Christer Fuglesang, a European Space > Agency astronaut. Williams will remain aboard the station for six > months. European Space Agency astronaut Thomas Reiter, currently > aboard the station, will return to Earth on Discovery. > > For Oefelein's biographical information, visit: > > http://www.jsc.nasa.gov/Bios/htmlbios/oefelein.html > > The interviews and b-roll of Oefelein's training will be broadcast on > the NASA-TV Media Channel (No. 103). In the continental U.S., NASA TV > is carried on an MPEG-2 digital signal accessed via satellite AMC-6, > at 72 degrees west longitude, transponder 17C, 4040 MHz, vertical > polarization. In Alaska and Hawaii, NASA TV is carried on an MPEG-2 > digital signal accessed via satellite AMC-7, at 137 degrees west > longitude, transponder 18C, 4060 MHz, vertical polarization. > > The video footage of training will air at 5 p.m. EDT on Oct. 27. For > NASA TV downlink, schedules and streaming video information, visit: > > http://www.nasa.gov/ntv > > For more information about STS-116 and its crew, visit: > > http://www.nasa.gov/shuttle > > > >

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International Space Station Status Report: SS06-046
by Arthur Rowe 23 Oct '06

23 Oct '06

> SUBMITTED BY ARTHUR N1ORC - AMSAT A/C #31468 >> Oct. 23, 2006 >> >> Katherine Trinidad Headquarters, Washington 202-358-3749 >> >> Rob Navias Johnson Space Center, Houston 281-483-5111 >> STATUS REPORT: SS06-046 >> >> INTERNATIONAL SPACE STATION STATUS REPORT: SS06-046 >> >> A shipment of supplies began its journey to the International Space >> Station Monday as the ISS Progress 23 cargo ship was launched from >> the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan. >> The new resupply ship lifted off at 9:41 a.m. EDT (7:41 p.m. Baikonur >> time). It will be the 23rd Progress to visit the station. Less than >> 10 minutes later, the cargo ship reached orbit, and its solar arrays >> and navigational antennas were deployed for the three-day trip to the >> orbital outpost. >> >> Two pre-programmed firings of the Progress' main engine are scheduled >> Friday to fine-tune the ship's path to the space station. Additional >> rendezvous maneuvers are planned over the next three days. >> >> Expedition 14 Commander Mike Lopez-Alegria and flight engineers >> Mikhail Tyurin and Thomas Reiter were flying 220 miles over southern >> Russia, north of the Mongolian border, when the Progress was >> launched. Carrying almost 2.5 tons of food, water, fuel, oxygen, air, >> spare parts and other supplies, the Progress is scheduled to >> automatically dock to the aft port of the Zvezda Service Module at >> 10:28 a.m. EDT Thursday. NASA TV coverage of the docking will begin >> Thursday at 10 a.m. EDT. >> The ISS Progress 22 craft that arrived in June remains docked to the >> Pirs Docking Compartment. That Progress will be used to stow trash >> and supply oxygen to replenish the station's atmosphere when >> required. The spacecraft won't be discarded until mid-January. >> For more about the crew's activities and station sighting >> opportunities, visit: >> >> http://www.nasa.gov/station >> The next station status report will be issued on Thursday, Oct. 26, >> after the ISS Progress 23 docking, or earlier if events warrant. >> >> >> -end- >> >> >> >

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