Major Peake’s flight assignment:

At an event in the UK earlier today – exactly four years to the day that Major Tim Peake’s selection as a European Space Agency (ESA) astronaut was made public – it was announced that Major Peake will fly to the ISS for five and a half months, as a Flight Engineer on Expeditions 46 and 47.

Major Peake will launch on the Russian Soyuz TMA-19M spacecraft from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan on November 30, 2015, and return to Earth on the same vehicle on May 16, 2016. During his mission, he will participate in many scientific experiments, many of which of European, and some maybe even of British origin.

According to the latest Flight Planning Integration Panel (FPIP) chart (available on L2), Major Peake can expect to see two visits of Russian Progress vehicles during his stint on the ISS, as well as two visits of SpaceX Dragon vehicles, and one visit of a Japanese HTV, with visits of Orbital’s Cygnus vehicle also likely.

He will also be trained to perform spacewalks, should one become necessary during his stay. However, plans at this point are very preliminary, and are likely to change dramatically between now and Major Peake’s launch.

Major Peake’s ISS slot was preliminarily planned to be assigned to French astronaut Thomas Pesquet, meaning Peake would have been the last of his selection class to fly, in the 2016-2017 timeframe. However, Pesquet appears to have now moved into the later slot, with Peake taking his place in the 2015-2016 slot, possibly in recognition of the UK’s recent financial contributions to ESA’s human spaceflight program.

In January of this year, NASASpaceflight.com sources reported that Major Peake had been chosen to fly on a unique short-duration flight opportunity afforded by the year-long mission to the ISS in 2015. Under this plan, Major Peake would have launched on Soyuz TMA-18M on September 30, 2015, and returned to Earth ten days later on Soyuz TMA-16M on October 10, 2015.

However, while said opportunity would have resulted in Major Peake flying to the ISS earlier than the 2016-2017 timeframe, it is understood that Britain objected to Major Peake being assigned to a short-duration slot while Andreas Mogensen of Denmark flew a long-duration mission, considering that the UK contributed more money than Denmark to ESA’s human spaceflight program at the most recent ESA ministerial meeting in November 2012.

As such, the 2015 short-duration opportunity has now been tentatively assigned to Denmark’s Andreas Mogensen, with Major Peake now being assigned to the long-duration slot from 2015-2016, and Frenchman Thomas Pesquet likely becoming the last of his class to fly in the 2016-2017 slot.

Major Tim Peake – Britain’s first ESA astronaut:

Timothy Peake was born on April 7, 1972, in Chichester, United Kingdom. In 1990, at the age of 18, he attended the Royal Military College Sandhurst, and upon graduation in 1992 went on to serve as an Officer in the British Army, serving as a platoon Commander with the Royal Green Jackets infantry division in Northern Ireland.

In 1994, he graduated as a helicopter pilot into the Army Air Corps (AAC), and four years later in 1998 went on to become a flight instructor, becoming instrumental in bringing the Apache attack helicopter into service with the AAC.

In 2005, he graduated from the Empire Test Pilots School at Boscombe Down in Wiltshire, England, a British military establishment that has now churned out eleven international astronauts. In 2006 he earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Flight Dynamics from the University of Portsmouth.

Major Peake left the British Army in 2009, after 17 years of service and over 3,000 flying hours, and became a helicopter test pilot with the Agusta-Westland company. However, just a few months later in May 2009, he was announced as part of the European astronaut class of 2009, in the process becoming the first Briton ever to be selected for the ESA astronaut program.

While the UK was not a contributor to ESA’s human spaceflight program at the time of his selection, it was hoped that Major Peake would serve as an incentive for the UK to become more involved with human spaceflight – a hope that has been fulfilled with the UK’s recent financial contributions to ESA’s manned programs.

Major Peake graduated from ESA astronaut training in November 2010, and since then has been dividing his time between flying Apache helicopters for the British Territorial Army (TA), and astronaut training in Houston, Germany, and Russia, in the hope of an assignment to an ISS crew.

Peake’s assignment to a space mission will not be the first time a Briton has been in space, with many joint UK-US nationals having flown aboard the Space Shuttle and ISS, including Mike Foale, Piers Sellers, Nick Patrick, and Greg H. Johnson. As NASA astronauts however, they all flew with US flags on their arms, and did not represent the UK.

British national Helen Sharman did make it into space in 1991, however she flew as part of a privately-funded commercial experiments program to the Russian Mir space station, and as such was not sanctioned by the British government to fly on behalf of UK. Other privately-financed “space tourist” flights have also been made by joint UK-US national Richard Garriott, and joint UK-South African national Mark Shuttleworth.

Coincidentally, Major Peake looks set to miss out on claiming the title of “first UK national on the ISS” by just 2.5 months, as that claim will instead go to British singer Sarah Brightman, who will visit the ISS as a space tourist, along with ESA astronaut Andreas Mogensen, for ten days from September 30-October 10, 2015, meaning that two Britons will in fact fly on the ISS in 2015.

Major Peake will however be the first ever person to fly in space on behalf of the UK government, thus representing the whole of the UK, and wearing a Union Jack flag on his arm. Major Peake’s flight will also represent the end of a long road by the British armed forces to get a current or former service member in space, having come tantalisingly close on several occasions in the past.

Those attempts were British Army Lieutenant-Colonels Anthony Boyle and Richard Farrimond, Royal Navy Commander Peter Longhurst, and Royal Air Force (RAF) Squadron Leader Nigel Wood, who in February 1984 were all selected as Payload Specialists to fly on the Space Shuttle as part of the Skynet 4 program. Ultimately however, the Space Shuttle Challenger disaster prevented all from ever flying in space.

The British forces again came close to being able to lay claim to an astronaut as part of the commercial Project Juno in 1991, with Royal Navy physician Gordon Brooks being selected as one of the final four candidates, and Army Air Corps Major Tim Mace being selected as back-up for Helen Sharman, who ultimately flew the mission.

Major Peake however will end the long history of disappointment when he blasts off toward the ISS in 2015.

“I am delighted to be proposed for a long-duration mission to the International Space Station. This is another important mission for Europe and in particular a wonderful opportunity for European science, industry and education to benefit from microgravity research,” said Major Peake on Monday.

“Since joining the European Astronaut Corps in 2009, I have been training to work on the Station and I am extremely grateful to the ground support teams who make it possible for us to push the boundaries of knowledge through human spaceflight and exploration.”

The United Kingdom and the ISS:

The UK has had a long and difficult relationship with the ISS over the past two decades, however, with Major Peake’s flight assignment, it finally looks as though the UK is firmly committing to the orbiting laboratory, and thus is finally set to start receiving its many benefits.

The UK was a signatory to the ISS Intergovernmental Agreement (IGA) signed on January 28, 1998, between the USA, Russia, Canada, Japan, and the 11-member ESA, however it was the only signatory of that agreement that did not go on to contribute any funding to the ISS program.

This was due to a long-standing UK government policy that barred the UK from contributing any funding to human spaceflight, preferring instead to focus on unmanned missions and telecommunications technologies. While this strategy allowed for the creation of a very strong satellite industry for the UK, it meant that Britain was left out of sharing in the scientific benefits that result from the ISS.

Within the past few years however, the space industry has been identified as a key area of growth for the UK, contributing £9 billion to the British economy every year. As such, a government-backed drive to increase the UK’s involvement in the space sector has been underway, which resulted in the April 2010 establishment of the UK Space Agency (UKSA), who are tasked with managing Britain’s participation in space projects, for the benefit of the entire nation.

UKSA manages Britain’s contributions to ESA, and in the November 2012 ESA ministerial meeting, Britain became the only nation in the austere European budget environment to actually increase their financial contributions to ESA, becoming ESA’s third largest contributor in the process.

Notable among Britain’s £1.2 billion ESA contributions at the 2012 ministerial were two never before seen British contributions to the field of ESA human spaceflight. In a departure from past policy, and following years of campaigning by many who saw the potential benefits of UK participation in human spaceflight, the UK made a £12.4 million contribution to ESA’s European Life and Physical Sciences (ELIPS) program, which will grant the UK access to the microgravity environment of the ISS to conduct research.

Additionally, the UK made a completely unexpected one-off contribution of £16 million to ESA’s effort to design and build an Automated Transfer Vehicle (ATV)-derived Service Module (SM) for NASA’s Orion spacecraft, which is now expected to include construction contracts for British industry in the areas of telecommunication and propulsion, meaning British made technologies could be used to send the first human beings beyond Earth’s orbit in over half a century.

ESA is building the Orion SM for NASA in order to cover ESA’s share of ISS operating costs for the period of 2017-2020, meaning that, since Britain is a financial contributor to the Orion SM effort, technically the UK will be an ISS partner nation for the 2017-2020 period. It is this fact that paved the way for Major Peake’s ISS flight assignment.

It is hoped that Major Peake may be able to carry out some British experiments during his time on the ISS, thanks to the UK’s recent contributions to the ELIPS program.

There is a surging interest lately in UK participation in microgravity research, with the second ever UK Space Environments conference set to take place at the National Space Centre in Leicester from November 9-10, 2013, organised by the UK Space Biomedicine Association (UKSBA).

While in late 2010 the Union Jack flag was quietly removed from the ISS, Major Tim Peake will hopefully place it back during his flight, as the UK finally takes its rightful place as an ISS partner nation, with the benefits of the orbiting laboratory in the form of scientific research and inspiration becoming available to the people of Britain at long last.

(Images: via NASA, BBC, and L2).

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Launch Pad 39A:

The famous launch pad last saw action during the final Space Shuttle launch, when Atlantis successfully departed on her STS-135 mission.

While the launch from Pad 39A marked an emotional end of an era for Shuttle, visible signs towards the future were already in evidence at next door’s 39B – a pad that was already deep into its transition for its role with the Space Launch System (SLS).

Work has continued on 39B, converting it into a “clean pad” that is capable of not only hosting the Heavy Lift Launch Vehicle (HLV) but also commercial launchers. However, only the SLS has committed its future to the pad.

Meanwhile, Pad 39A was placed into a mothballed state, with the majority of its Shuttle facilities still intact.

Despite its near-abandoned state, the facility has been fresh in the minds of the KSC teams involved with the spaceport’s transition.

According to L2 sources, NASA and Space Florida – the State’s aerospace economic development agency – came very close to a deal in 2012, centered around the handover of 39A. However, this was delayed due to NASA wanting “the State” to assume responsibility for any future environmental remediation at 39A, such as cleaning up any pollution/contamination.

Without a deal currently in place, no funds have yet been requested in the State legislature, which is required in order to carry the demolition work towards 39A becoming suitable for a commercial launch vehicle.

However, there has been some interest, with the L2 sources noting SpaceX have been looking into options at KSC for their future launch vehicles, providing the required incentives are in place.

Initial SpaceX interest was noted when sites were considered for their Falcon Heavy – although that vehicle’s Eastern Range home is currently set to be associated with its current SLC-40 pad at Cape Canaveral.

Sources claim that Space Florida will likely (obtain the use of) the Shiloh site located at the very North end of KSC, providing environmental reports come back favorable. In that event, Space Florida may be willing to provide funds to SpaceX to build a Falcon Heavy complex at the Shiloh site.

More intriguing is the interest in potentially hosting a Super Heavy version of the Falcon, a notional family of rockets called Falcon X, Falcon X Heavy and Falcon XX – vehicles that would utilize the preliminary future engine that was initially referred to as the Merlin 2, but has since moved towards an engine called Raptor.

These vehicles were mentioned by name via L2 source information as part of the interest in using Complex 39A in the long-term future, citing potential scenarios where Space Florida held full control over the complex within the next 10 years, which – it was noted – would be below the time frame SpaceX is envisioned to be looking at actually building their own Super Heavy Lift Vehicle.

The ULA have also expressed interest – again, providing the economics are acceptable – in potential options at Complex 39.

While their expanding order book can be catered for within the confines of their current infrastructure, the company is aware they need to look towards the future, especially if they also become the launch provider for a commercial crew vehicle.

“We still have a lot of untapped capacity in both the production and launch infrastructure. So we can increase rate by increasing staffing,” noted Dr. George Sowers, ULA VP for Human Launch Services, during a Q&A session with NASASpaceFlight.com members.

“At some point depending on where the demand was coming from, we would have to increase launch infrastructure – e.g., additional MLP (Mobile Launch Platform or VIF (Vehicle Integration Facility) for Atlas.”

Taking another pad in the Space Coast area – namely at Complex 39 – was also classed as an option by Dr. Sowers, citing the studies and discussions that have taken place with the famous spaceport. Moving forward with such a plan would depend on the viability of such an agreement.

“ULA is interested in the possibility in launching Atlas or Delta from LC-39. We have participated in the KSC led studies looking at options,” added the ULA VP. “Technically it’s feasible. The biggest hurdle right now is devising a business model that works.”

Notes and graphics from the studies were acquired by L2 (LINK), showing an integration path involving an Atlas V being stacked inside the Vehicle Assembly Building (VAB), atop of a former Shuttle MLP, prior to being rolled out to Complex 39.

Such an arrangement is part of KSC’s drive to become a multi-user spaceport, allowing for dual flows inside the VAB for both a commercial vehicle and the SLS – with work ongoing at this time to remove and replace platforms that were dedicated to the Shuttle stack.

The Kennedy Space Center’s Ground Systems Development and Operations (GSDO) program also noted how they expect to transition their three MLPs, with MLP-1 set to retire, MLP-2 to be dedicated to a liquid fueled vehicle – such as Atlas V, and MLP-3 to be used by a Solid Rocket Motor vehicle – such as the Liberty rocket.

ATK are understood to be close to announcing details into a realigned version of that rocket, currently known as Liberty II.

For a crewed Atlas V, the studies note the use of a standard Atlas MLP, placed over one of the SRB Hold Down Post (HDP) locations (Side 4) on MLP-2. The Atlas V – with graphics depicting a human rated vehicle with notional spacecraft on top – would then be integrated on to its standard launch mount.

A crew access tower would then be built over the location of the other SRB HDP, rising above the Atlas V MLP and reaching over – or around – to allow for access to the spacecraft the Atlas V was tasked with launching.

The entire set of hardware and rocket would then be rolled out of the VAB by the Crawler Transporter (CT) likely to a clean pad capable of hosting both commercial crew vehicles and SLS.

All studies are naturally notional, although the Agency appears to be moving forward with their drive to find new uses for 39A, following the release of an announcement for proposals for the commercial use of the pad.

“We remain committed to right-sizing our portfolio by reducing the number of facilities that are underused, duplicative, or not required to support the Space Launch System and Orion,” said Kennedy Center Director Bob Cabana.

“Launch Complex 39A is not required to support our asteroid retrieval mission or our eventual missions to Mars. But it’s in the agency’s and our nation’s best interest in meeting our commitment and direction to enable commercial space operations and allow the aerospace industry to operate and maintain the pad and related facilities.”

The release noted the assessments conducted by NASA show 39A could serve as a platform for a commercial space company’s launch activities providing the company assumes financial and technical responsibility of the complex’s operations and management.

The RFP move appears to confirm more than one company is indeed interested in the pad.

(Images via L2 content, NASA, AIAA and ULA)

(With the shuttle fleet retired, NSF and L2 are providing full transition level coverage, available no where else on the internet, from Orion and SLS to ISS and Commercial Cargo/Crew, to European and Russian vehicles.

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Optional Milestones under CCiCap and Phase Two of Certification:

NASA is currently funding three commercial crew providers under its Commercial Crew Integrated Capability (CCiCap) program which runs thru May 2014. Optional milestones under CCiCap beyond May 2014 could be exercised by NASA.

As with the two previous phases (CCDev1 & CCDev2), NASA is granting money under CCiCap using Space Act Agreements (SAAs), instead of Federal Acquisition Regulations (FAR).

In parallel, NASA has also started initial certification activities using FAR-based procurement contracts. The first phase of certification is known as the Certification Products Contract (CPC) and its deliverables include early life-cycle certification products (alternate standards, hazards analysis, and verification, validation, and certification plans).

CPC money was awarded last December to SpaceX, SNC and Boeing for amounts that did not exceed $10 million per company.

Under NASA’s planned strategy, the next phase of certification (phase two) should start in 2014 and should include development, test, evaluation, and certification activities. It could also include, as options, a number of crewed missions to the ISS following certification.

McAlister indicated that although FAR will be used for phase two of certification, NASA has yet to decide which part of the FAR would be used. He explained that while they are planning to shift away from SAAs for the second phase of certification, NASA will not change the basic philosophy of the program.

“The specific mechanism (space act agreement versus contract) has gotten a lot of attention but what’s really important to us is the philosophy under which we are exercising this program. We want the philosophy to remain the same. We still want industry to own (their crew transportation system). We still want some form of fixed price arrangement.

“We would like to do a public-private partnership meaning the companies (will) own the design and they (will) make more of the decisions. For customers, it should be (both) NASA and non-NASA customers.

“We are going to provide that investment (by a company) be a milestone payment based on cost. Industries defines how (they intend to do things) and we approve (it). We believe (that) we are going to maintain our program philosophy and approach to be more of a commercial oriented development.”

Phase two of certification is currently planned to start in the spring of 2014 (after the CCiCap base period ends) but the exact date has not yet been finalized.

McAlister explained that NASA is not certain that it will be able to award it in the spring of next year. If NASA is unable to award it at that time, NASA may decide to exercise some of the early optional milestones from CCiCap.

“If it’s in the government’s interest, we might exercise the early milestones. We do not intend to exercise the crewed flights milestones which are the last milestones. As you get later and later in the timeline, there is going to be more time for us to push those efforts into the certification phase. But we have not made any decision yet. We are (still) keeping the options open.”

McAlister’s statement confirms what Ed Mango, program manager of NASA’s commercial crew program, had previously told NASASpaceflight.com last year.

Mango had stated that the optional milestones in the CCiCap agreement had two purposes. “One, to get the entire end-to-end cost and schedule profile for the company to certify their hardware, their way for a crewed demonstration.

“Second, we may need to activate some options if the budget and schedule drives us in the late 2014 timeframe. We are not committing to any of the optional milestones, and there will be a rigorous process to activate those milestones.”

Although the optional milestones funding for each company is proprietary, the hearing charter from a House Hearing on commercial crew on September 14th 2012 revealed that the optional milestones under CCiCap for all three commercial crew providers “have aggregate total cost estimates in the range of $4.5 Billion”.

NASA or Company Astronauts?:

A crew transportation system can either be offered as a taxi or a rental system. Under the taxi system, each company would use its own pilot to ferry the crew. Under a rental arrangement, NASA would rent the entire capsule and would thus provide its own pilot.

McAlister explained that it was up to each company to decide which model they preferred. “NASA has not dictated whether the commercial providers should use a taxi or a rental car system. We have left that up to the provider (to decide which) concept of operation is best for them.

“Because of our requirement that they have to provide a lifeboat function, it kind of complicates the taxi model to some extent but it doesn’t preclude it. It’s up to the providers to figure out whether they want their pilot or a NASA pilot. As long as they meet our requirements, we shouldn’t care (which option they choose). We are probably going to ask for a four crew person rotation if we have the money for it.”

McAlister added that there will be test flights during the second phase of certification. It will likely include an uncrewed and a crewed flight, but they are leaving up to the commercial companies to define how many test flights they need.

The issue of whether NASA or company astronauts can be used also arises for test flights under phase two of certification. This issue was previously discussed by Ed Mango on January 9, 2013.

Click here for additional Commercial Crew News Articles: http://www.nasaspaceflight.com/news/commercial/

“Under phase two (of certification), it will probably be combined crews between what NASA needs as well as what the companies want to do. In the end, this is a joint effort between our astronaut core and the crew members that the individual companies (are) hiring.

“It’s that joint test plan that will get us to an end state. It isn’t just one or the other. If anyone has developed aircrafts in the past, you know that it is military pilots as well as pilots from the companies that do the flight testing. We expect that same kind of approach as we move through this overall process (of certification).”

Competition Is Important:

McAlister also emphasized the importance of maintaining competition in the next phase of certification. “If the budget would enable it, we would like to have more than one” commercial crew provider (during phase two of certification),” he noted.

“The posture for the government is to have competition because the big item is going to be in this ISS service line (i.e. the crew transportation contract is part of the budget for the ISS). (It was the) same way with cargo (where) we have seen significant benefits from competition.

“A lot of people think that competition only means you are getting a good price. It actually means that you are getting a safer vehicle as well. These guys are competing on safety because they know that’s (one of the) evaluation criteria by NASA. The government loses a lot of leverage when you only have one (provider).

“If we want any little change, if there is only one (provider), there is really no reason for that company to invest additionally. My big concern is that we will prematurely go down to one.

“Both schedule and competition are very important to NASA. We would like to maintain those. If it gets to the point where we can’t, it will depend on the proposals that we will receive.”

McAlister explained that if they are in a situation where one proposal is evaluated very highly but the others are not, this could have an impact on how may providers they will continue to fund in the next phase. On the other hand, he explained that if you have two proposals that are very close, this could dictate a different outcome.

“The lifetime of the ISS might (also) be factor in the decision. Once we get those phase two proposals and they get evaluated and we get a little bit better understanding of where our budget is going to be, we will be able to make a better informed decision.”

Cost of Commercial Crew Development:

McAlister also discussed the recently completed Booz Allen evaluation of NASA’s cost estimates for commercial crew.

“We have had some internal cost estimate (for commercial crew) that we have used using a variety of different data sources. Some of our stakeholders felt that it would be important for us to get an independent cost estimate. (Booz Allen) did not do an independent estimate; they did an assessment on our estimate.”

McAlister noted they purposely used some of the same people from Booz Allen that did the analysis for the Space Launch System (SLS) and the Multi-Purpose Crew Vehicle (MPCV) Orion.

He indicated that the report indicated that the “government cost estimates are high quality and follow standard cost estimating best practices but should be considered optimistic (i.e., likely to experience cost growth).” He said that he was pleased with the report.

“We do have some reserves (Unallocated Future Expenses – UFE) to cover these potential cost growth. In general, we embraced all of the findings (of Booz Allen). We had some slight differences on some of their recommendations regarding some of (the) areas of cost growth and the magnitude of the cost growth. But in general at (the) top level, we thought that (their) findings and recommendations were positive and kind of validated our approach and certainly our cost estimates.

“Where we had differences, I kind of consider them not to be big ticket items.”

McAlister said that in their estimates they calculated the total funding which would be required for each company in order to complete their program. He added that he couldn’t share these numbers because they were proprietary.

Cost of Commercial Crew Operations:

McAlister also discussed the cost of commercial crew once operational, noting that “the assumption is that (commercial crew) will be cost effective with respect to the Russians. However, McAlister admitted that he was being purposely vague on whether this meant lower than Soyuz or not.

“There is still a big pretty range on what the (costs) are going to come in at,” he added. “We will have a better idea (of the cost) in the phase two (certification) contracts.”

Another point that was addressed by McAlister is whether NASA would provide any Government Furnished Equipment (GFE) to the commercial crew companies. He explained that NASA’s philosophy was that they should not generally provide any equipment to the companies.

“We did not want to want to be in the critical path (by) providing any GFE. (However,) we always said that there were two possible exceptions: docking and the communication system because they are so integrated with the ISS. It got a little bit complicated with cargo (for systems that are very integrated with the ISS).”

McAlister indicated that rescue services could potentially be another exception, noting “for global rescue services, it might make more sense for the government to do that using Department of Defense assets as opposed to have each company negotiate individually.

“However, we haven’t made any final decisions on that, because there will hopefully be flights without NASA crew and (the companies) have to figure out how to do that without NASA’s involvement. Whatever, they come up with has to work in both situations.”

McAlister also discussed the impact that a slip to the 2017 schedule could have on each company’s business case.

“With a slip, you lose a bit of certainty on the business case for the providers if the end date for ISS is 2020. It gives them a couple of (fewer) flights that they can rely on. The plan was always for them to get non-government customers.

“Each provider is looking at that market a little bit differently. Some of them are bearish on that market; some are little bit more bullish. If you are more bullish, you might be able to say that’s not a problem, I can still close my business case (without these additional flights).

“If you are more risked adverse and you are not certain about that non-government market, it might be more difficult to close your business case. That also factors into how much they are willing to invest. It’s all kind of inter-related.”

At the same meeting William Gerstenmaier, Associate Administrator for Human Exploration and Operations Mission Directorate discussed another issue which could also have an impact the business case of certain of the commercial crew providers.

He mentioned that NASA has not yet decided whether it will extend the Crew Resupply Service (CRS) contract to Orbital and SpaceX after 2016, or if it will allow new entrants such as SNC or Boeing to compete for new cargo contracts after the current CRS expires in 2016.

NASA anticipates releasing a draft Request for Proposals (RFP) for phase two of certification in July, with the final RFP to follow in October. Awards are planned for the spring of 2014.

(Images: NASA and L2 Content)

(NSF and L2 are providing full transition level coverage, available no where else on the internet, from Orion and SLS to ISS and CRS/CCP, to European and Russian vehicles.

(Click here: http://www.nasaspaceflight.com/l2/ – to view how you can access the best space flight content on the entire internet.)

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Atlas V Launch:

The fourth Block IIF GPS satellite, GPS IIF-4 is the sixty-fourth GPS satellite overall, and the first to launch on an Atlas since Navstar 11, also known as USA-10, in October 1985. That satellite, a the last Block I prototype satellite, was boosted into orbit by an Atlas E/F with an SGS-2 upper stage, flying from Space Launch Complex 3W at Vandenberg Air Force Base.

Since then, launching GPS spacecraft has been left solely to Delta rockets, with the Delta II 6925 used for Block II launches, the Delta II 7925 for Block IIA, IIR and IIRM, and the Delta IV Medium+(4,2) for the three Block IIF launches to date.

GPS IIF-4 has Space Vehicle Number (SVN) 66. It will use PRN-27; a signal modulation previously used by USA-84, or GPS IIA-6 (SVN-27), a twenty-year-old satellite which was retired from service last October. IIF-4 will serve as a replacement for USA-117 in slot 2 of plane C of the GPS constellation.

Launched in March 1996 as GPS IIA-16, USA-117 is a Block IIA spacecraft which carries SVN-33, and uses PRN-03. Once IIF-4 replaces it, USA-117 will remain in service as a backup satellite, presumably moving to Slot 5 of its plane.

The GPS constellation consists of six planes, designated A to F, with six slots in each, numbered 1 to 6. Slots 1 to 4 contain operational satellites, with 5 and 6 housing reserve spacecraft. Plane C currently contains satellites in slots 1-4 and 6; two Block IIA spacecraft, one Block IIR, and two Block IIRMs. The most recent launch to plane C was GPS IIR-18(M) in December 2007.

Constructed by Boeing, Block IIF GPS satellites are expected to operate for twelve years, broadcasting signals at three different frequencies, including the L5 “Safety of Life” signal for civil aviation. The three Block IIF satellites launched to date, SVNs 62, 63 and 65, are operating in slots B2, D2 and A1 of the constellation respectively.

The Atlas V that launched GPS IIF-4 flew in the 401 configuration, with tail number AV-039. The launch was the thirty-eighth flight of the Atlas V, and the eighteenth flight of the 401 configuration.

The Atlas V consists of two stages; a Common Core Booster (CCB) and a Centaur. The CCB is powered by a single RD-180 engine, produced by NPO Energomash of Russia. It burns RP-1 propellant, oxidized by liquid oxygen.

The Centaur is powered by RL10A-4-2 engines burning liquid hydrogen and liquid oxygen; one or two engines are present depending on mission requirements – for this launch the single-engine configuration will be used, as denoted by the one in the 401 designation. The zero indicates that no solid rocket motors will be used; up to five Aerojet SRMs can be attached to the first stage to augment thrust at liftoff, however for this flight none are necessary.

The four gives the diameter of the payload fairing, in meters. Four and five-meter fairings can be used, with three different lengths of each. The Long Payload Fairing (LPF), which despite its name is the shortest of the four-meter fairings, will be used on AV-039. The other two four-meter fairings, the Extended and Extra-Extended (EPF and XEPF) Payload Fairing, are 90 and 180 centimeters longer respectively.

AV-039 was assembled in the Vertical Integration Facility, which is located approximately half a kilometer to the southwest of the launch pad.

Rollout to the launch complex occurred on Wednesday, with the rocket departing the VIF atop a mobile platform shortly after 15:00 UTC, and arrived at the launch pad around 50 minutes later. It was the fifty-ninth rocket to launch from SLC-41, and the thirty-second Atlas V to do so.

Before the Atlas V was introduced in 2002, SLC-41 was a Titan launch complex. Twenty seven Titan rockets, including Titan IIIC, IIIE and IV configurations, flew from the pad between December 1965 and April 1999.

The last launch, a failed attempt to place a Defense Support Program (DSP) satellite into geosynchronous orbit, was conducted by a Titan IV(402)B with an Inertial Upper Stage. Six months later the fixed and mobile service towers were demolished, and the complex was rebuilt to accommodate the Atlas. The majority of Atlas V launches use the pad.

The launch was conducted by United Launch Alliance (ULA). Formed in December 2006, ULA have taken over Atlas V construction from Lockheed Martin, and launch operations from International Launch Services. They are also responsible for constructing and launching Delta II and Delta IV rockets.

T-0 for Wednesday’s launch occurred at 21:38 UTC; which was the opening of an 18-minute window. At T-2.7 seconds, the RD-180 engine ignited and begin throttling up, reaching full thrust 4.2 seconds later. At T-0, the engine was ready for flight, and liftoff occurred 1.1 seconds later when the thrust generated by the first stage engine exceeded the weight of the rocket.

Following liftoff, AV-039 maneuvered to a 45.8 degree launch azimuth, and pitched over for its ascent into orbit. One minute and 18.4 seconds after launch, the rocket’s speed reached Mach 1, passing through the sound barrier and beginning supersonic flight.

A minute and a half into the mission, the RD-180 throttled down in preparation for passing through the area of maximum dynamic pressure, Max-Q, which occurred 90.5 seconds after launch.

The first stage burned for four minutes and 4.4 seconds before it was extinguished, an event known as Booster Engine Cutoff (BECO). Six seconds later, the spent Common Core Booster was jettisoned, and following a further ten seconds of unpowered flight, the Centaur ignited for the first of two burns – a flight milestone which was designated Main Engine Start 1 (MES-1).

Fairing separation occurred eight seconds after the Centaur ignites. The Centaur’s first burn lasted twelve minutes and 46.6 seconds, ending with Main Engine Cutoff 1 (MECO-1), as the flight entering an extended coast phase.

The coast phase lasted three hours, 30.7 seconds, before Main Engine Start 2 (MES-2) began another burn of the Centaur’s RL10 engine. This second burn, intended to circularize the vehicle’s orbit, lasted 89.3 seconds, with its end, MECO-2, marking the end of powered flight. Spacecraft separation occurred four minutes, 45.7 seconds later; at T+ three hours, 23 minutes and 52.8 seconds.

Click here for Atlas V News Articles: http://www.nasaspaceflight.com/tag/atlas-v/

The satellite separated into a circular orbit, at an altitude of 20,459 kilometers (12,713 statute miles, 11,047 nautical miles), and an inclination of 55 degrees to the equator.

Unlike earlier spacecraft, Block IIF GPS satellites are launched directly into their operational orbits, eliminating the need for each satellite to carry an apogee motor and the necessary fuel to raise itself out of a transfer orbit.

Wednesday’s launch was the fourth Atlas V mission of 2013, and the fourth launch of the year to be conducted by ULA. ULA’s next EELV launch is scheduled for 23 May, when a Delta IV will place the fifth Wideband Global Satcom spacecraft into orbit.

The next Atlas will fly on 19 July, when an Atlas V 551 will orbit the second MUOS communications satellite. The next GPS launch is expected to be in October, with a Delta IV lifting GPS IIF-5.

(Images via ULA).

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Recent Ammonia Leak:

Following recent events, the ISS controllers are continuing to keep a very close eye on the system that uses ammonia to dissipate heat from the electrical power systems on the truss.

The system leaked last week, when controllers observed data that indicated a large increase in a previously known small ammonia leak in the cooling loop of power channel 2B. At the same time, the crew inside the station noted that they were able to see flakes of ammonia originating from the channel 2B area, which were floating away into space.

Confirmation of a serious leak ultimately resulted in both the teams on the ground and in space to spring into action, resulting in an unplanned EVA taking place less than two days after the leak was spotted.

Spacewalkers Chris Cassidy and Tom Marshburn ventured out of the Quest Airlock on Saturday, successfully inspecting the hardware, before swapping out the old 2B Pump Flow Control Subassembly (PFCS) with one of the two spares located on the truss.

With the system recharged, controllers successfully returned the flow of ammonia without any anomalous indications, allowing the spacewalking duo to return back inside the ISS an hour ahead of schedule.

Marshburn then prepared for his return back to Earth onboard Soyuz TMA-07M, along with departing Expedition 35 commander Chris Hadfield and Russian cosmonaut Roman Romanenko. They successfully landed on the steppe of Kazakhstan, southeast of Dzhezkazgan on Monday.

Leak Returns?

However, controllers noticed an issue during the period surrounding the departure of the Soyuz, which appeared to indicate the ammonia leak on the 2B system had returned.

“Post the Soyuz undock, there were several indications that the gross 2B PVTCS leak was still present. The 2B PVTCS was shutdown to preserve consumables as the team continues to monitor the system,” noted a flash on L2′s rolling ISS Update Section.

“The channel 2B primary power equipment has powered down to a dormant configuration. Channel 2A continues to power all downstream loads of channel 2B.”

Controllers positioned cameras on the ISS to take a closer look, in order to see if they could spot ammonia flakes departing from the region. No such observations were seen.

With evaluations taking place on the ground, the focus switched to a possible false signature indication on the system, which was immediately backed up by the ISS’ requirement of maneuvering to different attitudes to cater for the Soyuz’s departure.

“As a result of the PVTCS troubleshooting performed on EVA 20 in November, the modified 2B loop includes four separate accumulators as compared to one accumulator in the unmodified system,” added notes.

“During the Soyuz undock, telemetry was only available for a single accumulator. After the maneuver to the undocking attitude, the quantity reading of that accumulator began dropping.”

As part of the written response plans, the pump was shut down and the power was removed from the 2B power channels.

Once the ISS was back into its regular attitude, additional data became available that showed the quantity in the other accumulators had actually been increasing or remaining stable while the one accumulator had been decreasing. This backed up the theory the ammonia fluid was shifting through the system, as opposed to leaking – a theory supported by the absence of snowflakes seen with the earlier leak.

The team continued to investigate the decreasing accumulator quantities and pressures – a trend of about 9.6 percent per day over a six hour period – with a focus on the attitude maneuvers and associated changes to the passive thermal environment.

“However it continued at the same rate through the undock, comm attitude maneuver, and return to TEA with all Arrays in Autotrack, and for a full orbit after this unabated, and we are not currently able to explain it by other means,” notes added, showing the evaluations were continuing throughout Tuesday. “This signature and its magnitude are very comparable to the fast leak rate observed on Thursday.

Click here for additional ISS News Articles: http://www.nasaspaceflight.com/tag/iss/

“We do not have the benefit of crew eyes on it this time because they entered crew sleep since the signature became more definitively non-transient. We do have high definition video of the area in question, but it does not show anything observable at this time.”

Thankfully, data for the Early External Thermal Control System (EETCS) system became available later on Tuesday, confirming stable quantities in the starboard and trailing radiator accumulators and the EETCS PFCS accumulator, allowing for the 2B power channels to become reactivated.

“Based on further data review, ground teams determined that there is no gross leak of the 2B PVTCS system, and that the ammonia quantity downward trend was caused by the 2B PFCS experiencing cold conditions in the Soyuz undocking attitude,” concluded the latest notes.

“An Anomaly Resolution Team (ART) meeting was held, and the 2B PVTCS was later reactivated per the ART recommendation.”

The lack of a leak will come as a relief, not least because the potential for another EVA would only become available in a few week’s time. The ISS will only return to a six member crew – with two NASA astronauts – when Soyuz TMA-09M docks at the end of the month.

(Images: L2′s ISS Section and NASA)

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Proton M Launch:

The Proton booster that was used to launch the satellite is 4.1 m (13.5 ft) in diameter along its second and third stages, with a first stage diameter of 7.4 m (24.3 ft). Overall height of the three stages of the Proton booster is 42.3 m (138.8 ft).

The Proton vehicle has a heritage of nearly 400 launches since 1965 and is built by Khrunichev Research and State Production Center, one of the pillars of the global space industry and the majority owner of ILS.

The first stage consists of a central tank containing the oxidizer surrounded by six outboard fuel tanks. Each fuel tank also carries one of the six RD-276 engines that provide first stage power. Total first stage vacuum-rated level thrust is 11.0 MN (2,500,000 lbf).

Of a conventional cylindrical design, the second stage is powered by three RD-0210 engines plus one RD-0211 engine and develops a vacuum thrust of 2.4 MN (540,000 lbf).

Powered by one RD-0213 engine, the third stage develops thrust of 583 kN (131,000 lbf), and a four-nozzle vernier engine that produces thrust of 31 kN (7,000 lbf). Guidance, navigation, and control of the Proton M during operation of the first three stages is carried out by a triple redundant closed-loop digital avionics system mounted in the Proton’s third stage.

The Briz-M (Breeze-M) upper stage is the Phase III variant, a recent upgrade which utilizes two new high-pressure tanks (80 liters) to replace six smaller tanks, along with the relocation of command instruments towards the centre – in order to mitigate shock loads when the additional propellant tank is being jettisoned.

The launch utilized a 5-burn Breeze M mission design. The first three stages of the Proton used the standard ascent profile to place the orbital unit (Breeze M upper stage and the EUTELSAT 3D satellite) into a sub-orbital trajectory.

From this point in the mission, the Breeze M performed planned mission maneuvers to advance the orbital unit first to a circular parking orbit, then to an intermediate orbit, followed by a transfer orbit, and finally to a geosynchronous transfer orbit.

Separation of the EUTELSAT 3D satellite occurred approximately 9 hours, 13 minutes after liftoff.

EUTELSAT 3D will bring resources, reach and flexibility for high-growth professional video, data, telecom and broadband services at 3 degrees east, an orbital position that sits at the crossroads of Europe, Africa and Asia.

“The Proton vehicle and Eutelsat partnership dates back 13 years starting with the SESAT-1 launch on Proton in 2000,” noted ILS President Phil Slack.

“After seven launches, including the 50th ILS Proton launch in 2009 with the EUTELSAT 10A satellite, we are honored that Eutelsat continues to place their trust in us to enable the expansion of their business. Many thanks to the Eutelsat, Thales Alenia Space, Khrunichev and ILS teams for ensuring mission success with the launch of EUTELSAT 3D.”

Through a configuration of Ku and Ka transponders connected to three footprints, Eutelsat’s new satellite will serve customers in Europe, North Africa, the Middle East and Central Asia. A fourth footprint in the Ku-band will serve customers in sub-Saharan Africa.

EUTELSAT 3D will be located at 3 degrees east until the launch in 2014 of EUTELSAT 3B that will further extend coverage to South America. It will subsequently continue service at 7 degrees east.

The satellite’s Spacebus 4000 Platform sports 56 Ku and Ka-band transponders and has a mass of 5,470 kg. It has an anticipated service life of 15 years.

“We thank ILS and Khrunichev for this flawless launch which maintains our perfect track record of success since our first Proton flight in 2000,” added Michel de Rosen, Eutelsat CEO.

“I’m happy to say that EUTELSAT 3D is well on its way to 3 degrees East, where it will go into service next month. The performance of the Proton launcher gives us the flexibility we need to further increase our resources and commercial flexibility which is highly valued in our business.”

This was the third ILS Proton launch in 2013 and the 80th ILS Proton launch overall. This mission will also mark the seventh Eutelsat Satellite to be launched on Proton, the ninth for Thales Alenia Space Satellite.

(Images via ILS).

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Soyuz TMA-07M:

It was an eventful end to Commander Hadfield’s stay on the ISS, as the keys to the Station were handed over to Russian Commander, Pavel Vinogradov.

All three of the returning crewmembers have played their part in making the 146 days of their Expedition 35 mission a memorable period in the Station’s history, not least during the latter part of their stay on the orbital outpost.

Roman Romanenko of the Russian Federal Space Agency (Roscosmos) conducted his final major role during his tour of duty during the Russian EVA in April, during which he worked alongside the veteran Vinogradov.

While the EVA involved routine maintenance on the Russian Segment (RS), Romanenko provided some comical moments during the spacewalk, even causing the Russian translator to giggle as her commentary was broadcast over NASA TV.

“I don’t like to work at night time, I’m afraid of the darkness,” not long after joking about how “for some reason the Earth is round,” which was met by bemused silence from the Russian CAPCOM in Moscow.

There was less time for joking during the unscheduled EVA that was conducted by Spacewalkers Chris Cassidy and the third person to be riding home on Soyuz TMA-07M, Tom Marshburn.

The duo ventured outside of the Quest Airlock on Saturday, in search of the source of an ammonia leak that had been observed less than two days before the spacewalkers exited the Quest airlock.

The duo investigated the cooling loop of power channel 2B on the P6 Truss of the Station, and while the system appeared to be clean, the installation of a new Pump Flow Control Subassembly (PFCS).appears to have resolved the issue.

Although it will take weeks before it is known for sure that the leak is an issue of the past, so far all indications appear to show the system is now working nominally.

Prior to the departure of the three crewmembers, Commander Hadfield uploaded a video that has since gone viral.

The Canadian astronaut showed off his singing prowess with a rendition of David Bowie’s Space Oddity, shot on board the ISS. The moving video received praise from Bowie himself, as it was revealed a member of the iconic singer’s tour band was involved in the reproduction of the song.

“The task was in front of me. I came up with a piano part. I then enlisted my friend, producer and fellow Canadian Joe Corcoran to take my piano idea and Chris’ vocal and blow it up into a fully produced song,” noted Emm Gryner. “Drums! mellotrons! fuzz bass! We also incorporated into the track ambient space station noises which Chris had put on his Soundcloud.

“I was mostly blown away by how pure and earnest Chris’ singing is on this track. Like weightlessness and his voice agreed to agree.

“And voila! And astronaut sings Space Oddity in space! I was so honoured to be asked to be a part of this. You wouldn’t get too many chances to make a recording like this and not only that, to make music with someone who – through his vibrant communications with kids in schools to his breathtaking photos to his always patient and good-humoured demeanour – has done more for science and space than anyone else this generation.

“Planet earth IS blue, and there’s nothing left for Chris Hadfield to do. Right. Safe travels home Commander!”

In preparation for that safe trip home, the Soyuz TMA-07M crew donned their Sokol launch and entry suits, closed the hatch between the Orbital Module (BO) and Descent Module (SA), and strapped themselves into their Kazbek couches inside the SA.

Undocking was on schedule at 23:08 UTC, which was followed by two separations burns to depart the vicinity of the ISS.

“”We can see the entire ISS, with the solar arrays stretched out like arms saying farewell to us,” said Romanenko, who commanded the Soyuz as it departed from the ISS.

Following a few hours of free flight, Soyuz TMA-07M made its de-orbit burn, followed by a landing near the town of Dzhezkazgan on the Steppe of Kazakhstan.

Now the crew are extracted from the SA by Russian recovery forces, they will be flown by MI-8 helicopters to a nearby airfield, where the crew will part ways, with Hadfield and Marshburn boarding a NASA Gulfstream III aircraft to be flown back to Ellington Field in Houston, Texas – via two refuelling stops in Glasgow, Scotland, and Goose Bay, Canada. Romanenko will be flown back to Star City, outside Moscow.

Vinogradov, Chris Cassidy of NASA and Russian cosmonaut Alexander Misurkin will tend to the station as a three-person crew for two weeks until the arrival of three new crew members, NASA astronaut Karen Nyberg, Russian cosmonaut Fyodor Yurchikhin and Luca Parmitano of the European Space Agency.

(Images: via NASA and L2).

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Dream Chaser’s road trip to California:

SNC are one of the three companies who won through to the next stage of NASA’s commercial crew program, following their $212.5 million Commercial Crew integrated Capability (CCiCap) initiative award back in August, 2012.

The Agency’s initiative is a competition, with Dream Chaser facing off against two capsules – namely SpaceX’s Dragon and Boeing’s CST-100 – ahead of a down-select that will select which spacecraft will return a domestic crewed launch capability to the United States.

Both Dream Chaser and CST-100 have opted to use the reliable Atlas V as their launch vehicle.

With NASA refocused on Beyond Earth Orbit (BEO) exploration goals, the keys to Low Earth Orbit (LEO) have been handed over to the commercial sector – with the Commercial Resupply Services (CRS) contracts already resulting in two cargo official CRS resupply missions via SpaceX’s Dragon to the ISS.

Orbital – via their Cygnus spacecraft – are set to follow, with a debut COTS run to the ISS likely in September,following the successful test flight of the Antares launch vehicle.

Unfortunately – and through no fault of the commercial partners – there is a large amount of pressure on the funding outlook for NASA’s Commercial Crew Program, with the first flight of NASA astronauts to the ISS on a commercial spacecraft continually slipping as a result.

The latest slip pushed the US Crew Vehicle -1 (USCV-1) mission to a planning date of November 30, 2017.

Regardless, the commercial partners are pressing on through their CCiCAP milestones, with SNC no exception as they move towards the major milestone of drop tests via their Dream Chaser ETA.

The ETA has already flown, via the Captive Carry test near the Rocky Mountain Metropolitan airport, lofted on the end of a tether by a Sikorsky Skycrane helicopter back in May of last year.

Following that milestone, the ETA underwent preparations for its shipping to California.

However, L2 sources noted the trip was delayed after SNC decided to remove the vehicle’s seven Actuator Control Units (ACU) that are responsible for moving the flight surfaces. SNC did not immediately respond to questions from NASASpaceFlight.com to clarify the problem with the ACUs.

The issue has since been resolved to the point SNC are able to carry out the May shipping to Dryden. The ETA kitted out with all the required data gathering equipment that will provide vital information during the drop tests.

Ahead of the road trip to Dryden, the ETA saw her wings and rudder removed, before being shrink-wrapped – not unlike how Atlantis was protected during the construction of her exhibition -  ahead of being placed on a transportation frame for the truck ride.

Dryden preparations will include final work on installing her new ACUs, along with a series of tow, control, and brake tests on the runway.

Click here for recent SNC/Dream Chaser News Articles: http://www.nasaspaceflight.com/tag/snc/

Depending on how the testing proceeds, the first drop test could be as soon as early June – but more likely to be sometime later in the summer.  The drop will be via a helicopter, and carried out early in the morning, in near darkness, before the Californian weather becomes too warm to fly the helicopter at the altitudes required for the testing.

It is also understood, via L2 source information, the first two Dream Chasers – the ETA and the FTA (Flight Test Article) – have been given internal and external names.

SNC did not immediately respond to NASASpaceFlight.com on the naming of their ships, but it is understood the ETA may receive the public name of “Eagle”, pending the official approval of management.

Dream Chaser arrives in California after recently completing its first major, comprehensive safety review.

The Integrated Systems Safety Analysis Review provided NASA with hazard reports and safety and reliability plans for the major components of the company’s integrated crew transportation system, including the Dream Chaser spacecraft, United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket, and flight and ground systems.

“Dream Chaser is making substantial progress toward flight with the help of our NASA team,” said Mark Sirangelo, head of SNC’s Space Systems.

“The ability to openly exchange information through the work on these CCiCap milestones is invaluable for many reasons, such as communicating Dream Chaser development plans and receiving timely feedback from NASA, all of which help to improve our design and maximize safety and reliability.

“As we begin our flight test program we have a better and stronger program due to our partnership with NASA.”

(Images via SNC, L2 and Lee Jay Fingersh/NASASpaceflight.com)

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EVA-21 (This article was updated throughout the EVA):

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A huge effort has been undertaken to plan Saturday’s EVA, resulting in the crew being in a stance to conduct the EVA less than two days after the leak was first observed.

Following pre-sleep tasks, the Expedition 35 crew helped the spacewalking duo through one of the more recent additions to life on the ISS, one that allows for spacewalkers to avoid the overnight campout in the Quest Airlock.

Known as the In-Suit Light Exercise (ISLE) EVA Pre-Breathe Protocol, the procedure allows for pre-EVA conditioning of the spacewalkers set to head outside of the orbital outpost.

Debuted during STS-134, the procedure does not require overnight campout in Quest or CEVIS exercise, which helps conserve oxygen usage aboard the ISS.

For the actual procedure, the two spacewalkers performed a 60-minute mask pre-breathe with the airlock depressed to 10.2 psi. They then donned their spacesuits (EMUs) and performed standard EMU purge before the airlock was repressurized to ISS ambient levels.

Following this, the EVA crew spent 100 minutes performing in-suit pre-breathe, 50 minutes of which will consist of light in-suit exercise with 50 minutes of resting (nominal) in-suit pre-breathe.

The first order of business for Cassidy and Marshburn upon egressing the A/L was to translate out to the P6 Truss worksite.

Upon arriving at the worksite, the spacewalkers told controllers on the ground they saw no obvious signs of ammonia flakes in the region.

However, they did observe a “coffee stain” on one element of hardware, which they took photos of once they were in a daylight pass – due to a failure of the flash on their camera. The flash was later fixed.

After fully setting up the worksite, the duo proceeded to begin work to remove the 2B Pump Flow Control Subassembly (PFCS).

The removal was completed via the use of the Pistol Grip Tools (PGTs), driving the H1 & H2 bolts on the PFCS to close the Fluid Quick Disconnect Coupling (FQDC) ammonia valves between the PFCS and the P6 Truss.

Again, the hardware was reported as looking “clean” – although a few specks of ammonia were observed as the H2 bolt was driven by the PGT.

Next, they proceeded to drive the H3 and H4 structural bolts, allowing them to remove the PFCS from the P6 Truss Integrated Equipment Assembly (IEA). Photos were taken as the unit was removed, with no sign of ammonia in the area.

The PFCS was temporarily stowed on the Multi Use Tether (MUT) “Ballstack”, following which a visual inspection was conducted of both the PFCS and the IEA to try and find a “smoking gun” for the source of the leak.

However, once again, the report came down that the assembly looked “really, really clean,” according to Cassidy. “I can’t given you any data other than it looks nominal.”

With no source of the leak – or evidence of a leak – found, the spacewalkers could have re-installed the unit back into its original location, ahead of the spacewalkers heading back to the A/L to end the EVA, while teams on the ground re-evaluate the situation.

Despite the leak source not being found, the spacewalkers moved to remove a new PFCS unit from its stowage location on the P6 Truss Long Spacer (LS) just next to the EVA worksite, again by driving the H3 and H4 structural bolts.

The new PFCS unit was then be installed into the P6 IEA, in the location of the old PFCS unit, and the H3 & H4 structural bolts and H1 & H2 FQDC bolts were driven to complete the installation.

In order to aid the investigation, the new unit’s Quick Disconnects (QDs) were opened, and the 20 lbs of ammonia in the new PFCS was used to charge the system via the use of the pump. This allowed for observations for any leaks and help the root cause evaluations.

With no leaks seen by the spacewalkers – along with the system charging without issue – the new unit appears to have resolved the issue. However, it will take several weeks to confirm the problem is a thing of the past.

The old PFCS unit – which is now very likely to be the root cause of the ammonia leak – has since been installed into the previous location of the new unit on the P6 LS.

With all the EVA tasks completed, well ahead of the schedule, the spacewalkers then monitored the new PFCS, as teams on the ground turned the system back into its nominal operating condition.

Once again, no leaks were observed, which has allowed the spacewalkers to carry out the bake out protocol, which ensured no ammonia was brought back inside of the Station as they returned to the Quest Airlock.

With the bake out complete, the EVA ended after five hours and 30 minutes.

*Click here for LIVE, INTERACTIVE ROLLING UPDATES*
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(Images: L2′s ISS Section and NASA)

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Ammonia leak:

On Thursday afternoon, ISS flight controllers saw data indicating a large increase in a previously known small ammonia leak in the cooling loop of power channel 2B on the P6 Truss of the station. At the same time, the crew inside the station noted that they were able to see flakes of ammonia originating from the channel 2B area, which were floating away into space.

According to the crew, the leak rate increased as the solar arrays reached a certain point in their rotation.

The crew quickly took photographs of the leaking ammonia and downlinked them to the ground for analysis (images now available in L2), whereupon they were asked to close the shutters of all windows not in use in order to prevent ammonia contamination.

The immediate response of the ground teams was to begin preparations to shut down the 2B power channel in order to stop the ammonia leak, and preserve what little coolant is left in the 2B cooling loop.

Original analysis showed that the ammonia in the 2B loop would reach the four percent shutdown mark in 45 hours, however data then indicated that the leak rate had increased, meaning the four percent mark would be reached in just 24 hours.

As such, on Friday morning, channel 2B’s loads were transferred onto channel 2A, following which channel 2B was shut down, taking with it 12.5 percent of the station’s power generation capability.

Channel 2B cooling architecture:

Power channel 2B is located on the Port 6 (P6) Truss of the station, and is fed power from Solar Array Wing (SAW)-2B, also located on the P6 Truss. This primary power (150-170 VDC) is then sent downstream to a Main Bus Switching Unit (MBSU) and then on to a DC to DC Conversion Unit (DDCU), where it is converted into secondary power (124 VDC) which is used to power user loads.

Since solar power generation creates a heat load, the P6 Truss needs its own cooling system to dissipate this heat, called the Photo Voltaic Thermal Control System (PVTCS). This cooling system is separate from the main ISS cooling system, which is called the External Thermal Control System (ETCS).

The purpose of this is to keep the cooling associated with solar power generation separate from the main ISS cooling loop, to both reduce the operating temperature of the main loop, and also avoid having to transfer cooling fluid over the rotating Solar Alpha Rotary Joint (SARJ).

The P6 PVTCS has its own dedicated radiator, called a Photo Voltaic Radiator (PVR), which uses ammonia to transport heat away from the electronic equipment and radiate it into space. The two power channels on the P6 Truss – 2B and 4B – both share the same PVR for cooling.

The PVTCS PVR is different to the ETCS radiators, which are called Heat Rejection Subsystem Radiators (HRSRs), in that the PVRs are smaller and have less cooling loops than the HRSRs, which are designed to dissipate a larger heat load than the PVRs.

Since 2006, ISS flight controllers have been tracking a slow ammonia leak in the channel 2B cooling loop in the P6 PVTCS, which, due to its very low leakage rate, was not considered a major concern, with the only action required being a periodic ammonia re-fill of the leaking loop, a task that was successfully accomplished during an EVA on the STS-134 Space Shuttle mission in May 2011.

At that time, based on the known leakage rate, it was projected that another re-fill would not be needed until 2015.

In June 2012 however, ISS flight controllers noted a sharp increase in the leakage rate, although in relative terms the leak was still very small.

It was believed that the leak was in the 2B cooling lines on the P6 PVR, likely caused by a Micro Meteoroid Orbital Debris (MMOD) strike on the radiator, and as such a spacewalk (US EVA-20) was performed last November to deploy a spare PVR on the P6 Truss, and connect the 2B cooling loop to that spare PVR in order to stop the leak.

However, data now indicates that the leak in the 2B coolant loop still exists, meaning that EVA-20 was ineffective, and that the PVR was not the cause of the leak.

It was noted at the time of EVA-20 that the leak location was only a best guess, and that the leak could also be located in the 2B Pump Flow Control Subassembly (PFCS).

Contingency spacewalks:

Due to the now rapidly increased ammonia leak rate on channel 2B, at least one, and likely two, US Extra Vehicular Activities (EVAs) are likely to be performed within the next week to isolate and repair the leak. No US EVAs were scheduled to be performed until July this year, meaning these accelerated EVAs will be classed as contingency EVAs.

At this time, and as noted as a possibility last year, the leak is believed to be in the Pump Flow Control Subassembly (PFCS) on channel 2B on the P6 Truss.

The PFCS – one of which can be found on each of the eight power channels on the ISS – transport ammonia from the heat exchanger to the radiators, and regulate the flow, temperature, and pressure of the ammonia.

They are essentially the PVTCS equivalent of the Pump Module (PM) found on the main ETCS cooling loop – of which one (the Loop B PM) failed in 2010.

This required three EVAs by spacewalking superstars Doug Wheelock and Tracy Caldwell-Dyson to Remove & Replace (R&R) the failed PM, with the stiff Quick Disconnects (QDs) between the PM and ISS proving to be most tricky part of the plan.

The 2B PFCS is located on the P6 Truss Integrated Equipment Assembly (IEA), and is attached to the IEA via a coldplate assembly.

The PFCS is bolted to the coldplate via two acme screws, and power and data is provided via “doghouse” blind connectors that are automatically made once the two acme screws are driven.

This is the same exact method that is used to attach many components to the ISS, including the Main Bus Switching Unit (MBSU), the alignment and attachment of which proved to be extremely challenging on US EVAs 18 and 19 last year.

However, the PFCS differs from the MBSU in that the PFCS also has fluid QD connectors for the ammonia, which are aligned via the doghouse connectors, but have their own separate screws that need to be driven in order to fully mate and open the valves in the QDs.

The PFCS has a design life of 15 years (the 2B PFCS has been operating for around 12.5 years), and the replacement of a PFCS appears in the “big 13″ list, which details the 13 most critical components of the ISS that would require an immediate EVA response should they fail.

Two spare PFCS units are located on the P6 Truss Long Spacer (LS), which is, conveniently, very near to the 2B PFCS EVA worksite. The two spare PFCS units on the P6 LS were launched with the P6 Truss on STS-97 in November 2000.

Another spare PFCS unit is located on External Stowage Platform-1 (ESP-1), and was launched on STS-102 in March 2001.

At this time, it appears that the first EVA (which will be US EVA-21) will be performed on Saturday (11 May), the aim of which will be to inspect the 2B PFCS for leaks with a view to confirming it as the likely culprit prior to replacing it.

According to sources, the EV crew will be Chris Cassidy (EV-1) and Tom Marshburn (EV-2), who have both previously conducted EVAs together on the STS-127 Shuttle mission in July 2009.

If the 2B PFCS is confirmed as the source of the leak, it will need to be removed from the P6 Truss and replaced with a new unit.

The 2B coolant loop will then likely need to be re-filled with fresh ammonia via an Ammonia Tank Assembly (ATA) in order to replace the ammonia that has been lost. It is not yet known how many EVAs this would take to accomplish.

The situation is complicated by the fact that Marshburn was scheduled to return to Earth aboard Soyuz TMA-07M on Monday (13 May), however that landing may now be delayed due to the need for Marshburn to perform the EVAs. It is not yet known whether a delay in the Soyuz TMA-07M landing would delay the launch of Soyuz TMA-09M, currently scheduled for 28 May.

(Images: L2′s ISS Section and NASA)

(L2 Members refer to the L2 ISS Section for Updates, Images and Presentations relating to this situation on the ISS).

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