Kaleri

Foale

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18 October 2003 05:38 GMT. Landing Date: 2004-04-30 00:11:00 PM. Flight Time: 194.77 days. Alternate Name: Soyuz TMA-3. Other Name: ISS-7S. Flight Up: Soyuz TMA-3. Flight Back: Soyuz TMA-3. Crew: Kaleri, Foale. Program: ISS. Two-man Russian/American crew to provide minimal manning of space station while shuttle is grounded. Replaced EO-7 crew.

Expedition 8 crew of Mike Foale and Aleksandr Kaleri were transported to the ISS aboard Soyuz TMA-3 together with the EP-5 (Cervantes) mission crewmember Pedro Duque. During the flight to the station spacecraft Commander was Aleksandr Kaleri . Soyuz TMA-3 docked with the Pirs module at 07:16 GMT on October 20. Once the EO-7 crew aboard the ISS was relieved, the roles switched, with Foale becoming the ISS Commander. After ten days in space, Duque returned to earth with the EO-7 crew of Malenchenko and Lu aboard Soyuz TMA-2, leaving the EO-8 crew aboard the station.

The flight program consisted of the following main activities:

• Launch of the ISS EO-8 crew and ESA's Spanish EP-5 aboard Soyuz TMA-3 on the 7S mission;
• Soyuz TMA-3 docking to the Service Module with its subsequent redocking to the Functional Cargo Block;
• Handling operations to undock Soyuz TMA-2, Progress M-48, Progress M1-11, Progress M-49 spacecraft;
• Handling operations to dock Progress M1-11, Progress M-49, Progress M-50 and Soyuz TMA-4 spacecraft;
• Unloading of Soyuz TMA-3, Progress M1-11, Progress M-49, Progress M-50 and Soyuz TMA-4 ;
• ISS maintenance and repairs;
• Conduct of one extravehicular activity - the first egress from the Pirs CO1 docking compartment on the ISS RS;
• Performance of scientific and applied research and experiments programs (Relaksatsia, Uragan, Molniya-SM, Sprut-MBI, Diurez, Parodont, Farma, Cardio-ODNT, Biotest, Profilaktika, Pulse, Gematologia, Pilot, Biorisk, Rastenia-2, Intercellular interaction, Prognos, Brados, Matryoshka-R, Diatomeya, Mimetik-K, KAF, Vaktsina-K, Biodegradatsia, Bioekologia, Interleukin-K, MSK, Meteoroid, Toksichnost, Tenzor, Vektor-T, Izgib, Privyazka, Iskazheniye, Plasma crystal, Identifikatsia, Skorpion, Kromka, Platan), as well as contracted commercial activities (GTS, MPAC&SEED, GCF-NASDA);
• Performance of the program of experiments under the SSM Cervantes Project (Ageing, Root, Geneexpression, Message-2, Bmi-2, Cardiocog-2, Neurocog-2, Sympatho-2, Promiss Eo-2*, Nanoslab-2*, Lso-S, 3d Camera, Medops*, Crew Restraint*, Chondro, Video-2, Apis, Thebas, Ariss Eo-2, Winograd) during the EP-5 mission;
• Handover to the ISS EO-9 expedition and return to earth of the ISS EO-8 crew and ESA's Dutch EP-6 visiting crewmember aboard Soyuz TMA-3.

• 2003 Oct 18 - International Space Station Status Report #03-52 

  A new crew rocketed toward the International Space Station early today, leaving the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan aboard a Russian Soyuz booster that lifted off at 12:38 a.m. CDT and flawlessly sped into Earth orbit.

  ISS Expedition 8 Commander and NASA ISS Science Officer Mike Foale and Expedition 8 Flight Engineer Alexander Kaleri are accompanied by European Space Agency Astronaut Pedro Duque aboard the ISS Soyuz 8 spacecraft. The trio plan to dock Soyuz 8 to the Station at about 2:17 a.m. CDT on Monday, Oct. 20, and hatches between the Station and Soyuz 8 are to be opened at about 5:14 a.m. CDT. Foale and Kaleri are bound for a six-month stay aboard the international research complex. Duque, flying under a commercial agreement between Rosaviakosmos and the European Space Agency, will spend a week aboard the Station conducting a series of scientific studies.

  Foale and Kaleri will relieve Expedition 7 Commander Yuri Malenchenko and NASA ISS Science Officer Ed Lu, who have flown aboard the Station since late April. Malenchenko, Lu and Duque will depart the station on Oct. 27 aboard the ISS Soyuz 7 craft en route to a landing hours afterward in Kazakhstan.

  The week ahead will include a variety of joint activities for the five station crew members as they hand over activities onboard. The plans include an interview by ABC News and the Houston Chronicle at 8:45 a.m. CDT Tuesday, Oct. 21; an interview by CNN and CBS News at 9:25 a.m. CDT Wednesday, Oct. 22; a crew news conference at 10 a.m. CDT Thursday, Oct. 23; and a formal change of command ceremony at 1:20 p.m. CDT Friday, Oct. 24. Undocking of the Soyuz 7 carrying Duque and the Expedition 7 crew home is planned for 5:20 p.m. CST on Oct. 27 leading to a touchdown in Kazakhstan at 8:36 p.m. CST.

• 2003 Oct 18 - Soyuz TMA-3  Crew: Foale, Kaleri, Duque. Spacecraft: Soyuz TMA. Payload: Soyuz TMA s/n 213. Mass: 7,250 kg (15,980 lb). Launch Site: Baikonur. Launch Vehicle: Soyuz. Perigee: 376 km (233 mi). Apogee: 384 km (238 mi). Inclination: 51.60 deg. Period: 92.20 min.

  The spacecraft carried the Expedition 8 crew of Mike Foale and Aleksandr Kaleri and the EP-5 (Cervantes) mission crewmember Pedro Duque. During the flight to the station spacecraft Commander was Aleksandr Kaleri . Soyuz TMA-3 docked with the Pirs module at 07:16 GMT on October 20. Once the EO-7 crew aboard the ISS was relieved, the roles switched, with Foale becoming the ISS Commander. Duque carried out out 24 experiments in the fields of life and physical sciences, Earth observation, education and technology. The experiments were sponsored by the European Space Agency and Spain. After ten days in space, Duque returned to earth with the EO-7 crew of Malenchenko and Lu aboard Soyuz TMA-2.

• 2003 Oct 20 - International Space Station Status Report #03-53 

  New residents arrived at the International Space Station Monday with the ISS Soyuz 7 spacecraft docking to the Station at 2:16 a.m. CDT (0716 GMT, 11:16am Moscow time). The arrival of Expedition 8 and a European Space Agency visiting researcher initiated a week of intense science operations and handover activities for the newest station crew, which will stay aboard the complex for nearly 200 days.

  With Soyuz Commander and Expedition 8 Flight Engineer Alexander Kaleri at the controls, the Soyuz vehicle softly linked up to the Pirs Docking Compartment as the two spacecraft flew 240 miles above central Asia. The docking followed Saturday's launch from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan. Joining Kaleri are Expedition 8 Commander and NASA ISS Science Officer Mike Foale and Pedro Duque of Spain.

  Foale and Kaleri will spend more than six months living on the Station while Duque, who is flying under a commercial contract between ESA and the Russian Aviation and Space Agency, will conduct an eight-day research mission before returning October 27 with Expedition 7 Commander Yuri Malenchenko and NASA ISS Science Officer Ed Lu, who monitored the new crew's arrival from onboard the ISS. Today marked 177 days in space for Malenchenko and Lu, and 175 days on the ISS.

  After docking, clamps were affixed to the interface between the Soyuz and Pirs, and leak checks in the small tunnel connecting the two craft was underway. The hatches will be opened at about 5:15 a.m. Central time signaling the start of eight days of joint operations. Foale, Kaleri and Duque are the first visitors for Malenchenko and Lu, who have overseen operations and been in orbit since late April.

  On the scene at the Russian Mission Control Center in Korolev outside Moscow are NASA Associate Administrator for Space Flight William Readdy and International Space Station Program Manager William Gerstenmaier.

• 2003 Oct 20 - International Space Station Status Report #03-54 

  The International Space Station's newest crew of Expedition 8 Commander Mike Foale and Flight Engineer Alexander Kaleri officially boarded the complex when hatches between its Soyuz spacecraft swung open at 5:19 a.m. CDT ( 1019 GMT, 2:19 p.m. Moscow time). They were joined by visiting researcher, European Space Agency astronaut Pedro Duque.

  Greeting them on the station were Expedition 7 Commander Yuri Malenchenko and NASA ISS Science Officer Ed Lu, who are 177 days into their six months in space. The two crews will conduct eight days of joint operations and research before Expedition 7 and Duque return home on October 27.

  Among those observing the on orbit arrival of Expedition 8 to the station were NASA Associate Administrator for Space Flight William Readdy and International Space Station Program Manager William Gerstenmaier. Both talked to the five station crew members delivering best wishes for the mission.

  The plan for the two crews includes eight days of handover activities and scientific experiments carried out by Duque for Spanish and other European scientists under a commercial contract between ESA and the Russian Aviation and Space Agency.

  After lunch, the new crewmembers will receive a safety briefing from Malenchenko and Lu and install a seat liner for Duque in the Soyuz earmarked for landing Oct. 27 (U.S. time) and then begin setting up a host of Duque's equipment previously launched on Russian Progress resupply spacecraft.

  The crews are scheduled to go to bed about 3 p.m. CDT today and wake up at midnight to begin their first full day of joint operations. Expedition 8 officially will take control of Station operations October 27 when Malenchenko, Lu and Duque close the hatches between their returning Soyuz and the station. Foale and Kaleri will remain on board until late April 2004.

• 2003 Oct 24 - International Space Station Status Report #03-55 

  Final handover activities are underway aboard the International Space Station as the Expedition 7 crew prepares to return to Earth Monday, following six months aboard the orbiting complex. Landing is scheduled for 8:41 p.m. CST on the steppes of Kazakhstan.

  Ready to take over is the Expedition 8 crew, which has spent the last week in space "cramming" for its role as prime station crew effective Monday afternoon when the hatches close between the station and returning Soyuz spacecraft, signaling the official change of command. A ceremonial "Change of Command" ceremony took place Friday afternoon.

  Flight controllers in the U.S. and Russia have been closely monitoring the predicted effects of the recent solar activity and anticipate no change to any of the landing plans. NASA flight control personnel have determined that no additional radiation exposure to the ISS crew is expected as a result of the solar activity. Increased solar activity is forecast for the next few weeks, and the control team will continue to monitor the progress of events with support from the NOAA Space Environment Center.

  Since arriving early Monday morning at their home for the next six months, Expedition 8 Commander Mike Foale and Flight Engineer Alexander Kaleri have spent the week familiarizing themselves with real-time station operations from departing Expedition 7 Commander Yuri Malenchenko and NASA ISS Science Officer Ed Lu.

  Among the handover activities conducted this week were robotic training for Foale on the station's remote manipulator system, called Canadarm2. He will serve as the incoming NASA ISS science officer also, and spent a great deal of his handover activities in the Destiny laboratory where most of the experiment work will take place during his six months aboard. Meanwhile, Kaleri and Malenchenko devoted their attention to operational handover in the Russian segment of the station, which will be overseen by Kaleri throughout the increment.

  The weekend will be devoted almost exclusively to Soyuz stowage activities for the Expedition 7 crew's return to Earth along with European Space Agency astronaut Pedro Duque, who has spent the last eight days conducting a host of science experiments in support of a commercial contract with the Russian Aviation and Space Agency.

  The station crews will wake up Monday about 1 a.m. CST and the hatch to the Expedition 7 crew's Soyuz is set to be closed around 2 p.m. Undocking is planned for 5:18 p.m. followed by the deorbit burn at 7:47 p.m. and landing at 8:41 p.m.

• 2003 Oct 27 - International Space Station Status Report #03-56 

  The Expedition 7 crew touched down in northern Kazakhstan in its Soyuz spacecraft about 8:41 p.m. CST, concluding a 183-day mission aboard the International Space Station and 185 days in space. Landing occurred on target, approximately 24 miles (38 kilometers) from Arkylyk in Kazakhstan.

  Expedition 7 Commander Yuri Malenchenko, NASA ISS Science Officer Ed Lu and European Space Agency astronaut Pedro Duque undocked from the Station at 5:17 p.m. today, leaving behind the eighth resident Space Station crew, Commander Michael Foale and Flight Engineer Alexander Kaleri. Duque flew to the Station with the Expedition 8 crew, launching on October 18.

  A formal change of command ceremony between the Expedition 7 and 8 crews occurred this afternoon, just before Malenchenko, Lu and Duque climbed aboard their Soyuz spacecraft for the return trip home. After final farewells, hatches between the Station and the ISS Soyuz 6 were closed at 2:14 p.m. Foale and Kaleri are beginning a planned six-month stay on board the ISS. About three hours later, a command was issued to release latches, with undocking occurring at 5:17 p.m.

  A 4-minute, 17-second deorbit burn began at 7:47 p.m. CST. About 8:17 p.m., the orbital and instrumentation/propulsion modules separated from the crew's descent module, the only one of the three modules intended to return to Earth. Minutes later, that module began to feel the effects of the upper atmosphere. About 8:25 p.m. the first of a series of parachutes deployed to slow the module's rate of descent, with six small rocket engines firing just before touchdown to further slow the capsule.

  Helicopters with U.S. and Russian ground support personnel retrieved the crew shortly before 9 p.m. CST. NASA officials and flight surgeons reported Malenchenko, Lu and Duque were in excellent condition. Following brief medical exams, the crew will return to Star City, near Moscow, site of the Russian space center where they will be reunited with their families and begin their formal rehabilitation regimen. Malenchenko and Lu are expected to return to the Johnson Space Center in Houston in approximately two weeks.

  Video of the crew's arrival will air on NASA Television at 5 a.m. EST Tuesday.

• 2003 Oct 28 - Landing of Soyuz TMA-2 

  The spacecraft returned with US astronaut Edward Lu, Russian Yuri Malenchenko and Spaniard Pedro Duque. The three astronauts aboard Soyuz TMA-2 landed at 02:14 GMT, 35 kilometers south of Arkalyk. Transfer of the astronauts was delayed when a snowstorm in Kazakhstan's capital Astana and heavy fog forced all of the rescue party's helicopters.

• 2003 Oct 31 - International Space Station Status Report #03-57 

  International Space Station Expedition 8 Commander and NASA ISS Science Officer Michael Foale and Flight Engineer Alexander Kaleri wound up their first full workweek in space Friday. Science activities, Station maintenance, exercise and more familiarization with their new home were their focus.

  Kaleri spent much of the day setting up, working with and then stowing the Russian PILOT experiment, which looks at psychological and physiological changes in crew performance during long-duration spaceflight. The subject uses two hand controllers to make inputs for the experiment. Foale did inspections of the emergency lighting power supply in the U.S. laboratory Destiny and the Unity Node modules of the Station.

  The crew's workweek began with the Monday departure of its Expedition 7 predecessors, Commander Yuri Malenchenko and NASA ISS Science Officer Ed Lu, along with European Space Agency astronaut Pedro Duque in their ISS Soyuz 6 spacecraft. Duque had come to the Station with the Expedition 8 crew Oct. 18. He flew under a European Space Agency contract with the Russian Aviation and Space Administration. After about eight days of intensive and very successful science activity, he landed with the Expedition 7 crew in Kazakhstan at 8:41 p.m. CST Monday.

  That crew is resting and debriefing at the Gagarin Cosmonaut Training Center at Star City near Moscow. Malenchenko and Lu are expected to return to Johnson Space Center in mid-November.

  Tuesday was a quiet day for Foale and Kaleri aboard the ISS, with a chance to rest a little after intensive handover activities and moving in with equipment and supplies. They got another half-day off on Wednesday, followed by a training drill on emergencies. Both crewmembers performed maintenance and Station configuration activities.

  Thursday was a full day for the crew, including exercise and maintenance and inspection of exercise devices and work with medical experiments. Both crewmembers had an hour of Station familiarization, as they do each day early in their increment.

• 2003 Nov 7 - International Space Station Status Report #03-58 

  The Expedition 8 crew settled into life aboard the International Space Station this week, squaring away their new home in orbit and beginning work with several different experiments.

  Commander and NASA ISS Science Officer Michael Foale and Flight Engineer Alexander Kaleri began their week by making room inside the habitable volume of the Station. After equalizing pressure with the Destiny Laboratory, they opened Pressurized Mating Adapter 2 (PMA2) and stowed a variety of supplies and equipment that will not be needed on short notice. They then closed the hatch to PMA2 and depressurized the module.

  Foale slipped on a specially instrumented glove as part of an Italian scientific investigation into how hand and arm muscles are used differently for reaching and grasping in microgravity. The Hand Posture Analyzer also will attempt to quantify muscle fatigue associated with long-duration space flight. Measurements taken with a Posture Acquisition Glove on the hand, an Inertial Tracking System on the wrist and Hand Grip and Pinch Force Dynamometers will be compared with those taken before and after flight.

  Foale and Kaleri also began taking either potassium citrate pills or placebos and recording their food, water and medication intake as part of the Renal (Kidney) Stone Risk During Spaceflight experiment. Previous on-orbit experiments have shown an increased risk in the development of kidney stones during and immediately after space flight, and the experiment is testing a proven Earth-based remedy in space.

  Finally, Foale set up the Earth Knowledge Acquired by Middle Schools digital camera in Destiny's optical-quality window so that students in grades six through eight could take photos of the Earth and downlink them for analysis by the student science team.

  Meanwhile, Expedition 7 Commander Yuri Malenchenko and NASA ISS Science Officer Ed Lu are at the Gagarin Cosmonaut Training Center in Star City, Russia, continuing their immediate post-flight medical evaluations and debriefings. They are expected to return to Houston on Nov. 18. They landed on Oct. 27 after spending 183 days aboard the Station. Joining them on the returning ISS Soyuz 6 spacecraft was European Space Agency astronaut Pedro Duque of Spain, who conducted eight days of intensive research after launching with the Expedition 8 crew.

• 2003 Nov 14 - International Space Station Status Report #03-59 

  The Expedition 8 crew of the International Space Station wound up its week with a busy Friday, getting ready for next week's practice session for a possible February spacewalk. Commander and NASA ISS Science Officer Michael Foale and Flight Engineer Alexander Kaleri also spent considerable time on science experiments.

  Crewmembers are scheduled to do fit check work with the Russian spacesuits on Monday. On Tuesday they are to practice various spacewalk procedures, including boarding the ISS Soyuz 7 at the station in pressurized spacesuits. That would become necessary if they were unable to repressurize the Pirs Docking Compartment after a spacewalk.

  Today Foale spend almost two hours working with the Cellular Biotechnology Operations Support System (CBOSS) and its Fluid Dynamics Investigation (FDI) experiment. He was preparing for operations with the experiment, which focuses on growth of three-dimensional cell cultures. Meanwhile Kaleri worked with the Russian Profilaktika experiment, which looks at some long-duration spaceflight effects and how to combat them.

  After a relatively quiet weekend, the crew began the week with body mass measurements moments after they were awakened. Crewmembers also stowed the EarthKAM experiment, which last week completed 750 requested Earth pictures for students in 41 middle schools. Foale and Kaleri also took time to talk with former Skylab astronauts gathered at the Marshall Space Flight Center on the 30th anniversary of the launch of the last crew to the first U.S. space station.

  On Tuesday crewmembers did a periodic hearing assessment, inspected the Treadmill Vibration Isolation System (TVIS) and checked out batteries for the Station's defibrillator.Wednesday they worked to organize equipment and supplies and stowed much of the material in the Zero-G Stowage Rack in the U.S. laboratory Destiny. One object of the activity, which will continue next week, is to assure that fire ports in the Station's Unity Node are unobstructed in the unlikely event fire should break out behind the panels through which the ports provide access for fire extinguishers.

  Foale responded to flight controllers' questions about the TVIS and inspected the device before exercising on the treadmill Thursday. He also replaced a battery in the Space Acceleration Measurement System. The crew changed out 10 smoke detectors.

  Foale and Kaleri also continued taking potassium citrate pills or placebos and recorded their food, water and medication intake as part of the Renal (kidney) Stone Risk During Spaceflight experiment. Previous experiments in space have shown an increased risk ifor development of kidney stones during and immediately after flight, and the experiment is testing a proven Earth-based remedy in space.

• 2003 Nov 21 - International Space Station Status Report #03-60 

  The eighth permanent crew to live on the International Space Station completed its first month aboard the complex this week, a week that saw the 16 nations that participate in the Station program celebrate the fifth anniversary of its launch.

  The first Station component, the control module Zarya, was launched from the Baikonur Cosmodrome, Kazakhstan on Nov. 20, 1998. Thirty-seven launches later, the Station now has a mass of more than 412,000 pounds and an interior volume of 15,000 cubic feet, as large as a three-bedroom house. More than 100 different space travelers from five space agencies and nine countries have visited the complex.

  To assist planners as they evaluate a potential spacewalk early next year, Expedition 8 Commnader Mike Foale and Flight Engineer Alexander Kaleri spent the first part of this week working with Russian Orlan spacesuits. They evaluated how to get into the Soyuz spacecraft docked to the Station's Pirs compartment while wearing the bulky suits. Such a procedure could be necessary if they were unable to repressurize Pirs, which is used as an airlock to begin and end Russian spacewalks, and had to board the Soyuz.

  The potential February spacewalk would exchange samples in exterior experiments and prepare an aft Station docking port for the European Space Agency's Automated Transport Vehicle, a new, uncrewed station cargo vehicle targeted for launch late next year.

  In anticipation of the crew's first use of the Station's Canadarm2 robotic arm, Foale spent time Friday going through a computer-guided refresher on arm operations. Their first use of the arm, a training session, is planned for early next week.

  On Friday, Foale completed alterations to an instrumented suit for use in next week's work with the Foot/Ground Reaction Forces During Spaceflight (FOOT) experiment. The Lower Extremity Monitoring Suit (LEMS), a customized pair of Lycra cycling shorts outfitted with 20 sensors, will measure forces on Foale's feet and joints and gauge his muscle activity while completing his normal activities in the Station. The experiment's researchers hope to learn more about the reasons for bone and muscle loss by astronauts in orbit, insight that may lead to better countermeasures for astronauts.

  Engineers are analyzing the effects of a possible gyroscope failure in the Station treadmill's vibration isolation system. The analysis began after the crew reported hearing unusual noises from that system. While the analysis is under way, the crew has been asked not to use the treadmill and instead to use a stationary bicycle and other exercise equipment.

  The Expedition 7 crewmembers returned to Houston this week after more than three weeks of medical checkups and debriefings with Russian specialists. Commander Yuri Malenchenko and NASA ISS Science Officer Ed Lu, who completed a 185-day spaceflight with a landing in Kazakhstan in a Soyuz spacecraft on Oct. 27, will continue their postflight operations with checkups and debriefings at the Johnson Space Center.

• 2003 Nov 28 - International Space Station Status Report #03-61 

  The two-person crew living on the International Space Station celebrated the Thanksgiving holiday, tested a modified configuration for an exercise machine and worked on science experiments this week.

  Expedition 8 Commander Mike Foale and Flight Engineer Alexander Kaleri enjoyed a day off Thursday for the holiday, listening to music, watching movies and eating a Thanksgiving chicken and rice dinner. NASA Administrator Sean O'Keefe placed a phone call to the crewmembers to wish them well.

  On Monday, the crew ran on the exercise treadmill without its Vibration Isolation and Stabilization (VIS) system activated. U.S. and Russian engineers wanted to gather data about what kind of vibrations would occur when using the treadmill without the VIS activated. After analyzing the data, engineers gave the okay for the crew to resume using the treadmill over the weekend in this modified configuration. The work-around is in response to a gyroscope failure in the VIS that continues to be investigated by engineers.

  On Wednesday, the crew heard a metallic noise during morning activities in the Russian Zvezda Service Module. Foale said it was a sound similar to shaking a thin sheet of metal so that it bent concave and then convex. All Station systems were checked by ground controllers and found to be operating normally. Exterior television cameras on the robotic arm and the Station truss were used to inspect the exterior of Zvezda and nothing unusual was identified.

  In support of microgravity science experiments, Foale set up video cameras inside the Destiny laboratory to document the Fluid Dynamics Investigation. This experiment is being conducted to help improve the use of the Cellular Biotechnology Operational Support System (CBOSS), which grows human tissue cells in a unique three-dimensional form in microgravity. The CBOSS provides an unprecedented environment for research on various types of cancer, diabetes, heart disease and AIDS.

  Friday, Foale installed equipment in the Microgravity Sciences Glovebox for the Pore Formation and Mobility Investigation (PFMI). This experiment studies how bubbles form in metal and crystal samples, thus deteriorating the samples' strength and usefulness in experiments. Investigators will watch a transparent material melt and observe how the bubbles form and interact.

  This week, Foale completed final alterations to an instrumented suit for the Foot/Ground Reaction Forces During Spaceflight (FOOT) experiment. The Lower Extremity Monitoring Suit (LEMS), a customized pair of Lycra cycling tights outfitted with 20 sensors, will measure forces on Foale's feet and joints and gauge his muscle activity while completing his normal activities in the Station. Foale will wear the shorts next week. The experiment's researchers hope to learn more about the reasons for bone and muscle loss by astronauts in orbit, insight that may lead to better countermeasures.

• 2003 Dec 5 - International Space Station Status Report #03-62 

  Expedition 8 Commander and NASA ISS Science Officer Mike Foale and Flight Engineer Alexander Kaleri Friday wrapped up a busy week aboard the International Space Station. ISS activities included scientific experiments ranging from behavior of plasma dust subjected to radio waves in a vacuum to investigation of stresses on the feet and legs during spaceflight.

  Kaleri completed the first run of the Russian Plasma Crystal-3 experiment on Thursday, after preparations on Monday and experiment setup on Tuesday. The largely automated experiment studies crystallization of plasma dust subjected to high-frequency radio waves in a vacuum chamber.

  On Tuesday, Foale spent much of his day in instrumented biking tights for the Foot/Ground Reaction Forces During Spaceflight (FOOT) experiment. The Lower Extremity Monitoring Suit, the cycling tights outfitted with 20 sensors, measured forces on Foale's feet and joints and muscle activity while he went about his scheduled activities. Investigators believe the experiment will provide additional information on reasons for bone and muscle loss by people in space. That knowledge could lead to better ways to minimize such problems.

  Also completed during the week was spacesuit battery maintenance - discharging and recharging the batteries, reloading of laptop computers, continued participation by crewmembers in the Renal Stone experiment, regular maintenance and standard crew exercise sessions.

  On Thursday crewmembers did an inspection of the Treadmill Vibration Isolation System, the treadmill in the Zvezda Service Module mounted on a sophisticated system that minimizes transmissions of vibrations created by exercising crewmembers. Both also ran on the treadmill with its Vibration Isolation and Stabilization turned off. Instruments they had set up earlier in Zvezda and the Unity node monitored vibrations produced. Crewmembers have approval to use the TVIS in a modified configuration.

  They are scheduled to spend at least four hours on Tuesday and four hours on Wednesday removing the TVIS from its housing for inspection and possible repair of a stabilizing gyroscope. Today Foale talked with TVIS experts at Johnson Space Center in preparation for next week's work with the treadmill.

  The TVIS and several other exercise devices aboard the ISS are used about 21/2 hours each day by each crewmember. The exercise is designed to mitigate some of those negative effects of long-term spaceflight.

  On Tuesday Foale and Kaleri talked with CBS' "Osgood Files" and with reporters from CBS Radio. Foale spent more than 15 minutes on Thursday chatting with Sir David Frost for the BBC's "Breakfast with Frost" program.

• 2003 Dec 12 - International Space Station Status Report #03-63 

  Aboard the International Space Station this week the Expedition 8 crew served as scientists, engineers, mechanics and investigators as it approaches two months of life in space aboard the orbiting outpost.

  The workweek began with a U.S. milestone being recognized when Commander Mike Foale surpassed the astronaut cumulative time in space record of 231 days. During a special phone call Monday, Carl Walz, the previous record holder, called Foale to congratulate him on the milestone and discussed life on the Station and future endeavors in space.

  Tuesday and Wednesday Foale - joined by Flight Engineer Cosmonaut Alexander Kaleri - dismantled the high-tech exercise treadmill and identified the cause of a problem preventing its use in the motorized mode. A bad bearing associated with its gyroscope assembly was determined to be the culprit and a replacement will be shipped to the Station on the next Progress resupply vehicle in late January. Until that time, the treadmill is usable for exercise without the stabilization system active.

  Thursday Foale, also the onboard NASA ISS Science Officer, "flew" the Station's robotic arm for the first time through a survey of various modules and components of the complex. The survey had two-purposes: To continue investigating the source of an unusual noise heard by the crew a couple of weeks ago while in the Zvezda Service Module and to check for any other changes outside the station, a check normally handled by a Space Shuttle upon undocking and flyaround. This survey detected no abnormalities.

  Foale and Kaleri discussed their mission with news organizations from ABC and the website SpaceflightNow.com. The crew also enjoyed a lengthy question-and-answer period with schoolchildren at the Wright Brothers National Memorial in North Carolina, as celebrations are ongoing in advance of the 100th anniversary Dec. 17 of powered flight.

• 2003 Dec 19 - International Space Station Status Report #03-64 

  Expedition 8 Commander Mike Foale and Flight Engineer Alexander Kaleri spent their ninth week in space this week splitting time between systems maintenance, scientific work and some holiday decorating.

  Foale did a leak check early this week of ventilation valves that are part of the hatchway between the Station's Unity connecting module and the U.S. Quest Airlock. The valves had been disassembled and reassembled earlier this year during troubleshooting by previous Station crews. For the check, the hatch between Quest and the rest of the Station was shut and the air pressure inside the airlock decreased by about five pounds per square inch. The hatch remained shut overnight so any leakage through the valves could be measured. No leakage was detected.

  While Foale worked on the leak check, Kaleri began work to replace a faulty heat exchanger in the Zvezda living quarters module's air conditioning system. After removing the old unit, Kaleri had trouble aligning connections on the new exchanger and securing it. Russian flight controllers are evaluating the problem and may continue the work next week. The primary air conditioning system is operating well, and the replacement is for a backup system.

  Russian flight controllers also have been monitoring operation of the Elektron unit in Zvezda, a system that recycles wastewater aboard the Station by converting it into oxygen for the Station atmosphere. The Elektron has been operating only intermittently, shutting down when air gets into pumps that help separate liquid and gas. The problem is believed to be one that is sometimes experienced as membranes in that unit age. A replacement is onboard, but flight controllers plan to continue operations as they are for as long as possible before using the new equipment.

  Oxygen also is being provided to the cabin air from tanks aboard the Progress cargo craft that to the complex. The oxygen in those tanks must be used in the next few weeks to prepare for the undocking of that supply craft in January. With the Progress oxygen being used, continuous use of the Elektron is not necessary.

  Foale and Kaleri took time out on Wednesday to mark the 100th anniversary of powered flight. They spoke with schoolchildren in North Carolina and Ohio, displaying a model of the Wright Flyer, flown by Wilbur and Orville Wright in 1903. On Friday, the crew sent down Christmas greetings and displayed some of the presents from friends and families. The crew shared their plans for the holiday, showing off decorations, which include Christmas trees and stockings. Foale and Kaleri will have Christmas Day off, and will visit with their families via two-way videoconferences.

  Also on Friday, Foale sent down data he has gathered as part of the Foot/Ground Reaction Forces During Space Flight experiment, a study that gathers information on the loads experienced by Station crewmembers on their lower bodies and their muscle activity as they work. The information is gathered via an instrumented pair of pants worn by Foale. Earlier in the week, Foale removed a sample from the Pore Formation and Mobility Investigation experiment that had been in processing when a circuit breaker tripped, stopping the investigation. Troubleshooting of the experiment is planned next week.

• 2003 Dec 24 - International Space Station Status Report #03-65 

  The Expedition 8 crew had a busy three days of science and International Space Station maintenance activities before beginning to wind down Wednesday afternoon for a Christmas day off. Mike Foale, commander and NASA ISS science officer, and Alexander Kaleri, the flight engineer, also showed off their Christmas preparations to viewers on Earth.

  On Wednesday, the crew's 68th day in space, Kaleri spent some time working with the Russian air conditioning system. He had replaced a filter for condensate water on Tuesday. When the air conditioner was restarted sensors indicated tanks to which the water is supposed to flow were full. Kaleri had established water flow through the new filter by Wednesday afternoon.

  Meanwhile Foale spent more than three hours gathering and organizing clothing, some of it from previous crews, and stowing it in the Station's Unity node.

  Flight controllers in Moscow continue to monitor the oxygen-generating Elektron unit in Zvezda. The Elektron converts water to oxygen, for the Station's atmosphere, and hydrogen, which is vented overboard. The Elektron had shut down several times, apparently because air had gotten into pumps that help separate liquid and gas. The unit was operating normally Wednesday afternoon.

  Foale and Kaleri talked with reporters from KNX Radio in Los Angeles and National Public Radio on Tuesday. Representatives of both asked about Christmas on the International Space Station. Foale and Kaleri showed the interviewers their two Christmas trees, one embroidered on a blanket and the other a small artificial tree.

  The crew also shared their plans for the holiday in a video sent down to Houston's Mission Control Center and shown on NASA television. They filmed and talked about decorations, including their Christmas trees, and stockings with gifts sent up long in advance. Foale and Kaleri will have Christmas Day off, with only minimal tasks and physical exercise scheduled. They are scheduled to visit with their families in private two-way videoconferences.

  On Monday, after a quiet weekend, Foale did troubleshooting involving the Pore Formation & Mobility Investigation (PFMI) experiment. A circuit breaker tripped earlier this month when the experiment was in the Microgravity Science Glovebox (MSG). Foale removed the MSG's thermal chamber and sent down video and descriptions of what he saw. Engineers in Houston are working on a fix for a binding gear in the chamber. Both crewmembers spent more than two hours doing an Inventory Management System audit and sorting items for disposal on the unpiloted Progress cargo spacecraft docked to the back of the Zvezda Service Module. Both crewmembers began Monday with medical experiments involving body mass and calf volume measurements.

  Tuesday morning Kaleri set up three acoustic dosimeters in Zvezda to take sound level measurements for 16 hours. He also did troubleshooting on an antenna for a Russian satellite navigation system. Foale spent several hours working with the Fluid Dynamics Investigation on the Cellular Biotechnology Support System. The investigation and the system are designed to grow cell cultures in three dimensions.

• 2004 Jan 2 - International Space Station Status Report #04-1 

  The International Space Station's Expedition 8 crew got back to work today after a day off to welcome the new year. Mike Foale, commander and NASA ISS science officer, and Alexander Kaleri, the flight engineer, worked with station systems and science. Foale also delivered a "status of the Station" message, looking ahead to future ISS activities and more distant space exploration.

  Foale worked with the Cellular Biotechnology Operations Support System (CBOSS), a bioreactor apparatus capable of growing cell cultures in three dimensions, an advantage over the two-dimension cultures typically grown on Earth. Meanwhile, Kaleri uploaded software into station computers.

  This afternoon Kaleri, helped by experts at Mission Control Moscow, made adjustments to the Elektron oxygen generator in the Zvezda Service module, which has been operating intermittently. He also successfully activated two Solid-fuel Oxygen Generator (SFOG) canisters to enrich the station's atmosphere. On Wednesday two other SFOGs were activated, primarily as a test to set expiration dates for the more than 140 SFOG candles on board. Each SFOG can provide oxygen for one crewmember for one day.

  Additional oxygen is available on the Progress unpiloted cargo vehicle docked to Zvezda. Some of it was introduced into the Station atmosphere on Thursday, and more is being added Saturday. More oxygen is stored in two high-pressure tanks attached to the Joint Airlock Quest.

  On Monday, Kaleri spent three hours removing no-longer-needed attitude control equipment from the Zarya module. Much of it will be discarded in the Progress, for destruction on re-entry in late January. He also began the 48-hour regeneration of the two beds of the Russian harmful impurities removal system, which helps purify the Station's atmosphere. Foale continued his review of CBOSS experiments.

  Both crewmembers took time on Tuesday for a news interview with the Internet site space.com. Foale also worked with the soldering in space experiment and repacked the station's medical kit with fresh medications from the Progress. The following day both crewmembers did the required hour-long emergency medical training, and both performed daily exercise and station maintenance activities.

  Thursday, New Year's Day, was a day off. Their only activity was exercise, necessary station maintenance and science activities. Both crewmembers talked with family members on Earth via private video conferences.

• 2004 Jan 9 - International Space Station Status Report #04-2 

  Expedition 8 Commander Mike Foale celebrated his 47th birthday on Wednesday this week while Flight Engineer Alexander Kaleri observed the Russian Orthodox Christmas on Thursday as they both continued research work, performed several maintenance activities and conducted troubleshooting efforts to assist ground engineers analyzing a small decay in the Station cabin's atmospheric pressure.

  The pressure decay poses no threat to the crew's safety or to the continued operation of the Station and its systems, but Russian and U.S. engineers are conducting a thorough investigation of the decrease, which appears to have begun about Dec. 22. The decline occurs at a rate so small, only a few hundredths of a pound per square inch (psi) of pressure per day, that it is difficult to detect.

  This week, Foale and Kaleri checked a variety of valves and seals throughout the Station using an ultrasonic leak detection system and found no leaks. Today, Kaleri checked a Russian system, called Vozdukh, that removes carbon dioxide from the cabin as well as several other Russian systems for leaks and found none.

  To continue the effort to diagnose the source of the pressure decay, flight controllers in Russia and the U.S. plan to ask the crew to shut off portions of the Station periodically in coming days. In the next few days, hatches will be closed for periods ranging between 12-24 hours to seal off various modules to check if any element within them could be the source of a leak. Those modules may include the Progress cargo vehicle, the Pirs Docking Compartment and Soyuz spacecraft, and the Quest airlock.

  If those steps do not detect the source of the leak, then the crew may be asked to move into the Russian living quarters module for several days and shut hatches separating the Russian living quarters and other modules from the rest of the station for several days. Those actions would likely not take place any earlier than Wednesday. Engineers are continuing to work on potential plans for those steps to diagnose the leak and to review the number of hatches that would be closed at that time.

  The decay in pressure over the past few weeks aboard the station has amounted to a decrease from the normal pressure of 14.7 psi, a pressure equivalent to sea level on Earth, to a pressure today of about 14 psi, a pressure equivalent to the normal air pressure in Oklahoma City. The changes in pressure do not present a concern for the health of the crew. Also, plentiful supplies of air, oxygen and nitrogen, are aboard the station -- enough that the current rate of decay could be sustained for six months without further supplies aboard if required. However, engineers are confident they will identify and correct the source of the decay as they continue the diagnostic work onboard.

  Flight controllers may feed more nitrogen into the Station atmosphere late Sunday or Monday to increase the overall air pressure and maintain the cabin atmosphere in the optimal range for the operation of equipment aboard the complex. Russian flight controllers also are continuing to evaluate the possible replacement of parts of the Station's oxygen-generating Elektron system. The Russian system generates oxygen by recycling wastewater aboard the complex. It has failed, but spare parts are aboard that engineers are confident can bring it back to full operation and they are developing plans to perform that work possibly next week. While the Elektron failure is being evaluated, the crew has used Solid Fuel Oxygen Generators, canisters that are heated to produce oxygen, to replenish oxygen on the Station.

  Despite the leak detection activities, engineers are not certain the fluctuation and slight decline in pressure aboard the Station is the result of a leak from the complex. Evaluations continue to determine if it instead could result from or be significantly contributed to by troubleshooting and intermittent Elektron operation, SFOG oxygen generation activities, recent changes in temperature and sun angles, the accuracy of various pressure measuring systems, or other factors.

• 2004 Jan 12 - International Space Station Status Report #04-3 

  With the help of Expedition 8 Commander Mike Foale and Flight Engineer Alexander Kaleri, flight controllers traced the apparent cause of a tiny pressure decay on the International Space Station Sunday to a braided flex hose that is part of the window system in the U.S. Destiny Laboratory.

  After extensive pressure checks on Saturday and Sunday in the Russian Progress resupply ship, the Pirs Docking Compartment, the Soyuz return vehicle and the U.S. Quest Airlock revealed no leaks, the crew used an ultrasound leak detector device for a second time at the Lab window, and detected an audible hissing noise emanating from the flex hose. That hose is hooked up to quick disconnect devices as part of a system designed to vent into space any condensation between the panes of glass to maintain the window's optically pristine quality.

  Foale said he couldn't hear any hissing noise from the flex hose during a previous leak check last week because of other ambient noise generated by operating payload racks in Destiny. Sunday, those racks were shut down for a short time and the hissing noise was obvious. Foale reported that as soon as the flex hose was disconnected, the noise stopped. While additional evaluation is needed for confirmation, the pressure in the Station appears to have stabilized since the removal of the flex hose.

  Although the leak may now be fixed, flight controllers are planning to ask the crew to close several hatches aboard the station this weekend, dividing the complex into three sections to allow further leak checks and to gather additional baseline data on normal air pressure fluctuations in portions of the Station. Flight controllers will monitor the pressure in each section during the weekend to gather air pressure data. All of the hatches are planned to be reopened Sunday night. The isolated sections will include the U.S. Destiny Lab; the Zarya Control Module, Quest Airlock and Unity Node; and the Zvezda Service Module, Pirs Docking Compartment, Soyuz rescue vehicle and Progress resupply vehicle. While the hatches are closed, the crew will remain in the section that includes the Zvezda living quarters module. To prepare, they will begin moving some additional equipment into the living quarters on Friday. Foale normally sleeps in the Destiny Lab while Kaleri normally sleeps in Zvezda.

  Foale and Kaleri repaired the Russian Elektron oxygen generation system today and are scheduled to press ahead with repairs to the Vozdukh carbon dioxide removal system in the next week or so. In preparation for the Elektron repair work, the pressure in the ISS was increased late Sunday to about 14.2 pounds per square inch, using remaining oxygen in the Progress resupply ship tanks. The Progress will be discarded in about two weeks in advance of the launch of a new resupply vehicle on Jan. 29 carrying food, fuel and supplies for the crew.

• 2004 Jan 16 - International Space Station Status Report #04-4 

  In an effort to gather more data regarding normal air pressure fluctuations onboard the International Space Station, Expedition 8 Commander Mike Foale and Flight Engineer Alexander Kaleri ended their week by closing several interior hatches.

  Foale and Kaleri will spend most of the weekend in a smaller portion of the station than usual, primarily the Zvezda living quarters module. Foale and Kaleri floated into the Zvezda shortly after 2 p.m. Central time, closing several hatches behind them. Flight controllers will monitor air pressure in the station modules during that time to verify that the pressure aboard is stable and to gather baseline data on normal air pressure fluctuations in the complex.

  For the data gathering session, the Station cabin has been divided into four sections. The one where the crew is staying includes Zvezda, the Soyuz spacecraft, the Pirs docking compartment and the Progress cargo vehicle. Another section includes the Unity connecting node and the Quest airlock. A third section is the Zarya control module and Pressurized Mating Adapter 1. The fourth section is the Destiny laboratory.

  All of the hatches will be reopened Sunday afternoon.

  On Jan. 11, Foale tracked down the probable cause of a slight pressure decay that had been detected aboard the station since late December. Foale found a leaking flex hose that is part of a system that prevents fogging within Destiny's window. The hose was removed and the leak stopped. Engineers are evaluating plans to launch a replacement hose on the next Progress supply vehicle on Jan. 29.

  Earlier this week, Kaleri replaced a liquid separation unit for the Russian Elektron oxygen generation system, restoring that system to full function. The week also included a number of science and medical experiment activities for the crew. Kaleri performed an assessment of the effects of weightlessness on the inner ear using a special Russian suit and collected air samples as part of another Russian program designed to help assess the microbial environment aboard the ISS.

  Foale conducted his second session with the Foot/Ground Reaction Forces During Spaceflight (FOOT) experiment, gathering several hours of additional data. For the experiment, Foale dons a special pair of instrumented leggings that allow researchers to measure forces on the feet, joint angles and muscle activity. Foale also participated in a Hand Posture Analyzer investigation, which uses a special glove to assess the changes in how humans reach, grasp, manipulate and transport objects during long periods in weightlessness.

• 2004 Jan 23 - International Space Station Status Report #04-5 

  Expedition 8 Commander Mike Foale and Flight Engineer Alexander Kaleri are preparing for next week's arrival of their first packages from home in almost three months.

  Foale and Kaleri spent much of this week packing up trash to be jettisoned from the International Space Station in an old supply ship to make room for a new Progress cargo craft. They packed the unneeded equipment aboard the ISS Progress 12 resupply vehicle and prepared it for undocking from the Station at 2:36 a.m. CST Wednesday. The next resupply vehicle, ISS Progress 13, is planned to launch at 5:58 a.m. Thursday from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan. Progress 13 is scheduled to dock with the Station at 7:18 a.m. Jan. 31. The cargo includes fresh food, clothes, spare parts and other equipment

  Following the discovery and removal of a leaky vent hose two weeks ago that was part of a window system in the U.S. Destiny Lab, the Station's air pressure has been steady. A replacement for the hose will be launched aboard Progress 13.

  Also this week, Kaleri followed up his replacement last week of a liquid separation unit for the Russian Elektron oxygen generation system by replacing the electronics package associated with the system. The crew noted a rattling noise in an air filter component on the Elektron, and an additional pressure regulator for the Elektron will be added to the Progress 13 cargo to address that noise.

  The pair also conducted several Russian routine medical evaluations this week and continued their regimen of exercise on a variety of pieces of training equipment.

  Last weekend, Foale and Kaleri spent two days in the Russian living quarters of the Station in a test to gather data on pressures in sections of the complex. Foale and Kaleri floated into the Zvezda living quarters module shortly after 2 p.m. CST Jan. 16, closing several hatches behind them that divided the station into four sections. They reopened the hatches about 11 a.m. Sunday. Flight controllers in Houston and Russia monitored air pressure in the sections of the Station during the weekend.

• 2004 Jan 29 - International Space Station Status Report #04-6 

  An unmanned Russian Progress resupply ship blasted off successfully today from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan to deliver 21/2 tons of food, fuel and supplies to the residents of the International Space Station.

  As the Station flew over the Red Sea, the ISS Progress 13 craft lifted off its Central Asian launch pad right on time at 5:58 a.m. CST (1158 GMT), and less than 10 minutes later, settled into orbit and deployed its solar arrays and navigational antennas. Its computers are loaded with preprogrammed commands for engine firings and rendezvous maneuvers that will lead it to an automated linkup to the aft port of the Zvezda Service Module on Saturday morning at 7:15 a.m. CST (1315 GMT).

  The Progress 13 docking to the ISS will be broadcast live on NASA Television on Saturday beginning at 6:30 a.m. CST (1230 GMT).

  The launch of the new resupply vehicle occurred a little over 24 hours after an identical Progress ship departed the ISS. The ISS Progress 12 undocked Wednesday from Zvezda at 2:36 a.m. CST (0836 GMT) and was later commanded to plunge back into the atmosphere where it burned up. The old Progress was filled with trash and other items no longer needed on board the Station.

  The new Progress is loaded with spare parts, fresh food and fuel for Expedition 8 Commander and NASA Science Officer Mike Foale and Flight Engineer Alexander Kaleri, who are in the fourth month of a planned 61/2-month mission on the ISS. The Progress is also carrying scientific equipment for European Space Agency astronaut Andre Kuipers of the Netherlands, who is scheduled to be launched April 19 with the new Expedition 9 crew to the ISS. Kuipers will spend a little over a week conducting an independent science program under a commercial contract between ESA and the Russian Aviation and Space Agency. Kuipers will return to Earth in late April on a Soyuz vehicle with Foale and Kaleri.

  The crew had a busy week, focusing on packing the Progress 12 with trash from the Station. Crewmembers also performed scientific experiments and regular station maintenance.

  On Monday, Foale worked to set up the EarthKAM (Earth Knowledge Acquired by Middle Schools) experiment in the Zvezda Service Module. More than 50 schools in Europe, Asia and South America, participated in an Earth observation session beginning Tuesday, requesting photos of specific locations and receiving those photos via the Internet to study geography, geology, botany and Earth science.

  Also on Tuesday, the crew closed the hatch to the Progress 12 vehicle for the final time, and took a few minutes to talk to National Football League Commissioner Paul Tagliabue during his tour of the Mission Control Center. Tagliabue is in Houston for Sunday's Super Bowl XXXVIII. On Wednesday, Foale chatted with members of the rock band Aerosmith during their tour of the control center. The band will perform during the Super Bowl pregame show, which will include a tribute to NASA and Columbia crewmembers on the anniversary of the shuttle accident.

• 2004 Jan 29 - Progress M1-11  Spacecraft: Progress M1. Payload: Progress M1 s/n 260. Mass: 7,250 kg (15,980 lb). Launch Site: Baikonur. Launch Vehicle: Soyuz. Duration: 116.00 days. Perigee: 192 km (119 mi). Apogee: 263 km (163 mi). Inclination: 51.65 deg. Period: 88.73 min.

  ISS resupply, to dock at the Zvezda module of the station 13:15 GMT on 31 January. Launch delayed from November 20, 2003. Payload delivered amounted to 2345 kg and included a new flex hose for the Destiny module's leaky window, replacement parts for the Russian Elektron oxygen-generating unit, a spare Elektron, new Russian Solid Fuel Oxygen Generator candles, batteries for the Zarya and Zvezda modules, gas analyser equipment, updated fire suppression and detection equipment, a new Russian Orlan spacesuit, film, cameras, data cassettes and the Matreshka experiment package for installation on Zvezda's exterior during a spacewalk.

  A few days prior to its departure from the ISS, ground controllers fired the Progress M1-11's engines for 11 minutes, boosting the Station's altitude by 3.7 km and adjusting its inclination by one one-hundredth of a degree. Progress M1-11 undocked from the Station at 11:19 GMT on 24 May 2005, clearing the way for the arrival of Progress M-49. It was thereafter commanded to a destructive re-entry over the Pacific Ocean.

• 2004 Jan 31 - International Space Station Status Report #04-7 

  An unmanned Russian resupply ship smoothly linked up to the International Space Station this morning, delivering 2-1/2 tons of food, fuel, spare parts and supplies to the two residents on board.

  With Expedition 8 Commander and NASA Science Officer Mike Foale and Flight Engineer Alexander Kaleri looking on, the ISS Progress 13 docked to the aft port of the Zvezda Service Module at 7:13 a.m. CST (1313 GMT) as the two craft flew 230 statute miles above Central Asia.

  Foale and Kaleri were in Zvezda, prepared to take over manual control of the operation if it had been necessary, but the Progress craft automatically docked to the module through pre-programmed computer command with no problem.

  The Progress was the first ship to arrive at the ISS since Foale and Kaleri were launched more than 100 days ago. They are well past the midway mark of a planned 6-1/2 month mission on the complex. The next ship to reach the Station will be the Soyuz TMA-4 capsule in April, carrying a new crew to replace Foale and Kaleri.

  After leak checks are completed to insure a tight seal between Progress and the ISS, Kaleri will open up the ship's hatch later today so he and Foale can begin unloading its cargo on Sunday. The cargo includes spare parts for environmental systems and a new flex hose to help vent condensation and air from the Destiny Laboratory's optically pure viewing window. A small leak in an identical flex hose was found to have caused a slight pressure decay in the ISS earlier this month.

• 2004 Feb 6 - International Space Station Status Report #04-8 

  Aboard the International Space Station, Mike Foale and Alexander Kaleri of the Expedition 8 crew spent this week unpacking the first fresh supplies to arrive at the complex since they began their mission more than three and a half months ago.

  Expedition 8 Commander and NASA Science Officer Foale and Kaleri, the flight engineer, began unloading more than two and a half tons of supplies on Sunday, among them fresh food and clothes, spare parts and new experiments. The ISS Progress 13 cargo craft carrying the gear docked with the Station on Jan. 31.

  Shortly after a test of the docked Progress craft's thrusters on Thursday, Foale and Kaleri saw a single, small, thin strip of material floating away from the Station. Viewing and photographing it through a window in the Zvezda living quarters module, they said the item did not appear to represent any hazard. They described it as about 8-10 inches long, appearing to be made of a soft, non-metallic material and moving very slowly away from the Station. The item drifted out of sight after a few minutes. All systems aboard the Station continue to function normally, and flight controllers in the U.S. and Russia are confident it does not pose a concern for the complex. However, they are continuing to evaluate possible sources of the material.

  Also this week, Foale initiated an experiment in cell culture growth in weightlessness. The experiment, which grows cultures of yeast cells, arrived at the Station aboard the Progress craft and may provide insight to improve cell culture techniques of tissues on the ground and during future space experiments. The study is performed in conjunction with an investigator at Tulane University Medical Center.

  Foale and Kaleri took time out today to speak with some of more than 700 teachers from around the world who are gathered in Houston. The teachers are attending the International Space Station Educators Conference to learn how they may use the excitement of space flight to motivate students in math and science.

• 2004 Feb 13 - International Space Station Status Report #04-9 

  The Expedition 8 crew aboard the International Space Station spent the week on early preparations for a spacewalk; training and positioning the robotic arm; conducting experiments; and 'educating' school children on long duration life in space.

  Approaching four months in space, Commander and NASA Science Officer Mike Foale and Flight Engineer Alexander Kaleri this week finished unloading their supply ship and performed some maintenance and repair work on the station's oxygen and air purification system and reviewed preliminary procedures for the first station-based spacewalk since spring 2003.

  The spacewalk is set to begin about 3 p.m. CST on Feb. 26 with a scheduled duration of 51/2 hours. The crew begins shifting its sleep schedule this weekend to accommodate the start time of the spacewalk and to optimize near continuous communications with the crew through both U.S. and Russian communications resources.

  Earlier this week, Foale moved the robotic arm - Canadarm2 - to a strategic position so that its cameras can provide the best video coverage of the spacewalk. Additionally, the arm operations provided Foale some proficiency training from the workstation within the Destiny laboratory.

  Foale this week also prepared the lab's window for installation of a new flex hose used to prevent condensate buildup between panes of the high fidelity optical window. The new hose was delivered in the Progress after the previous hose was determined to be the cause of a small pressure degradation aboard the station a few weeks ago. In advance of the installation of the hose, which has not been scheduled, the inner panes of the window will be vented this weekend to remove residual condensation that has built up over the past few weeks.

  Foale and Kaleri Thursday joined school children in California for a long-distance "interview" answering questions ranging from how a yo-yo works in space, to the engineering challenges of keeping the ISS and its systems updated over its lifetime.

  The week wrapped up with the two crewmembers preparing for their spacewalk by reviewing detailed procedures with flight controllers at the Russian Mission Control Center in Korolev, outside Moscow. The spacewalk, or Extravehicular Activity, will begin and end from the Russian Pirs Docking Compartment with the crew wearing Orlan spacesuits.

  Next week the crew focuses more intently on the spacewalk by checking out the spacesuits and procedures in addition to continuing to slowly adjust their sleep/wake schedule to match the time of the EVA.

• 2004 Feb 20 - International Space Station Status Report #04-10 

  All systems remain "go" for the only planned spacewalk by the International Space Station's Expedition 8 crewmembers. Commander Mike Foale and Flight Engineer Alexander Kaleri, who observed the four-month anniversary of their launch to the Space Station on Wednesday, finished up a long list of tasks this week to be ready for a spacewalk to be staged from the Pirs Docking Compartment Thursday, Feb. 26, starting at 3 p.m. CST. NASA Television coverage of the spacewalk will begin at 2 p.m. CST.

  This week, the crewmembers worked closely with specialists at the Russian Mission Control Center in Korolev, near Moscow, as they unpacked their Russian Orlan spacesuits, tested them, demonstrated their ability to enter the Soyuz spacecraft from Pirs while wearing the suits, and completed a thorough review of the spacewalk plan. Foale and Kaleri are now shifting their daily schedule to maximize communications with Russian flight controllers through Russian ground stations during Thursday's excursion.

  The tasks planned during the five and a half hour long spacewalk include the retrieval of a set of retroreflectors from the aft end of the Zvezda Service Module. Retrieval of the retroreflectors will assist the preparation of navigational data for next year's maiden arrival of a new European supply ship. While outside the Station, the spacewalkers also will deploy an experiment test bed designed to study the radiation environment and change sample packages in a Japanese materials exposure experiment. They also will change sample packages in a Russian apparatus that is used to study the residue created from Station thruster firings.

  All systems on board the Station are in good condition, including the Elektron air-generating system, which was shut down for part of the week. The Elektron separates oxygen out of water to supply breathing air for the Station crewmembers. It shut off unexpectedly on Tuesday. After evaluation, the Elektron was restarted Friday morning and has been running fine since. Spare parts for Elektron are on board ISS along with other plentiful backup sources of oxygen for the crew if required.

  This week, Russian specialists positively identified a piece of debris seen floating by the Station's port side on Sunday. Photographs taken by Foale and Kaleri through a window in the Zvezda module showed a bolt and an accompanying washer. From a part number that was visible in the picture, the items were identified as coming from a mechanism that held the Progress ship's starboard solar array in place during launch. Those items, which served no purpose after the array was deployed prior to its arrival at ISS, drifted slowly away from the Station and pose no danger. Russian specialists are studying how to prevent similar bolts on other ships from coming loose in the future. Plans described in prior reports for Foale to vent residual condensation from the inner panes of the main window in the Destiny laboratory module last weekend were put on hold due to spacewalk preparations. Venting that moisture, and installing a new flex hose to prevent condensate buildup between those panes in the future, is expected to be assigned to the crew's task list in early March.

• 2004 Feb 26 - International Space Station Status Report #04-11 

  The residents of the International Space Station today conducted the first ever two-man spacewalk without a crewmember inside, but the planned five and a half hour-spacewalk to support technology experiments and prepare for a future visit from a cargo vehicle was cut short by a cooling system problem with one of the two crewmembers' Russian Orlan suits.

  The spacewalk by Expedition 8 Commander Mike Foale and Flight Engineer Alexander Kaleri was proceeding smoothly and problem-free for almost three hours until Kaleri reported that drops of water were beginning to form inside his helmet visor and that his suit temperature was a little warm. Within minutes, Russian flight controllers reported an apparent failure of the system that provides cooling for Kaleri's suit. Initially, Russian suit specialists surmised that the problem existed with the suit's sublimator device, which provides cooling and dehumidifying capability and directed the crew to end the spacewalk. Despite the problem, Kaleri was never in any danger and suit temperatures never rose to uncomfortable levels.

  Back inside the Pirs Docking Compartment from which the spacewalk was staged, Foale removed his suit after Pirs was repressurized so he could conduct an inspection of Kaleri's suit.

  Foale quickly detected a kink in one of the tubes in Kaleri's liquid cooling garment that provides the flow of water throughout the suit. The kink was straightened out and water began to flow once again normally in Kaleri's suit.

  Earlier today, after configuring systems, closing module hatches and buttoning up the Station in the unlikely event a problem would prevent them from returning inside, Foale and Kaleri depressurized Pirs and opened the hatch to begin their spacewalk at 3:17 p.m. CST (2117 GMT). It was the first time the Station had not been occupied during a so-called "extravehicular activity". U.S. and Russian technical teams had worked for months on procedures to insure the safety of the crew and the complex and reviewed all contingencies to mitigate possible risks with no one inside to respond to potential problems.

  All Station systems operated flawlessly in their autonomous configuration during the abbreviated spacewalk.

  Once outside the Pirs, Foale and Kaleri quickly set up tools and tethers to guide them during the spacewalk that was focused on the exterior of Zvezda. Their first task was the replacement of a cassette container on the Docking Compartment airlock housing sample materials for the study of the harsh effect of long-duration exposure of those materials to the space environment. Foale replaced one of two similar cassettes housed on the outside of Zvezda as the spacewalk drew to a premature close.

  Foale and Kaleri then removed one of two suitcase-size pallets of Japanese experiments from a bracket on Zvezda and moved a similar experiment package to that bracket. The Micro-Particle Capturer and Space Environment Exposure Devices (MPAC / SEEDS) had been in their current location since October 2001 when they were first installed outside Zvezda to measure micrometeoroid impacts on material specimens.

  Moving smartly through their tasks, Foale and Kaleri turned their attention to the installation of a Russian experiment called "Matryoshka" onto handrails outside Zvezda. The "Matryoshka" is a torso-like device housed in a container comprised of material simulating human tissue. It is designed to collect data on the absorption of radiation by crews living aboard the Station for long periods of time.

  As Foale and Kaleri completed their work to install the Matryoshka, Kaleri reported his suit problem, at around 6 p.m. CST (0000 GMT).

  Foale completed the installation of Russian material science experiment container on the Zvezda Service Module as Kaleri made his way back to Pirs. He and Foale closed the hatch to Pirs at 7:12 p.m. CST (0112 GMT) bringing the spacewalk to a close after 3 hours, 55 minutes.

  It was the 52nd spacewalk in support of Station assembly and maintenance, the 27th staged from the Station itself, the fourth for Foale in his career and Kaleri's fifth.

  Once they are back inside the Station's living quarters, the crew will reopen all of the hatches and prepare the Station for regular operations. Foale and Kaleri are scheduled for several days of off-duty time through early next week.

• 2004 Feb 27 - EVA ISS EO-8-1  Crew: Foale, Kaleri. EVA Type: Extra-Vehicular Activity. EVA Duration: 0.16 days.

  The astronauts retrieved and replaced and replaced science instruments on the ISS Pirs and Zvezda modules. These included sample materials that had been exposed to space for two years and a radiation phantom that measured doses a human would have received. The spacewalk, planned for 5 hours 45 minutes duration, was cut short when the cooling circuit in Kaleri's suit malfunctioned and he reported seeing drops of water on his helmet visor. This was the first time NASA had dared to send the entire crew of the station out on an EVA in the ISS program (though common Russian practice during their Mir project).

• 2004 Mar 5 - International Space Station Status Report #04-12 

  Expedition 8 Commander Michael Foale today reestablished a vacuum between the Destiny Laboratory's science window's two panes of optical-quality glass. The window work was associated with continuing repairs following a small pressure leak detected on the International Space Station in January.

  Foale, with help from Flight Engineer Alexander Kaleri, completed a procedure to remove any condensation that might have accumulated between the glass panes during removal a damaged flex hose used to keep the area between the window panes at vacuum. The procedure began about 9:20 a.m. CST, and was complete by noon. The final remaining steps in the repairs are construction of a cover to protect the hose against inadvertent contact and installation of a new jumper hose that was delivered by the resupply ship Progress 13.

  Kaleri continued to troubleshoot intermittent failures of the Elektron oxygen generation system in the Zvezda service module. That system, which pulls oxygen from water, is one of several mechanisms used to provide breathing air. Today, Kaleri and flight controllers in Moscow restarted the system repeatedly in an effort to eliminate bubbles in the system. While repairs are ongoing, the Station's atmosphere has been repressurized using oxygen from the Progress spacecraft. Oxygen-generating canisters also are available, but are not being used at this time.

  The first part of the week consisted of time off and light duty for Foale and Kaleri after last week's first-ever two-person spacewalk without a crew member inside the Station. The pair completed almost three-quarters of the tasks planned before Kaleri reported that drops of water were beginning to form inside his helmet visor and that his suit temperature was a little warm. After cutting short the spacewalk, the pair quickly detected a kink in one of the tubes in Kaleri's liquid cooling garment. The kink was straightened out and water began to flow normally.

  The crew also worked with several science experiments, notably the PromISS protein crystal growth experiment. Wednesday, they stowed the experiment sample in the Aquarius incubator after a successful 30-day growth cycle.

  In Thursday's regularly scheduled ISS Mission Management Team meeting, U.S. and Russian managers discussed the status of a minute pressure decay in the two helium systems that pressurize the Soyuz 7 vehicle's propellant tanks and lines. The pressure decay was first noted on System 2 when the Soyuz arrived at the Station in October, and was confirmed on System 1 during a thruster test in preparation for last week's spacewalk. Russian flight controllers have concluded that the decay poses no concern. The decay was extremely small and there are no plans to change normal entry and landing procedures.

  Meanwhile, flight controllers in Houston reported seeing slight momentary increases in electrical current and vibration readings from one of the Station's Control Moment Gyroscopes (CMG) earlier this week. The readings were seen on CMG 3, one of three operating CMGs on the Station, following normal steps taken as part of a Station altitude reboost performed Tuesday using thrusters on the docked Progress cargo craft. All three CMGs continue to function well now with normal current indications, although flight controllers continue to evaluate the readings seen in recent CMG operations. Powered by electricity generated by the Station's solar arrays, the CMGs provide continuous orientation control of the Station without using the Station's limited fuel supply.

• 2004 Mar 12 - International Space Station Status Report #04-13 

  The Expedition 8 Commander Michael Foale and Flight Engineer Alexander Kaleri started the week with a three-day weekend and finished it with a successful treadmill repair. The International Space Station crew can now exercise on the treadmill with a working gyroscope.

  Foale and Kaleri spent the better part of three days working closely with Mission Control-Houston to take the treadmill out of its well, remove a gyroscope, replace a bearing within that gyro and put all the pieces back together. Thursday the crew began exercising on the treadmill again. The treadmill has operated properly since, but flight controllers are continuing to monitor its performance during initial exercise sessions with the gyroscope both activated and deactivated.

  The crew has been able to exercise on the machine without the Vibration Isolation and Stabilization (VIS) system activated, for the last three months. The VIS system keeps the rigorous movement of the crew on the treadmill from affecting delicate microgravity science experiments.

  The crew heard noises coming from the treadmill in November, which engineers determined was a failed bearing in the gyroscope that stabilizes movement in the roll direction. A repair kit was sent to the Station in January aboard a Progress resupply spacecraft. After this week's repair work, Foale reported the noises had stopped.

  Repair work will continue onboard the Station this weekend as Kaleri works through troubleshooting procedures on the oxygen-generating Elektron system. Friday he began systematically checking its parts to help determine what may need replacing. There is a full complement of spare parts aboard the Station for the Elektron system.

  Russian oxygen-generating canisters will be used to supplement the Station's oxygen beginning Saturday. The final repressurization using Progress oxygen tanks was completed this week. The next Progress vehicle is scheduled to arrive in May. The Station has plentiful supplies of oxygen aboard - enough to last more than four months - if needed. However, the Elektron is expected to be fully operational once the current troubleshooting and necessary repairs are completed.

  Friday, Foale completed the third of four sessions with the Foot/Ground Reaction Forces During Spaceflight, or FOOT, experiment. By doing so, he gathered additional data about how he uses his legs differently in microgravity, which will help scientists develop countermeasure techniques for future long-duration spaceflights.

  Foale also completed a familiarization session with the Advanced Diagnostic Ultrasound in Microgravity, or ADUM, experiment. The training involved working with a computer-based training program that will help him perform an ultrasound examination on Kaleri next week. The ADUM experiment is studying how minimally trained Station crewmembers can perform advanced ultrasound examinations using the computer-based program and guidance from doctors in Mission Control.

• 2004 Mar 19 - International Space Station Status Report #04-14 

  Heading into the homestretch of their 61/2-month mission aboard the International Space Station, Expedition 8 Commander Michael Foale and Flight Engineer Alexander Kaleri spent the week conducting biomedical experiments and performing maintenance on a key Station component.

  Foale and Kaleri spent two days replacing a liquids unit and a water flow system in the Russian Elektron oxygen-generation device in the Zvezda Service Module after weeks of troubleshooting efforts failed to coax it back into service. The Elektron produces oxygen for the Station atmosphere through electrolysis - the separation of hydrogen and oxygen from water that flows through a series of pumps and valves. The hydrogen is vented overboard.

  Russian specialists spent several weeks trying to track down the most probable cause for repeated shutdowns of the system after just a few minutes of operation each time. They concluded that particles of potassium hydroxide electrolytes - a by-product of the electrolysis process - that created air bubbles in the liquids unit, resulting in the unit's repeated shutdowns, were the most probable cause of the problem.

  Since last Saturday, the crew has derived oxygen from solid-fuel oxygen generation (SFOG) canisters activated in Zvezda. The crew has been using an average of two SFOGs each day since available air and oxygen were depleted from tanks in the Russian Progress supply vehicle following the first shutdown of the Elektron.

  Russian engineers now plan to activate the refurbished Elektron Saturday for a few days of checkouts and diagnosis. If the Elektron repair proves successful, the SFOG canisters will no longer be needed. There is an ample supply of those canisters, as well as oxygen contained in the Quest airlock tanks, that could provide oxygen for the Station for several months.

  To accommodate the Elektron repair, a few lower-priority tasks were moved to other days, including routine proficiency training for Foale on the Canadarm2 robotic arm.

  On Friday, Foale did a leak check of the window in the Destiny laboratory. In January, a flex hose that helps to vent air from the inner panes of the window was found to be causing a minor pressure decay from the Station. The flex hose was replaced a few weeks ago, and the leak check revealed an airtight system.

  Foale and Kaleri took advantage of the recently repaired high-tech treadmill to get in several rounds of intense exercise. A lengthy overhaul last week brought the system back into full operation.

  Foale spent some time this week conducting experiments with a cellular biotechnology device to test methods for improved cell culture growth and with a device designed to measure the forces imparted on the joints of the lower extremities and the feet in the absence of gravity.

  Foale and Kaleri also took time out from their schedule to answer questions from a syndicated talk show host from the Premiere Radio Networks and from students at the Howard Bishop Middle School in Gainesville, Fla.

• 2004 Mar 19 - International Space Station Status Report #04-14A 

  Heading into the homestretch of their 61/2-month mission aboard the International Space Station, Expedition 8 Commander Michael Foale and Flight Engineer Alexander Kaleri spent the week conducting biomedical experiments and performing maintenance on a key Station component.

  Foale and Kaleri spent two days replacing a liquids unit and a water flow system in the Russian Elektron oxygen-generation device in the Zvezda Service Module after weeks of troubleshooting efforts failed to coax it back into service. The Elektron produces oxygen for the Station atmosphere through electrolysis - the separation of hydrogen and oxygen from water that flows through a series of pumps and valves. The hydrogen is vented overboard.

  Russian specialists spent several weeks trying to track down the most probable cause for repeated shutdowns of the system after just a few minutes of operation each time. They concluded that particles of potassium hydroxide electrolytes - a by-product of the electrolysis process - that created air bubbles in the liquids unit, resulting in the unit's repeated shutdowns, were the most probable cause of the problem.

  Since last Saturday, the crew has derived oxygen from solid-fuel oxygen generation (SFOG) canisters activated in Zvezda. The crew has been using an average of two SFOGs each day since available air and oxygen were depleted from tanks in the Russian Progress supply vehicle following the first shutdown of the Elektron.

  Russian engineers now plan to activate the refurbished Elektron Saturday for a few days of checkouts and diagnosis. If the Elektron repair proves successful, the SFOG canisters will no longer be needed. There is an ample supply of those canisters, as well as oxygen contained in the Quest airlock tanks, that could provide oxygen for the Station for several months.

  To accommodate the Elektron repair, a few lower-priority tasks were moved to other days, including routine proficiency training for Foale on the Canadarm2 robotic arm.

  On Friday, Foale did a leak check of the window in the Destiny laboratory. In January, a flex hose that helps to vent air from the inner panes of the window was found to be causing a minor pressure decay from the Station. Although the flex hose is operating normally, today's check revealed a slight leak from one of the inner panes of the window. The leak will not affect the pressure in the Station, but it will require another venting procedure in the next week or so to prevent condensation buildup.

  Foale and Kaleri took advantage of the recently repaired high-tech treadmill to get in several rounds of intense exercise. A lengthy overhaul last week brought the system back into full operation.

  Foale spent some time this week conducting experiments with a cellular biotechnology device to test methods for improved cell culture growth and with a device designed to measure the forces imparted on the joints of the lower extremities and the feet in the absence of gravity.

  Foale and Kaleri also took time out from their schedule to answer questions from a syndicated talk show host from the Premiere Radio Networks and from students at the Howard Bishop Middle School in Gainesville, Fla.

• 2004 Mar 26 - International Space Station Status Report #04-16 

  The oxygen-producing Elektron unit aboard the International Space Station continues to function well, as it has since it was restarted early last Saturday following the replacement of major components.

  Expedition 8 Commander Michael Foale and Flight Engineer Alexander Kaleri spent two days last week replacing a liquids unit and a water flow system of the Russian Elektron, in the Zvezda Service Module. The Elektron separates water into oxygen and hydrogen. The oxygen is used in the Station's atmosphere while the hydrogen is vented overboard.

  The Elektron had shut down repeatedly after only brief periods of operation during the past several weeks. In the meantime, the crew used oxygen and air from the Progress cargo vehicle docked at the Station to replenish the atmosphere, as well as Solid Fuel Oxygen Generation (SFOG) canisters. Each canister can supply the oxygen needs of one crewmember for one day.

  A total of 13 SFOGs were used during the week before the Elektron was repaired and activated. More than 100 SFOGs remain on board, and two high-pressure tanks on the Station's Quest airlock contain a supply of oxygen that could last several months if needed.

  With the Elektron running smoothly, Foale and Kaleri devoted much of the week to science activities.

  Kaleri tended the Rasteniya experiment, a greenhouse containing peas, designed to see how plants grow in a microgravity environment. Kaleri also did a test of the Russian TORU manual docking system, using the ISS Progress 13 vehicle docked to Zvezda. That Progress is to be undocked and burn up in the Earth's atmosphere in mid-May, the day before a new Progress arrives with about 21/2 tons of equipment, supplies, water and fuel.

  Foale also worked with the Miscible Fluids in Microgravity (MFMG) experiment. It involves injecting honey into a water container to see how the two combine in weightlessness. He also worked with the Pore Formation and Mobility Investigation, melting a transparent material in the Microgravity Science Glovebox to observe the formation and interaction of bubbles in the material. The experiment could help in prevention of bubble formation during such processes, perhaps resulting in stronger materials.

  On Monday and Tuesday, both crewmembers wore acoustic dosimeters for about eight hours as part of regularly scheduled tests of the Station's noise levels. For the last half of both days, they removed the dosimeters and set them up in stationary locations. On Tuesday, both crewmembers talked with students at Mill Middle School in Williamsville, N.Y.

  Today Foale and Kaleri did a periodic, detailed inspection of one of two U.S. spacesuits on the Station. The other is not scheduled for inspection for several months.

• 2004 Apr 2 - International Space Station Status Report #04-17 

  Plans for the next crew rotation on the International Space Station are on schedule this week, as the Expedition 8 crew members moved into their final month on orbit and their successors to within weeks of their scheduled launch.

  On Thursday, Station managers conducted a Stage Operations Readiness Review and found no constraints to the planned April 19 launch of the ISS Soyuz 8 carrying Expedition 9 Commander Gennady Padalka and Flight Engineer Mike Fincke, along with European Space Agency astronaut André Kuipers of the Netherlands. Kuipers will be aboard the Station for nine days performing scientific experiments under a commercial contract between ESA and the Federal Space Agency (of Russia) during the handover to the new permanent crew.

  Preparations for the Expedition 9 flight will be further evaluated next week during a Flight Readiness Review. Meanwhile, the crew received its final certification for flight from the Gagarin Cosmonaut Training Center in Star City, Russia, this week.

  Aboard the Station, Commander Mike Foale and Flight Engineer Alexander Kaleri successfully completed the initial maintenance and some functional testing of two new Russian Orlan spacesuits delivered in January aboard the most recent Progress supply ship. Those suits replace three older Orlan units on the complex. Padalka and Fincke plan to use them on the first spacewalk of Expedition 9.

  Foale also completed an external survey of the Station using cameras on the Canadarm2 robotic arm. Foale was conducting his final proficiency training operating the arm. During the survey, Foale solved a mystery, reporting to Mission Control that a sound he has heard from outside of the Destiny laboratory module was being caused each time he commanded the Lab’s external camera to tilt up and down.

  On Friday morning, Kaleri reported another noise to Mission Control in Moscow. He and Foale heard a metallic sound from Zvezda's Instrument Compartment, a sound they said was very similar to a noise they reported on Nov. 26, 2003, coming from the same area. Russian controllers told the crew that the fact that the noise has apparently repeated itself would likely indicate the cause is the operation of a system on the station or some other activity. Russia and U.S. controllers will continue to evaluate the report. All systems on the complex continue to operate normally.

  Russian specialists are reviewing plans to replace a cooling fan motor in the Soyuz spacecraft’s descent module. The fan, which stopped functioning during the trip to the Station last October, helps maintain a proper level of humidity inside the Soyuz.

  Mission Control completed a successful test of software that will operate the Thermal Rotary Radiator Joints on the Station’s truss. The large rotating joints will be used to position the Station's radiators as they dissipate heat from the complex. Ground controllers ran the check of programs that will automate the positioning of the Station’s radiators as they dissipate heat in the future when the Station's full cooling system is activated.

  Foale and Kaleri took time to discuss the progress of their mission with students twice during the week. The crew answered questions from a group of Houston-area middle school students affiliated with the Aerospace Academy for Engineering and Teacher Education. They also demonstrated how some common tools, such as a wrench and hammer, function in space during a talk with elementary school students from the Center for Science and Industry in Columbus, Ohio.

• 2004 Apr 9 - International Space Station Status Report #04-18 

  Three weeks remain in the six-month voyage aboard the International Space Station for Commander Mike Foale and Flight Engineer Alexander Kaleri as the Expedition 8 crew prepares to return home later this month. Their week aboard the station focused on wrapping up science experiments and tidying up for their replacement crew, which is in Russia for launch preparations.

  On Thursday, Station managers conducted a Flight Readiness Review and found no issues for the planned launch at 10:19 p.m. CDT April 18 of Expedition 9 Commander Gennady Padalka and Flight Engineer Mike Fincke, along with European Space Agency astronaut André Kuipers of the Netherlands.

  This next crew completed a dress rehearsal for its launch earlier in the week at the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan, and will rest over the weekend in Moscow before returning to the launch site Tuesday for final launch preparations.

  While the Expedition 8 crew completes its work, flight controllers and engineers reviewing video of the outside of the station found an unusual black mark on the station's dish antenna. It was determined that over time, as the antenna moves to track NASA's communications satellites, it has been brushing very lightly against a locking pin and handrail. Changing the software slightly to "tell" the dish to stop before gimballing that far easily solved the problem. In any case, the phenomenon has had no effect on the operation of the antenna.

  Foale this week focused his attention on wrapping up two major experiments conducted on his increment. The Pore Formation of Materials Investigations (PFMI) and the Foot/Ground Reaction Forces during Space Flight (FOOT) experiments were completed and stowed. PFMI studies the formation of bubbles in metals that could lead to better ways of preventing that occurrence in manufacturing on Earth. FOOT is studying countermeasures to bone mineral loss that occurs in space travelers rapidly in the microgravity environment of space. The same bone mineral loss occurs in postmenopausal females over the course of a year or so.

  Kaleri spent some of the week fixing a cooling fan that helps control humidity in the Soyuz spacecraft in which he and Foale will return home. The two also reviewed the inventory of items that will be brought home.

• 2004 Apr 16 - International Space Station Status Report #04-19 

  Work to prepare for the eighth International Space Station crew exchange continued on schedule this week, both on the Station and at the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan.

  Expedition 9 Commander Gennady Padalka, Flight Engineer Mike Fincke, and European Space Agency astronaut André Kuipers of the Netherlands are at the launch site, ready to go. The ISS Soyuz 8 spacecraft was mated with its rocket booster today, and the pair will be rolled out to the launch site Saturday. Launch remains on schedule for 10:19 p.m. CDT April 18.

  Expedition 8 Commander Mike Foale and Flight Engineer Alexander Kaleri spent the week preparing the Station for the replacement crew's arrival, packing for the trip home after six months on orbit, and wrapping up work on several experiments.

  Foale and Kaleri supported a test of their ISS Soyuz 7 return vehicle's maneuvering jets, which verified that all thrusters are ready to support undocking, deorbit burn and re-entry. Russian flight controllers monitoring the test reported seeing evidence of the same helium leak that was initially seen in telemetry during the Expedition 8 crew's launch in October. On Friday, Russian controllers conducted an additional test of the helium system used to pressurize the Soyuz fuel tanks to gather additional data on the leak rate, which is believed to have increased some over previous observations. Russian flight controllers are continuing to evaluate data from the tests. However, no impact to the normal Soyuz descent and landing is anticipated.

  Kaleri also spent several hours in the Soyuz descent module changing out a pair of ventilation and humidity removal fans. He replaced the fans with a spare stored in the Zarya control module and verified that they are working well. The old fan package, which has one working fan, will be retained on the Station as a spare.

  Foale conducted a final session with the Hand Posture Analyzer experiment on Thursday, after wrapping up work with the Pore Formation of Materials Investigations (PFMI) and the Foot/Ground Reaction Forces during Space Flight (FOOT) experiments last week. The Hand Posture Analyzer is an Italian investigation looking at how humans use their arms, wrists and hands for reaching and grasping in microgravity. Final sessions with the RENAL kidney stone experiment were conducted Friday.

  Foale also spent several hours Wednesday setting up and activating ESA's HEAT experiment in the Microgravity Science Glovebox for his visiting colleague, Kuipers. HEAT will evaluate whether a grooved heat pipe can be used effectively in the weightlessness of space to transfer heat from hot surfaces, such as electronic devices, to cold surfaces, such as radiator panels.

  Otherwise, the crew conducted a series of routine periodic fitness evaluation tests on themselves, and collected samples of a variety of environmental factors inside the Station for return to Earth and evaluation by scientists on the ground when they return home.

  The Expedition 9 crew is scheduled to rendezvous and dock with the Station at 12:04 a.m. CDT Wednesday. Hatches will open and the five spacefarers will greet each other at 1:25 a.m. that morning, beginning more than a week of joint operations.

• 2004 Apr 18 - International Space Station Status Report #04-20 

  A new crew is en route to the International Space Station following the launch tonight of the ISS Soyuz 8 spacecraft carrying Expedition 9 Commander Gennady Padalka, NASA Science Officer and Flight Engineer Mike Fincke and visiting researcher European Space Agency Astronaut Andre Kuipers of the Netherlands.

  The Soyuz launched flawlessly at 10:19 p.m. CDT from the Baikonur Cosmodrome, Kazakstan, and is on course to dock with the Station at 12:04 a.m. CDT Wednesday, April 21. Padalka and Fincke will spend six months aboard the Station, while Kuipers will spend nine days at the complex conducting science experiments before returning to Earth with the Expedition 8 crew, Commander Mike Foale and Alexander Kaleri, the Station flight engineer and ISS Soyuz 7 commander.

  The hatches between the arriving ISS Soyuz 8 spacecraft and the Station will be opened at about 1:25 a.m. CDT Wednesday. Live NASA Television coverage of the docking and hatch opening will begin at 11 p.m. CDT Tuesday. At the time the Expedition 9 crew launched from Baikonur today, the Station was flying about 240 miles above the southern tip of South America.

• 2004 Apr 18 - International Space Station Status Report #04-21 

  New residents arrived at the International Space Station at 12:01 a.m. CDT (0501 GMT, 9:01 a.m. Moscow time) Wednesday. Docking of the Expedition 9 Crew's Soyuz spacecraft (ISS Soyuz 8 / TMA-4) initiated a nine-day handover and science operation by a visiting European Space Agency researcher.

  With Expedition 9 Commander Gennady Padalka at the controls, the Soyuz vehicle linked up to the nadir docking port of the Zarya Control Module as the two spacecraft flew 230 miles above central Asia. The docking followed Monday's launch from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan. ISS Flight Engineer and NASA Science Officer Mike Fincke and ESA Astronaut Andre Kuipers of the Netherlands joined Padalka on the Soyuz.

  Padalka and Fincke will spend six months living on the Station while Kuipers, who is flying under a commercial contract between ESA and the Russian Federal Space Agency, will conduct an nine-day research mission before returning April 30 with Expedition 8 Commander Mike Foale and Flight Engineer Alexander Kaleri, who monitored the new crew's arrival from onboard the ISS. Today marked 186 days in space for Foale and Kaleri, and 184 days on the Station.

  After leak checks, hatches were opened at 1 a.m. CDT, allowing Foale and Kaleri to greet their first visitors since October to begin joint operations. One of the first tasks for the five crewmembers was a safety briefing and the start of Kuipers' science activities. His scientific payloads arrived at the Station in January on the Progress supply craft presently docked to the Zvezda Service Module.

  On the scene at the Russian Mission Control Center in Korolev outside Moscow observing the docking were NASA Deputy Administrator Fred Gregory, Michael Kostelnik, NASA's Deputy Associate Administrator for Space Station and Space Shuttle and ISS Program Manager William Gerstenmaier.

  Over the next nine days, Padalka and Fincke will familiarize themselves with Station systems and stowed equipment, conduct robotics training with the Canadarm2 robot arm, and receive detailed briefings on the scientific payloads they will be operating through October.

  Foale and Kaleri will exercise rigorously to condition themselves in preparation for the effects of gravity upon their return to Earth with Kuipers in the ISS Soyuz 7 craft (TMA-3) mated to the Pirs Docking Compartment. Landing is set for April 30 at sunrise in north central Kazakhstan.

• 2004 Apr 19 - Soyuz TMA-4  Crew: Fincke, Padalka, Kuipers. Spacecraft: Soyuz TMA. Payload: Soyuz TMA s/n 214. Mass: 7,250 kg (15,980 lb). Launch Site: Baikonur. Launch Vehicle: Soyuz. Duration: 187.89 days. Perigee: 359 km (223 mi). Apogee: 367 km (228 mi). Inclination: 51.60 deg. Period: 91.80 min.

  Soyuz TMA-4 was ISS transport mission ISS 8S and delivered the EO-9 caretaker crew of Gennadiy Padalka and Michael Fincke, together with the ESA/Netherlands Delta mission crewmember Andre Kuipers, to the Space Station. Soyuz TMA-4 docked with the nadir port on Zarya at 05:01 GMT on April 21 and the hatches to the ISS were opened at 06:30 GMT. Another gyro on the station had shut down prior to the docking and possibly would require a maintenance spacewalk to replace its failed electronics.

  After Soyuz TMA-5 docked with the ISS on October 16, the EO-9 crew handed activities over to the EO-10 crew.

• 2004 Apr 23 - International Space Station Status Report #04-22 

  New crewmembers aboard the International Space Station settled into a routine of handover briefings and scientific experiments after their arrival early Wednesday.

  Expedition 9's Commander Gennady Padalka and NASA ISS Science Officer Mike Fincke docked their ISS Soyuz 8 spacecraft to the nadir port of the Zarya Control Module at 12:01 a.m. CDT Wednesday. They opened hatches and boarded the station about an hour later, beginning a six-month stay.

  With them on the Soyuz was European Space Agency Astronaut Andre Kuipers of the Netherlands, who will spend nine days aboard the Station conducting scientific investigations. Kuipers will return to Earth with Expedition 8's Commander Michael Foale and Flight Engineer Alexander Kaleri. Foale and Kaleri arrived on the Station last October 20.

  Their ISS Soyuz 7 capsule is scheduled to undock from the Station's Pirs Docking Compartment, where it has been during Expedition 8's stay on the Station, at 3:52 p.m. CDT April 29. The landing is scheduled for 7:10 p.m. CDT the same day on the steppes of Kazakhstan.

  Early Thursday, during their Daily Planning Conference, crewmembers were told that one of the Station's three operating Control Moment Gyroscopes, CMG 2, had gone off line at about 3:20 p.m. CDT on Wednesday. The CMGs use power from the solar arrays to control the Station's orientation. Flight controllers traced the problem to a Remote Power Controller Module (RPCM), a kind of remotely controlled circuit breaker, that had malfunctioned and cut off power to the gyroscope. The RPCM is mounted on the top of the Station's central truss segment, above the U.S. Laboratory Destiny.

  Two CMGs continue to operate well and are sufficient for controlling the Station's orientiation until the RPCM can be replaced. Flight controllers have begun planning a spacewalk that will likely be conducted sometime in the next month to replace the RPCM with a spare unit and restore operation of CMG-2. A spare RPCM is aboard the Station.

• 2004 Apr 29 - International Space Station Status Report #04-23 

  Completing more than six months in space, the International Space Station Expedition 8 crew, Commander Mike Foale and Flight Engineer Alexander Kaleri, returned to Earth today, bringing with them European Space Agency Astronaut Andre Kuipers of the Netherlands, who had spent nine days aboard the complex conducting research.

  After a flawless descent aboard the ISS Soyuz 7 spacecraft, Foale, Kaleri and Kuipers landed on target in north-central Kazakstan, about 43 miles (70 kilometers) northwest of the town of Arkalyk, at 7:12 p.m. CDT. Recovery forces arrived at the site within moments of the touchdown.

  Foale and Kaleri spent 194 days, 18 hours and 35 minutes in space, the second longest expedition to be completed aboard the Station. They launched on Oct. 18, 2003, on the same Soyuz spacecraft that brought them home. In addition to scientific experiments aboard the Station, in February Foale and Kaleri conducted the first spacewalk ever performed from the complex by a two-person crew.

  With the completion of this flight, Foale has accumulated more time in space than any U.S. astronaut. On this mission, a 1997 flight to the Russian Mir Space Station, and four Space Shuttle missions, Foale has amassed a total of 374 days, 11 hours and 19 minutes in space.

  Foale, Kaleri and Kuipers will travel to Star City, Russia, where they will remain for mission debriefings and medical activities. Foale is expected to return to Houston in mid-May.

  Aboard the Station, the Expedition 9 crew, Commander Gennady Padalka and NASA Station Science Officer Mike Fincke, are beginning a six-month mission that will include three spacewalks. Expedition 9 is scheduled to return to Earth Oct. 21. Padalka and Fincke will have light duty for the next three days as they rest after completing the busy handover period of joint operations between the two crews.

• 2004 Apr 30 - Landing of Soyuz TMA-3 

  The ISS EO-8 crew of Kaleri and Foale, together with the ESA Delta mission astronaut Kuipers, undocked Soyuz TMA-3 from the International Space Station at 20:52 GMT on 29 April. There was minor concern due to a helium leak in the Soyuz engine pressurisation system. The Soyuz capsule made a soft landing at 00:11 GMT on 30 April near the city of Arkalyk. The recovery forces consisted of 160 people, eight helicopters, two aircraft and two all-terrain vehicles.The EO-9 crew of Fincke and Padalka remained aboard the ISS on a six-month caretaking mission.