Awesome Space Walk Photo

Here is a great photo taken at the end of the extra-vehicular activity spacewalk on Sunday. The photo is of  Endeavour's lead spacewalker Andrew Feustel entering the International Space Station (ISS) being outside for 8 hours and 7 minutes, the 6th longest spacewalk in history.

Credit: NASA (photo) | Discover Channel (story)

Second Spacewalk Aborted - Third Being Considered For ISS Crew

The second of two space walks planned to replace a faulty cooling pump had to be called after astronauts Douglas Wheelock and Tracy Caldwell Dyson could not get one of the four pressurized ammonia hoses to come off the disabled pump. The crew struggled to get the forth hose loose but had to reconnect it as "A fair amount of ammonia leaked out, forcing them to set aside time to get any traces of the toxic substance off their spacesuits."

Wheelock and Caldwell Dyson where forced to go back to the air lock, to inspect their suits and equipment for ammonia crystals. While none was found, the precautions where necessary, extending the spacewalk to eight hours and three minutes which NASA confirmed was the sixth-longest spacewalk ever.

A third spacewalk is being considered.

Source: CBC

NASA Weighing Options Regarding Space Station Equipment Failure

According to the NASA website Teams in Mission Control in Houston are weighing the options with regards to a cooling loop that has had a mechanical failure and space walks are being considered. The loop that was shut down, and since been unable to restart, is one of two cooling loops and the problem seems to be associated with a pump that circulates ammonia. The failed loop is said not to have placed the crew in danger "The space station crew is in no danger and all systems are stable, though operating in a "single string" mode without redundancy. " 

Thankfully there are two spare pump modules aboard but they are located on the outside of the IIS and thus the potential for a spacewalk to retrieve the parts. 

NASA says "Two of the four main buss switching units are cooled by the failed loop. The units switch and route power to various station systems. Mission Control is evaluating whether the heat generation may be low enough to not require powering off these switching units. With the loss of the cooling loop, several systems have been shut down, including one of two S-band communication circuits, one Global Positioning System circuit, several DC to DC current converters in Tranquility and a set of components that route commands to station equipment. Though two of the four station Control Moment Gyroscopes initially were turned off, the crew installed a jumper cable to regain a third gyro. The gyroscopes maintain the station's attitude in space."

As someone who works in the IT field, I feel much safer when the redundant systems are in place. This is however precisely why you build redundancy into systems and I'm sure NASA is considering all of the potential dangers and making their decision accordingly.

Cirque du Soleil Founder First Clown In Space

Cirque du Soleil founder Guy Laliberte along with crew members American astronaut Jeffrey Williams and Russian cosmonaut Maxim Surayev successfully reached orbit yesterday en-route to the International Space Station. The space tourist and crew of the Russian made Soyuz TMA-16 craft are expected to rendezvous with the ISS on Friday.

"Laliberte, an experienced stilt-walker and fire-breather dubbed the first clown in space, had donned a bulbous red nose and blew kisses to supporters before the launch. He has paid $35 million for the trip he plans to use to publicize the world's growing shortage of clean water."

Source: The Discovery Channel / AP

Space Junk Explained

With the recent near miss, within a mile, of the International Space Station (ISS) by a large piece of space junk I decided to do a little searching regarding how much junk is out there and how dangerous it is to orbiting craft. The Science Channel produced a short video of the subject that does a good job of explaining. Check it out here: http://science.discovery.com/videos/spaced-out-space-junk.html

NASA Tracks Bungalow Sized Space Junk Approaching ISS

NASA does not believe that a 19 square metre piece of a European Ariane 5 rocket, debris from a three year old mission, will not cause the International Space Station and space shuttle Discovery to make evasive maneuvers.

The shuttle is docked with the space station and together are currently circling the Earth at a height of 354 kilometres. The debris is easily tracked because of its size and is expected to get within three kilometres from the station, 8 kilometres closer than previously estimated. If a maneuver is required, a decision will be made during the last hour of a space walk planned for today.

Source: CBC

Shuttle Discovery Touches Down

The crew of the space shuttle Discovery had an extended mission by about 90 minutes when it's first entry window was waved off by Mission Control because of cloudy and windy conditions in Florida. The missions main goal was to install a final set of solar panels on the International Space Station which required 3 space walks. "We're very proud to have left the space station with more power, hopefully power that for many, many years will provide very useful research to your future payloads," mission commander Lee Archambault said before undocking from the station on Wednesday.

Source: CBC

Russian - US Satellites Collide

A pair of Russian and US satellites collided some 780 km (485 miles) above Siberia on Tuesday leaving a trail of debris. The Russian civilian space agency, Roscosmos, confirmed the collision of the defunct 950kg (2,094lb) satellite, which was said to have launched in 1993. "Spokesman Aleksandr Vorobyev was quoted as saying the satellite had "in all likelihood... belonged in the past to the military", and was therefore not the responsibility of Roscosmos." according to this BBC report. NASA is tracking hundreds of pieces of debris from the incident and says there is little chance of incident between this debris and the International Space Station or Shuttle flights. The ISS is in orbit 435 km below the debris and has the capability to maneuver away from space junk if necessary, it has done so on 8 occassions in it's 60,000 previous orbits.

NASA Asjusts Plans After Astronaut Loses Tool Bag

A briefcase-sized tool bag drifted away from astronaut Heidemarie Stefanyshyn-Piper on Tuesday during the first of four scheduled space walks to repair a joint used to position a solar panel towards the sun. Stefanyshyn-Piper and Stephen Bowen where about half way through their first day when the bag somehow became untethered and floated away. The bag contained a pair of grease guns, wipes and a putty knife and NASA is now considering having the two astronauts share tools from Bowen's bag in order to complete the repairs. "What it boils down to is all it takes is one small mistake for a tether not to be hooked up quite correctly or to slip off, and that's what happened here,"according to lead spacewalk officer John Ray. At least there's a back up, what a costly mistake it could have been if the repairs could not be completed. Just goes to show that regardless of how much you train and practice we are human afterall and stuff happens. Discovery Channel Story.

Space Station To Get Extreme Makeover

The Space Shuttle Endeavour docked with the International Space Station on Sunday afternoon bringing with it a second toilet, sleeping compartments, exercise equipment and a water regeneration system to support an extra 3 long term crew members. There are also 4 space walks planned for the Endeavour crew to work on the stations power system. The astronauts plan to clean a huge rotary joint needed to pivot solar panels to face the sun, the joint was shut down last year when it was found that it contained metal filings.

CBC Story.

Space Tourist Arrives At International Space Station

A 47-year-old computer game designer Richard Garriott, the son former NASA astronaut Owen Garriott, has arrived at the International Space Station after paying the $30m (£17m) fair for a 10-day trip to the ISS. "Mr Garriott will occupy some of his time taking photos to record how the Earth's surface has changed in the 35 years since his father's voyage." Garriot arrived at the ISS aboard the Soyuz TMA-13 spacecraft carrying a new crew for the ISS, American Mike Fincke and Russian Yuri Lonchakov. I can understand Garriott wanting to follow in his father's footsteps but is there really that much money in designing computer games? BBC Story.

NASA Rushes Parts To Shuttle For ISS Toilet Repairs

I guess jiggling the handle will not fix the problem, and when you are confined to the close quarters of the International Space Station(ISS) the last thing you want is a misbehaving toilet. The Russian made toilet has apparently been acting up for weeks and a pump within it had been bypassed by the crew aboard. NASA has sent an employee from Russia to Florida with a replacement 1½-foot-long pump and related hardware, packed in a diplomatic pouch and carried on board a commercial jetliner as carry on luggage. The parts will fly to the ISS on board the Shuttle Discovery, taking the place of some wrenches, a spare part for the station's oxygen generator, and a microbe-killing device used in the European space lab, as space aboard the shuttle is limited. "Clearly, having a working toilet is a priority for us, so some of these things that we didn't need for the next six months or so could wait," said payload manager Scott Higginbotham. Interestingly, not scrapped is a Disney action figure, Buzz Lightyear, who is going "to infinity and beyond" aboard Discovery as part of an educational program for math and science teachers and their students. CNN story here.

Russian Capsule Makes Off-Course Landing, Astronauts Shaken But Okay

South Korea's first space traveller Yi So-yeon, American astronaut Peggy Whitson and Russian flight engineer Yuri Malenchenko are reported to be in satisfactory condition after what NASA commentator John Ira Petty described as a "ballistic" re-entry. The three were subjected to severe G-force and the entry took them 420 kilometres off target in northern Kazakhstan. For Whitson the time she spent aboard the International Space Station, together with a previous stay, totals 377 days in space, more than any other U.S. spacefarer. You can find more from NASA here and the CBC here.

Jules Verne Hooks Up With Space Station

The European Space Agency's robotic space craft, the Jules Verne, made a near perfect docking with the International Space Station (ISS) on Thursday bringing tonnes of needed supplies. “The docking of the A.T.V. is a new and spectacular step in the demonstration of European capabilities on the international scene of space exploration,” said Jean-Jacques Dordain, director general of the European Space Agency. Besides fuel, oxygen, clothing, food, and equipment, the A.T.V. delivered two original manuscripts handwritten by the ships name sake and a 19th-century illustrated edition of his novel “From the Earth to the Moon,” which will be returned to Earth at a later date. New York Times article here.

Space Truck Practices Docking With Space Station

The European Space Agency's unmanned space freighter is practicing approaches and retreats in preparation for docking with the International Space Station on Thursday. The ATV is carrying nearly five tonnes of supplies for the ISS astronauts, and flies under the control of autonomous computers. "We've had the usual small anomalies; we're learning how to fly the bird - but nothing that has been really difficult," said John Ellwood from the European Space Agency. The BBC has more on the story here, along with an interesting Google Maps mashup that allows you to track the flights of both the ATV and the ISS... cool!

Dextre Has Shoulder Problems

The $200 million robot, Dextre, developed by the Canadian Space Agency has experiencing a problem with one of it's shoulder joints since being moved in preparation for a Thursday night spacewalk. The shoulder is apparently returning an "unknown position" message, prompting engineers to consider a software patch. This setback comes after a faulty cable threatened the robot earlier in the mission. Dextre is designed to perform regular maintenance tasks outside the International Space Station, things like replacing batteries and wires. The aim is to reduce the number of dangerous space walks that astronauts must now perform. CTV has more here.

Endeavour Astronauts Assembling New Canadian-made Robot, In Orbit

The second of five space walks to assemble a new robotic appendage to the International Space Station (ISS) was carried out Saturday and lasted 7 hours. The new robot, named Dextre (short for dexterous) spent two days protected with a thermal blanket because it was unable to draw power from the ISS because of a faulty wire on it's staging platform. The move was required because it was feared that the -128.88 degrees Celcius temperatures of space would cause Dextre's joints and other components to freeze and stop working. Check out this animation from the Canadian Space Agency and you'll understand where Dextre gets his name, you also get an appreciation for the size of ISS!

Jules Verne Lifts Off

The European Space Agency has sent an unmanned supply ship into orbit to rendezvous with the International Space Station. Named Jules Verne after the 19th century French science fiction writer, the 20 tonne cargo ship will deliver supplies by self docking with the space station. The ship will then be filled with refuse and sent into a disintegrating orbit where both the trash and the vessel will disintegrate upon re-entry over the Pacific Ocean in August. CBC article here.

Hurricane shortens shuttle mission

Fearing that Hurricane Dean might disrupt operations, NASA has ordered Space Shuttle Endeavor to depart the International Space Station today and is scheduling landing for Tuesday. NASA is concerned that the hurricane might make course for Houston, Mission Control, which would necessitate a relocation of flight controllers to Cape Canaveral the back up control center which is not considered as good a location. Boy, never a dull day for this mission! CNN story here.

Endeavor inspection shows gouge penetrates tiles completely

A laser inspection of the damaged area of the space shuttle Endeavor shows that the affected tiles are compromised through to the felt material sandwiched between the tiles and the shuttle's aluminum frame. NASA scientists are preparing a test with similarly damaged tiles back here on earth, in an attempt to determine whether or not the damaged area will withstand re-entry. John Shannon, chairman of the mission management team said "We have really prepared for exactly this case, since Columbia," and "We have spent a lot of money in the program and a lot of time and a lot of people's efforts to be ready to handle exactly this case." A decision is expected to be made today or tomorrow, regarding the necessity of a space walk to repair the damage. CBC Story Here. For a video explaining the Thermal Protection System - How Thing Work, Click Here (Real Media).