Posted on by Ian O'Neill

Columbus Module Attached to ISS after Eight Hour Spacewalk

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The ESA Columbus module is now attached to the Harmony module on the International Space Station after a successful spacewalk by Space Shuttle Atlantis crew members Stan Love and Rex Walheim. Although Columbus installation was postponed for a day, today’s (Monday) spacewalk was completed in 7-hours and 58-minutes, concluding at 5:11pm EST.

The European Columbus space laboratory has been successfully attached to the Harmony module on the International Space Station. Although the mission took longer than expected, almost eight hours, the spacewalk appears to be a resounding success. Sunday’s planned effort to unpack and attach the module had to be postponed due to an undisclosed medical problem with German astronaut Hans Schlegel. Americans Stan Love and Rex Walheim took over today, probably much to the frustration of Schlegel who had to watch events from inside the station. The medical problem is said not to be serious.

Walheim: “Welcome to spacewalking, buddy.”
Love: “It’s awesome.”
– Communication between the two astronauts as Stan Love embarked on his first ever EVA on Monday.

It’s not all bad news for Schlegel, he is expected to assist in a spacewalk on Wednesday to continue the installation.

An animation still of the Columbus being unpacked from the shuttle (Credit: BBC)
In today’s successful docking of Columbus, the first task was to prepare the Power Data Grapple Fixture on the module so the ISS could capture it with its robotic arm. The arm was operated today by astronaut Leland Melvin, former wide receiver in the US National Football League, and the 12.8 ton module steered to its new home as an extension of the space station. In addition to this, the astronauts prepared for the removal of the Nitrogen Tank Assembly (NTA), a component in the station’s thermal control system. The next spacewalk on Wednesday will install a new assembly after removing the old one. This task had to be carried out as the existing NTA was running low of nitrogen.

Source: BBC

Posted on by Ian O'Neill

Video of Space Shuttle Atlantis (STS-122) Pitch Maneuver Prior to ISS Docking

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In a superb video released by NASA, the Space Shuttle Atlantis’ 360 degree pitch maneuver is captured prior to docking with the International Space Station (ISS) on Saturday. Atlantis’ mission to the station is to deliver and install the European Space Agency’s (ESA) Columbus science laboratory to the station tomorrow (Monday) despite the first spacewalk being postponed due to an undisclosed medical problem with one of the STS-122 astronauts, Hans Schlegel.

The Russian-built Zvezda module where the recent shuttle pitch maneuver was filmed from (Credit: NASA)
It is always amazing to witness the Space Shuttle in Earth orbit, especially when carrying out docking maneuvers or maintenance tasks. With the help of the crew on-board the ISS in the Russian Zvezda service module (pictured), Space Shuttle Atlantis’ rendezvous pitch maneuver (RPM) is videoed before the shuttle began its final approach to the station yesterday (Saturday). The maneuver, where Atlantis performs a “backflip” at a rate of three quarters of a degree per second, exposes the shuttle’s heat shielding on its underside. The ISS crew could then take a series of high-definition photographs to see if there was any damage to the protective layer.

A small protrusion to Shuttle Atlantis thermal blanket (Credit: NASA)
A small protrusion of Atlantis’ thermal blanket was discovered on Friday (8th Feb.) during a standard arm checkout and payload bay survey (pictured), but it is not believed to be a problem after the more detailed survey from the RPM.

Space Shuttle Atlantis finally made it into space after a series of delays. It was launched on Thursday (7th Feb.), and you can see the launch in another NASA video (from lift-off to booster rocket separation). Always exciting to watch…

The new Columbus module will be prepared for installation at 9:35am on Monday by Mission Specialists Rex Walheim and Stanley Love during a space walk. Their first task will be the installation of the Power Data Grapple Fixture on the new module, allowing the ISS robotic arm to grab the laboratory and position it at the station’s Harmony module. We will be watching the events as they unfold…

Sources: BBC, NASA

Posted on by Nancy Atkinson

Medical Problem Delays Spacewalk

A medical issue with a member of the space shuttle crew has forced a change in personnel for the first scheduled spacewalk of the STS-122 shuttle mission to the International Space Station. The switch has also mandated that the spacewalk be delayed one day to Monday. NASA officials would not say which astronaut was experiencing any medical problems, but did confirm that Stan Love has replaced Hans Schlegel for the initial spacewalk.

“There was a medical issue with the crew,” said John Shannon, deputy shuttle program manager. “The flight surgeons do private medical conferences with the crew throughout the mission. The crew called down and asked for one during the rendezvous, which was a little bit of a surprise to us. They talked to the crew members, they understood what the issue was. I will just say it is not going to impact any of the objectives of this mission.”

In video shown on NASA TV, Schlegel showed no noticeable illness as the shuttle crew come on board the ISS after shuttle docking. Reports on news wires suggested that Schlegel lost his voice, but that claim was not corroborated by Shannon.

Communication during the spacewalk would be critical. Schlegel appeared to talk with the ISS crew as he entered the station, and floated easily through the Harmony node. About half of all people who fly in space experience Space Adaptation Syndrome, which include symptoms such as nausea, dizziness and headaches. But citing medical privacy policies, Shannon refused to answer any questions about the nature of the medical issue, or whether Schlegel would be available for the second spacewalk of the mission, now slated for Wednesday.

“You guys can fish all day, but I won’t bite,” Shannon said.

The spacewalk will help install the new Columbus science module, brought up in Atlantis’ payload bay. Installation of the module is the primary goal of this mission.

The shuttle docked at 12:17 pm EST on Saturday. As the shuttle approached the station, the ISS crew took photos of the shuttle to check for any damage to Atlantis. They were asked to take special note of a small tear in the insulation blanket of the Orbital Maneuvering System rocket pod along the tail of the shuttle. Shannon said the tear is probably not critical, but that it’s being looked at.

“Nobody is very excited about this one,” he said. “I don’t expect this to be an issue but the team will continue to work it.”

The insulation blankets on the OMS pods experience temperatures around 700 to 1,000 degrees Fahrenheit during peak heating of re-entry. A similar tear on an earlier shuttle flight was repaired by a spacewalking astronaut using surgical staples. Three spacewalks are planned during Atlantis’ current mission and a staple gun is on board if needed.

On a final note, for any Prairie Home Companion fans out there, the shuttle crew wake-up call on Saturday morning was the Powdermilk Biscuit song.

Original News Source: NASA TV

Posted on by Nancy Atkinson

STS-122 Space Shuttle Mission Rockets to Space

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Defying a bleak weather forecast, space shuttle Atlantis rocketed into space on Thursday, February 7, on its way to the International Space Station with a new science laboratory. The STS-122 mission had been delayed by a faulty fuel sensor, and was originally scheduled to launch last December. But today there were no problems with the sensor during fueling and the shuttle lifted off flawlessly at 2:45 p.m. EST. On board is a seven member crew and the European Space Agency’s $1.9 billion Columbus science module, Europe’s main contribution to the ISS. Atlantis will rendezvous with the station on Saturday, Feb. 9. The launch came seven years to the day after Atlantis carried NASA’ science laboratory named Destiny to the space station.

“It was a pretty clean launch,” astronaut Jim Dutton radioed the shuttle crew from mission control following the launch. “We did see, at about MET 2:13 (two minutes and 13 seconds after launch) a few piece of debris, they think at least three, that came off inboard of the LO2 (liquid oxygen) feedline just aft of the starboard bipod leg. The debris assessment team indicated they didn’t identify an impact at the time and it’s obviously under evaluation.”

The crew of Atlantis will now check out its systems and inspect the heat shield while chasing down the space station. There will be three spacewalks during the flight so astronauts can attach the Columbus lab and connect its power and fluid lines.

Atlantis’ liftoff came despite concerns that a weather front would interfere with the launch. But the weather cooperated for an on-time launch.

Installing Columbus, named after the 15th-century Italian explorer, is the main task for the 121st space shuttle mission.

“Columbus has discovered a new world, and I think that with Columbus we are discovering a totally new world,” Jean Jacques Dordain, ESA’s director general, said after the launch.

Atlantis’ seven-member crew includes two Europeans, Germany’s Hans Schlegel and France’s Leopold Eyharts. US astronauts are Commander Steven Frick, pilot Alan Poindexter, and mission specialists Leland Melvin, Rex Walheim, and Stanley Love.

“It’s great to have two laboratories in space,” said Bill Gerstenmaier, NASA’s associate administrator for space operations.

The mission is scheduled to last 11 days.

Original News Source: NASA Press Release

Posted on by Fraser Cain

Terrible Weather Will Probably Delay Atlantis Launch

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People in the southeast United States are cleaning up from a powerful weather front that unleashed a series of devastating tornadoes across the landscape. At least 48 people are dead, and hundreds more are injured. And as you can probably guess, this weather could have an impact on tomorrow’s launch of the space shuttle Atlantis.

NASA’s shuttle launch weather officer, Kathy Winters said today that, “the storm prediction center is forecasting a five percent chance of severe weather in the central Florida area tomorrow. I think we could see isolated thunderstorms in the area.”

This is the same weather system that spawned all those tornadoes. In fact, tornado watches are still in effect in various parts of the southeast, including the western Florida panhandle; relatively nearby Cape Canaveral.

Not that tornadoes are expected to savage the launch facility. Still, managers are anticipating a 70% chance that heavy rains will prevent the shuttle from blasting off. Rain is a problem because it can damage the shuttle’s thermal protection system during its high-speed launch.

Although the weather is still a worry, there are no technical reasons remaining that could hold up Atlantis‘ launch. The issue with the malfunctioning fuel gauges has been resolved, and managers aren’t worried about a bent coolant hose that supplies Freon to keep the shuttle cool when it’s in space.

So, the expected launch date is still Thursday at 2:45 p.m. EST. And if that window closes, they’ll aim for a 2:19 p.m. EST launch on Friday.

Original Source: NASA Status Report

Posted on by Fraser Cain

Atlantis Will Fly, Despite Bent Hose

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On Wednesday I reported that NASA was looking into a bent coolant hose on the space shuttle Atlantis. They weren’t sure if this might cause a potential launch delay while it was repaired. Shuttle managers met over the weekend, and decided that it wasn’t enough of a problem to delay the launch.

The problem is with one of the shuttle’s four braided hoses that carry the coolant needed to dissipate heat generated while in space. During a routine inspection, workers noticed that this hose had a bit of a kink in it.

The worry is that the hose could be bent further, or even snapped when the shuttle’s payload bays are closed up Sunday night to prepare for next week’s launch. In order to prevent a problem, a worker will use a long pole with a hook to guide the hose into its retraction box with the bays are closed up. Assuming that goes as planned, the shuttle’s launch won’t be delayed.

And even if the hose does break while the shuttle’s in orbit, it’s not a huge problem, according to NASA. There are a total of 4 of these hoses on Atlantis, and it can get by with the remaining ones.

With that worry out of the way, Atlantis is still scheduled for its Thursday launch from Florida’s Cape Canaveral. The shuttle is carrying Europe’s main contribution to the International Space Station: the Columbus science lab. During their time in space, the astronauts will perform three spacewalks to install the laboratory and perform some experiments.

The astronaut crew arrived in Florida today, and the countdown is expected to begin later Monday afternoon. The weather might be a problem, however. Meteorologists are predicting that there’s only a 40% chance of suitable weather on launch day. Friday should be better, though. Even if rain and clouds hold back the launch, there’s an 80% chance the shuttle will be able to lift off at the end of the week.

NASA has already canceled two launch attempts back in December because of problems with the shuttle’s fuel tank sensors. With an already crowded launch schedule, this additional delay pushes back the rest of the shuttle launches.

Original Source: NASA Status Report

Posted on by Fraser Cain

NASA Announces the Next Shuttle Launch Attempt: February 7, 2008

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After more than a month’s delays, the space shuttle Atlantis is finally ready to head back into space. NASA managers announced that they’ve targeted the shuttle for launch on February 7th, 2008 at 2:45 p.m. EST.

There’s one last little problem, though. Engineers inspecting the shuttle on Tuesday noticed a bent hose in its radiator cooling system. The hose runs from the shuttle body to the radiator panels on the cargo bay doors. It carries Freon to keep the shuttle’s systems cool in space.

So the question is: will the bend be a problem?

“Right now, that hose is perfectly functional,” Space Shuttle Program Manager Wayne Hale said. “Since the hose is not leaking now and the sister hose on Discovery didn’t leak on a number of flights, I’m feeling very positive we’ll come to a good conclusion. But we have to do our work here, the engineers have to do their work and we want to make sure we know what we’re doing before we go fly this vehicle.”

Even though it’s got this bent hose, the shuttle managers feel confident enough to launch Atlantis anyway. But they’re planning to meet again on Saturday to evaluate their testing, and think of any other problems that could happen.

Original Source: NASA Shuttle Status Report

Posted on by Nancy Atkinson

Shuttle Launch Date Still Uncertain

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NASA officials are hoping that the repairs to space shuttle Atlantis’ fuel sensor system will be completed in time for a January 24 launch date for the STS-122 mission to the International Space Station. But in a January 3rd press briefing, John Shannon, deputy manager of the shuttle program told reporters that a February 2nd or 7th launch date is more probable given the testing and the work required.

“There’s no way we’re going to be earlier than Jan. 24,” Shannon said. “I would say it is a stretch to think we would make the 24th, that would require the weather to cooperate out at the Kennedy Space Center, it would require no hitches in any of the testing.”

A suspect connector in the engine cutoff (ECO) fuel sensor system was removed from the shuttle’s external tank and is being tested at the Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Ala. If the tests there don’t replicate the false readings that occurred during two launch attempts in early December, another on-pad fueling test might be required to collect additional data. If so, the launch could be delayed to Feb. 2 at the earliest.

A fueling test performed on December 18 isolated the problem to the 1 1/2-by-3 inch connector called a pass-through connector, located both inside and outside the tank. The wires for all four ECO sensors pass through the same connector. From the data of that test, engineers believe the problem lies in gaps between pins and sockets on the external side of the pass-through connector when the system is chilled to cryogenic temperatures, as when the tank is filled with liquid hydrogen and oxygen.

“It’s a difficult problem,” Shannon said. “I’m not making excuses here, but at liquid hydrogen temperatures is the only time it shows up so you have to set up a test that uses liquid hydrogen. We’re very interested. This is the first time we’ve removed the hardware from a vehicle and had the opportunity to test it without disturbing it before hand. So it will be interesting to find out.”

Engineers are now working on installing new connectors to the tank.

“All of those changes, it’s fairly simple, it’s a fairly elegant change and we feel very confident that if the problem is where we think it is, between the external connector and the feed through, that this will solve that,” Shannon said. “Now, if you look at the schedule, we’re going to have new external connectors and feed-through assemblies at KSC this weekend and we’re going to proceed with installing that on external tank Number 125, which is the one Atlantis is currently mated to. We expect that work to be done by next Thursday.”

“But I asked the team to go ahead and protect that date (Jan. 24) as the earliest date that we could possibly go,” Shannon continued. “I think it is much more likely that we’ll be ready to go somewhere in the February 2 to February 7 timeframe, given we don’t have any additional findings as we go through our testing.”

Another timing issue to deal with is the scheduled Feb. 7 launch of a Russian Progress supply ship to the ISS. Joint U.S.-Russian space station flight rules don’t allow a Progress docking during a shuttle visit. If the Russians won’t change their launch date, Atlantis would have to take off by Jan. 27 or the flight would slip to sometime around Feb. 9 in order to get the Progress docked before the shuttle arrives.

Also, NASA originally planned to launch the shuttle Endeavour on the next mission to the ISS on Feb. 14. But the Atlantis delay will force a subsequent delay for Endeavour. Shannon said that NASA typically needs five weeks between launches to get ready for the next flight.

Original News Source: NASA News Audio

Posted on by Nancy Atkinson

STS-122 Shuttle Launch Decision on Tap

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NASA engineers continue to repair a faulty electrical connector on Space Shuttle Atlantis’ external fuel tank which has delayed the launch of the STS-122 mission to the International Space Station. An update of the progress on that work will be presented at a mission management team meeting scheduled for Thursday, January 3 and mission managers will perhaps then be prepared to announce a proposed launch date for Atlantis.

The repairs could take several days or even weeks. At a press briefing last week, shuttle program manager Wayne Hale declined to offer a probable launch date. “We’re in the middle of troubleshooting and repair,” he said. “Until that gets a little bit further along, I actually have no valid dates to give you. To avoid what I think would be a totally misleading headline along the lines of ‘NASA Delays the Space Shuttle Again,’ we’re just not going to give you a launch date because that, in fact, would not be accurate.”

The engine cutoff (ECO) fuel sensor system transmitted false readings during two launch countdowns for Atlantis earlier in December. A fueling test performed on December 18 isolated the problem to a 1 ½ -by 3 inch connector called a pass-through connector, located both inside and outside the tank. The wires for all four ECO sensors pass through the same connector. From the data of that test, engineers believe the problem lies in gaps between pins and sockets on the external side of the pass-through connector when the system is chilled to cryogenic temperatures, as when the tank is filled with liquid hydrogen and oxygen.

Engineers have removed the connector and are bench-testing the components in similar cryogenic conditions to try to duplicate the failure. Meanwhile, new hardware is being installed on the tank as the shuttle sits on launchpad 39A at the Kennedy Space Center.

“We have allowed the team that did the troubleshooting to very thoroughly go through all the data,” said Hale. “They have told us they are sure the problems that we’re seeing reside in that series of connectors. Where exactly in that series of connectors is a little bit open to interpretation.”

The connectors on the inside of the tank are being visually inspected. “It is a possibility that the internal connector is involved,” Hale said. “However, all the physics based discussion of the kinds of things that can happen point to something happening on the external connector.”

Problems with the internal connector would involve “more invasive” work, Hale said, that could possibly damage the tank.

A similar repair was done to the Atlas rockets several years ago to fix problems with circuitry in the Centaur stage. ECO sensors protect the shuttle’s main engines by triggering engine shut down if fuel runs unexpectedly low. The Space shuttle main engines running without fuel would likely result in an explosion.

The STS-112 mission will deliver the European Space Agency’s Columbus science module to the station along with a new crew member Leopold Eyharts from France who will take over for Dan Tani. Tani, whose mother was killed in a car accident on December 19, will return to Earth on Atlantis.

“These repairs and troubleshooting activities will determine when we will launch” said Hale. “The plan to go forward will take as long as it takes, but we don’t think this will be a long-term thing. Probably something that will take a couple of weeks.”

Posted on by Nancy Atkinson

Shuttle Launch Delayed Until January 2

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Space shuttle Atlantis’ STS-122 mission to the International Space Station has been further delayed and now is targeted to launch no earlier than Jan. 2. The liftoff date hinges on the resolution of a repeat failure of the shuttle’s fuel sensor system. NASA has not yet made a final decision if repairs to the system will be done on the launch pad or if Atlantis will need to be rolled back to the Vehicle Assembly Building where the external tank can be removed.

“It would depend on what we find…but we have a lot of options in front of us,� said NASA’s Mission Management Team chairman LeRoy Cain at Sunday morning press briefing. Cain added that if they do decide to roll back, that probably would not support a January 2 launch. However, STS-122 Launch Director Doug Lyons said he couldn’t envision a scenario that would necessitate a rollback. “We have almost limitless access (to the tank) and there are not many things we can’t do on the launch pad that we could do at the VAB.�

Early Sunday, one of the four engine cutoff (ECO) sensors inside the liquid hydrogen section of Atlantis’ external fuel tank gave a false reading while the tank was being filled. NASA’s new and updated Launch Commit Criteria require that all four sensors function properly. Following Friday’s launch scrub, the MMT decided to shorten the launch window to one minute in an effort to work around the sensor problem. Upon launch, this would send the shuttle on a direct trajectory to the space station, and would save fuel. Fuel depletion is what drives the need for the ECO sensors which protect the shuttle’s main engines by triggering engine shut down if fuel runs unexpectedly low. But the MMT also added the criteria that a failure of any of the four sensors would prompt a launch scrub.

Previously, the criteria required that three of the four sensors had to function properly. Atlantis’ scheduled launch on Thursday, Dec. 6, was delayed after two liquid hydrogen ECO sensors gave false readings. A third sensor gave a false reading while the tank was being emptied.

Meanwhile, ISS flight controllers informed space station commander Peggy Whitson that she and crewmate Dan Tani likely will be asked to carry out a spacewalk later this month to inspect a problematic solar array rotary joint on the right side of the lab’s main power truss. If the launch of STS-122 had gone as planned, a team of shuttle astronauts would have conducted the inspection.
The crew of STS-122 will come out of quarantine and return to Houston.

The main objective of Atlantis’ mission is to deliver, install and activate the European Space Agency’s Columbus laboratory, which will provide scientists around the world the ability to conduct a variety of life, physical and materials science experiments.

Following STS-122, the next two flights on the shuttle manifest for space station construction are scheduled for launch in mid February and late April. The next flight after that is an August mission to service the Hubble Space Telescope. Bill Gerstenmaier, Associate Administrator of spaceflight operations at NASA said that this delay shouldn’t affect NASA’s ability to complete station construction before the shuttle is scheduled to be retired in 2010. “This doesn’t impact the overall manifest. With the remaining time we can accomplish all the flights,� Gerstenmaier said.

Original News Source: NASA TV