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\u201cOrbiter: OV-104 \/ ET-133 \/ SRB BI-140 \/ RSRM 108 (Pad A) The team continues to work toward a target launch date for STS-129 of 11\/16. APU (Auxiliary Power Unit) fuel load was successfully performed on Friday, completing S0024 Hyper Load operations,\u201d noted the NASA Test Director on Monday processing information (L2).<\/p>\n
\u201cIPR (Interim Problem Report) (IDP 1 MIA word errors) update: DPS will perform a memory dump of IDP 1 today (Monday) was part of the troubleshooting for the word errors experienced last Friday.\u201d<\/p>\n
With processing proceeding to plan, engineers are pressing ahead with the start of orbiter closeouts, in tandem with retests on the recently replaced PV11 Fill and Drain Valve actuator on Atlantis.<\/p>\n
\u201cCall to Stations for S1287 orbiter aft closeouts will be performed today. Closeout activities will run all week,\u201d added the processing update. \u201cMPS (Main Propulsion System) PV11 actuator retest will be performed today.\u201d<\/p>\n
Rocket launch schedules
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STS-129: Minicam:<\/p>\n
Foam loss events from the ET have been dramatically reduced since Return To Flight, mainly via a progressive effort to remove of foam from the most likely areas to liberate during ascent.<\/p>\n
![\"J2\"](\"https:\/\/www.nasaspaceflight.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2009\/10\/J2.jpg\" "\\"J2\\"")
The LH2 ramps \u2013 located mainly on the midsection of the tank \u2013 were the main area of interest to engineers, following a number of liberation events during a number of flights. However, the removal of a large area of the foam mass from those ramps via continuous modifications has greatly reduced the threat of impacts to the orbiter.<\/p>\nThe LO2 ramps \u2013 located on the upper part of the tank \u2013 became an area of added interest during the foam liberation events of STS-127, when one of the LO2 ramps liberated a relatively large area of foam during ascent. Liberation events from the LO2 ramps are less frequent than the LH2 \u2013 with STS-120 being the other other recent liberation event.<\/p>\n
\u201cSTS-127-I-004 \u2013 ET TPS Loss at LO2 Ice Frost Ramp (IFR) 718. Foam loss at IFR 718 exceeds risk baseline,\u201d noted the integrated IFA presentation for STS-127 on the first area of foam loss placed under focus.<\/p>\n
\u201cAssociated Hazard Reports: IDBR-01 \u2013 Ascent debris impact to SSV (Space Shuttle Vehicle). Cause I \u2013 External Debris Impact to the SSV During Ascent. Due to ET Foam (PDL-1034\/NCFI-26-007\/BX-265 type of foam).<\/p>\n
\u201cLocated at the LO2 Tank Ice\/Frost Ramps and BX-265\/BX-250\/PDL-1034\/NCFI-26-007 (type of foam) located on the LO2 Feedline Bellows PDL Drip Lip.\u201d<\/p>\n
A full outline of STS-127\u2019s foam loss events \u2013 and opening mitigation efforts ahead of STS-128 \u2013 can be read here.<\/p>\n
![\"J7\"](\"https:\/\/www.nasaspaceflight.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2009\/10\/J7.jpg\" "\\"J7\\"")
To add confidence the foam loss was a rare event, checks \u2013 including X-rays \u2013 were carried out on Discovery\u2019s ET-132 ramps ahead of STS-128, in order to ensure the foam has no underlying problem.<\/p>\n\u201cLO2 Ice Frost Ramp Loss: Additional NDE (Non Destructive Evaluation) options for ET-132 at KSC included X-ray and THz, (Good Results)\u201d added the ET-127 IFA presentational to the PRCB (Program Requirements Control Board), noting good news on the health of ET-132\u2019s ramps \u2013 and further mitigation on the downstream tanks in New Orleans.<\/p>\n
As per usual, the engineers were proven correct, with ET-132 enjoying a flawless ride to orbit, with no foam losses of any note \u2013 leading to some comments ET-132 was the cleanest tank ever to fly with the shuttle.<\/p>\n
However, NASA engineers still want to gain additional data on how the ramps behave during ascent, leading to the approval of a special camera, which will \u2013 for the first time \u2013 film the ramps during ascent from the point of view of the pilot\u2019s window.<\/p>\n
Normally, the view for the pilot out of the forward facing window 4 is obstructed by checklists and handbooks, as the crew concentrate on monitoring the vehicle mainly via instrumentation during the powered flight stage of ascent.<\/p>\n
The new minicam will have one role, that of filming the view facing out of the window, capturing the front of the tank that protrudes into the view past the orbiter\u2019s nose.<\/p>\n
\u201cSE&I (Systems Engineering and Integration) requested Orbiter explore camera locations to observe potential ET LOX Ice Frost Ramp debris,\u201d noted one of 24 SSP FRR presentations available on L2. \u201cMinicam installation near Window 4 provides field of view that includes top of ET (IFR 676 through 514 appear to be in view).\u201d<\/p>\n
![\"A3\"](\"https:\/\/www.nasaspaceflight.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2009\/10\/A316.jpg\" "\\"A3\\"")
Minicams regularly fly with the orbiters, including fixed camera facing both aft and forward of the crew cabin to capture the performance of the astronauts during the ride to orbit.<\/p>\nA handheld mincam is also used to film re-entry from the crew\u2019s perspective \u2013 as seen on numerous two hour long videos obtained by L2 (free edited samples can be downloaded from an Atlantis re-entry \u2013 and an Endeavour re-entry).<\/p>\n
The potential use of a minicam was first suggested ahead of STS-128, but too late to approve in time for installation on Discovery\u2019s flight deck.<\/p>\n
\u201cRecent photos have been taken of the view seen of the ET from the pilot\u2019s seat through window 4,\u201d noted a memo outlining the plan back in August. \u201cThe photographs were taken in order to see the best location (best view of the tank as well as not interfering with the Pilot\u2019s view) that a minicam could be mounted on the flight deck to monitor foam loss on the upper part of the tank during ascent.<\/p>\n
\u201cFurther research and discussion will need to be completed before making a decision on the location.\u201d<\/p>\n
![\"A2\"](\"https:\/\/www.nasaspaceflight.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2009\/10\/A219.jpg\" "\\"A2\\"")
That research is now complete \u2013 mainly related to ensuring the minicam is safe to install \u2013 allowing for its debut on Atlantis for STS-129, with the subsequent video likely to be downloaded to the DAT (Damage Assessment Team) on Flight Day 2, adding yet more information on how the tank performed during powered flight.<\/p>\n\u201cNew location in front of Window 4 will follow standard installation method using bracket secured by Velcro, general purpose tape and tethers,\u201d added the Orbiter SSP FRR presentation.<\/p>\n
\u201cAdditional tethers will be used to assure no possible contact of the Minicam with Window 4 or the HUD should the Minicam come loose.<\/p>\n
\u201cVideo\/power cable will act as a tether should camera become released from the two integral bracket Velcro straps. Crew Compartment Configuration Drawing (CCCD) will be updated to include Kapton tape to assure bracket length adjusting screws remain captive.\u201d<\/p>\n
L2 members<\/em><\/em>: Documentation \u2013 from which the above article has quoted snippets \u2013 is available in full in the related L2 sections, now over 4000 gbs in size.<\/em><\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Last week\u2019s Space Shuttle Program (SSP) Flight Readiness Review (FRR) has approved the installation of a special minicam pointing out of window 4 on Atlantis\u2019 flight deck. The camera will film the forward portion of the External Tank (ET) during flight, in order to capture the behavior of the LO2 Ice Frost Ramps (IFRs) during […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"inline_featured_image":false,"footnotes":"","_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[9021,9199,7935],"class_list":["post-40955","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-news","tag-et","tag-sts-129","tag-tps"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/40955"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=40955"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/40955\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=40955"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=40955"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=40955"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}