Tag: ISS
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Progress M-05M replenishes ISS – NTA back to full working order
Following its launch on a Russian Soyuz-U launch vehicle from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan on Thursday, the resupply ship Progress M-05M has docked with the International Space Station (ISS) on Saturday. The orbital outpost also received a boost on Friday, when a valve on a Nitrogen Tank Assembly (NTA) – associated with the recently…
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Discovery docks with ISS following successful Ku Band workaround
Discovery and her seven member crew have arrived at the International Space Station (ISS) following a visually stunning R-bar Pitch Maneuver (RPM) 600 feet below the orbiting science laboratory. Following pressurization and leak checks of the ISS’s PMA-2 (Pressurized Mating Adaptor-2) and Discovery’s ODS (Orbiter Docking System), hatches between Discovery and the ISS will be…
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LIVE: Soyuz TMA-18 launches towards an over-stowed ISS
NASA astronaut Tracy Caldwell Dyson and Russian cosmonauts Alexander Skvortsov and Mikhail Kornienko have launched on their Soyuz TMA-18 vehicle at 10:04 am local time from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan. The trio will arrive at the International Space Station (ISS) a day before STS-131 launches, with Discovery providing a vast amount of supplies, and also her unique…
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SpaceX announce successful activation of Dragon’s CUCU onboard ISS
Following its arrival onboard shuttle Atlantis during STS-129, the CRS UHF Communication Unit (CUCU) – a key element for the upcoming demonstration of SpaceX’s Dragon capsule – has passed a series of tests on the International Space Station (ISS), allowing the commercial company to confirm its successful activation. Atlantis and ISS aid Dragon’s future: The…
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NASA continues evaluations for ISS Dual Docked Operations
Following initially positive opening investigations into the possibility of allowing a Space Shuttle orbiter to be present (i.e. docked) to the International Space Station (ISS) during Russian Progress and/or Soyuz dockings and undockings, Space Shuttle Program and ISS Program officials have decided that more investigation and information is necessary before allowing this scenario to unfold.…
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Progress M-04M launches to cost-cutting ISS – STS-135 addition removed
With the International Space Station (ISS) extended to at least 2020, its upmass and downmass lifelines have received a blow – following the decision to remove the possibility of using the Launch On Need (LON) vehicle, Atlantis, for supporting STS-133 as an additional logistics flight (STS-135). Meanwhile, nearly 2,600 kg are enroute to the Station,…
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Tiger Team positive of hose solution options to keep STS-130 on track
Managers have been evaluating options for STS-130’s launch and mission duration, following the test failures of ammonia lines that are related to Endeavour’s Node 3 payload. While options to keep Node 3 alive without the installation of the troublesome lines appear positive, the Tiger Team have a potential solution for beefing up the lines, or…
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STS-130 may be postponed as Node 3 problem threatens mission swap
International Space Station (ISS) managers are conducting a series of meetings to discuss problems relating to Node 3’s associated ammonia lines, which have suffered from rupturing during proof testing. Options available to managers range from reducing STS-130 to a shortened, single EVA, mission, to potentially postponing the flight via swapping the order of the 2010…
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Soyuz TMA-17 arrives as ISS and SSP evaluate Dual-Docked Ops scenarios
International Space Station Program (ISSP) and Space Shuttle Program (SSP) engineers have updated NASA on the safety issues pertaining to Dual-Docked Operations (DDO) between the Space Shuttle and various Russian visiting vehicles making use of the numerous Russian docking ports. Meanwhile, the three man crew of Soyuz TMA-17 have docked with the Station. Soyuz TMA-17…
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STS-129: Atlantis ready to bring crew – and hardware – back home
STS-129 is spending its last full day on the International Space Station, ahead of Wednesday’s undocking. Flight Day 9 is focusing on transferring the remaining items on the manifests, including the Distilliation Assembly (DA) from the broken Urine Processing Assembly (UPA) – a task that required a large amount of debate, to ensure the large…