International Space Station Status Report: SS07-32
NASA
John Yembrick
Headquarters, Washington
202-358-0602
John Ira Petty
Johnson Space Center, Houston
281-483-5111
HOUSTON -- After the
departure of the space shuttle Atlantis, Expedition 15 Commander Fyodor
Yurchikhin and Flight Engineer Oleg Kotov returned to their daily
operations aboard the International Space Station this week, while newly
arrived Flight Engineer Clay Anderson began conducting scientific
experiments.
Atlantis landed in California June 22 after delivering a new starboard
truss segment and a set of solar arrays to the station. Returning on the
shuttle was Sunita Williams, who lived and worked aboard the orbiting
complex for six months. Anderson succeeded Williams on the station and
arrived with the Atlantis crew on June 10.
Anderson performed his first Saturday Science activity on June 23, showing
younger television viewers how Newton's laws apply to sports activities,
even in the microgravity of space.
On Monday, Anderson began work with a nutrition experiment. He collected
blood and urine samples and began logging all of the food and drinks he
consumed. The experiment tracks many vitamins and minerals essential for
good health. It is the most comprehensive in-flight study to date of human
physiological changes during long-duration spaceflight. Also, Anderson and
Kotov did a medical emergency exercise, and Yurchikhin replaced one of
three transmitters on the Russian Regul communications system.
The crew inspected the lights and power systems and performed a routine
examination of the windows on the Russian Zvezda service module on
Tuesday.
Wednesday was filled with science. Each crew member completed medical
tests and periodic fitness evaluations, and worked with a variety of
Russian experiments. Kotov spent about two hours using a multimeter to do
resistance checks on the computer system in the Zvezda service module. The
two major computer systems there continue to function well, with two of
three "lanes," or data paths, of each system operating.
Anderson wore an acoustic dosimeter on Thursday to check station noise
levels. He also worked with the Microgravity Science Glovebox in an
unsuccessful effort to complete a leak check. Troubleshooting continues.
Yurchikhin and Kotov spent more than two hours with the Russian
Profilaktika experiment, which looks at measures to counteract the
long-term effects of microgravity. Yurchikhin also worked with the
Matryoshka radiation detection experiment and Kotov inventoried medical
equipment inventory.
On Friday, Anderson did a routine cleaning of spacesuit cooling loops.
Yurchikhin and Kotov worked in the Russian segment, replacing current
converter units in the Zarya module
- June 29, 2007