texte H-9     montage peps  Tout n'a pas été archivé   Launch - 9 Update  
12 juillet 1997 AWAITING THE MIR "INTERNAL EVA"

L minus 9 Weeks to Launch---7/12/97: Even though the pace of training is really brisk these days, the crew still manages to have a great time and a few laughs along the way. The long weeks of training seem to be paying off, since the crew is becoming more and more comfortable with the complexities of the flight and the multiple-level-failure scenarios they've been given in the simulators. The recent events on the Mir station have cast some uncertainty on the details of our flight, so our crew buzz word is "flexibility." As it turns out, our rendezvous procedures, transfer activities, payloads and EVA really hinge upon what happens during next weeks "internal EVA" on Mir. Russian and American experts are working hand-in-hand to resolve the situation on Mir --- a great prelude to the International Space Station and beyond. Everyone realizes that the flight of STS-86 is a great opportunity for resupply as well as extra manpower, and the crew is anxious to help out. Among the special cargo being proposed for our mission, the Russians have proposed taking several extra batteries (for storage of solar power), and two or three large air tanks (replacements for ones that were used during the cabin depressurization). The bottom line is that the crew will be ready to do what is necessary to help out on Mir come September 18th. [Note: mission planners are no longer talking of moving up the launch date]

Last week, the crew continued to refine their ascent and entry skills in the Motion Base SMS, since formal integrated simulations with Mission Control start in just 2 weeks. Due to conflicts in the Mission Control Center during STS-94, which is currently in orbit, and STS-85 which is slated to launch in early August, our integrated sim schedule will be fast and furious from now until launch. These are the sims that test the mettle of the crew and the mission control team --- the "final exams" before flight.

The crew also had a rendezvous and docking sim in the Fixed Base SMS late last week, which had to be performed without the "vernier" RCS jets the Shuttle typically uses for fine attitude control. Due to a pair of "freebie" malfunctions (this is what the training team calls a mal that they didn't intentionally put in) with our TCS laser ranging devices, and an intentional failure of our centerline docking camera, the crew really had a "varsity" case on their hands. It was a great test of crew coordination, with Mike busy plotting range versus range rate and watching the timeline, Vladimir taking frequent hand-held laser marks off of Mir, Scott working the trajectory on a laptop computer, Jean-Loup monitoring the docking system, and Jim doing the tricky manual flying. Despite this worst-case day, the Shuttle still managed to make it right up to the point of contact with Mir's docking ring, only to discover that the docking system had also failed! Jim fired two quick separation pulses, and Atlantis backed away to stationkeep at 30 feet. After Scott and Jean-Loup had completed their troubleshooting on the docking system, Jim flew the orbiter back in for another attempt --- this time thankfully successful!

The EVA guys were in the pool again last week, this time working on several contingency tasks that they might have to perform to bring the Shuttle home safely. They repositioned the Ku-band antenna, cut door drive linkages that would allow closure of the payload bay doors, removed a CCTV camera, and manually latched the payload bay door bulkhead and centerline latches. These last two tasks, the manual latching of bulkhead and centerline latches, require the use of somewhat awkward and bulky tools. In zero gravity, fitting up into a tight corner with one of these tools probably wouldn't be all that difficult, but being handed 12 pounds of steel while "neutrally buoyant" in the pool is another matter. Proper body positioning and tethering off to the worksite allowed the crew to accomplish these jobs without too much difficulty --- although neither of them went to the gym that afternoon for an additional workout!

Other events last week included a rendezvous sim in the SES and another on the part task trainer, classroom sessions to train the use of the digital camera (which the crew will use to downlink images during the mission), a photo/TV procedures class in the FFT, and a number of Spacehab payload refresher sessions. The crew medical officers had another medical skills class, which included an opportunity for Jim to intubate a mannequin, as well as perform a needle cricothyrotomy airway. The entire crew had a briefing on the toxicologic hazards on their flight, most of which are low-level risk, and the appropriate leak response procedures. The crew also had a briefing on the Global Positioning Satellite (GPS) experiments that will be flown on STS-86. As part of the orbiter upgrade project, the Shuttle fleet is planning to incorporate GPS navigation in the coming years. STA flying was held on Saturday at Edwards Air Force Base, in California.

Next week promises to be an exciting one for the crew, as they'll once again travel to the Cape and see the real hardware. The EVA crew will use a cherry-picker-type lift to travel around the payload bay, in order to evaluate tool interfaces and look for sharp edges that might pose a risk during their EVA. Due to orbiter processing requirements, the payload bay portion of our Crew Equipment Interface Test (CEIT) will be performed now, and the in-cabin CEIT will occur July 26th. The crew will also have a "bench review" of the Spacehab module while down in Florida. They'll open all of their stowage bags, see how every piece of hardware is configured for flight, and decide where they'd like to have foot loops placed in the module. [Foot loops are important aids for stabilizing oneself in microgravity] The following day, our Spacehab experts Vladimir and Jean-Loup will stay for Spacehab activation and deactivation procedures training. Back at JSC, the crew will have another ascent sim in the Motion Base SMS, and both an undocking sim and a Spacehab malfunction sim in the Fixed Base SMS. The EVA crew will get back into the NBL for undocking contingencies (the "96 bolt" EVA), and the entire crew will have a meeting with the Public Affairs Office to talk over PAO events anticipated during the flight.

If you haven't already done so, you might want to check out Mir status this week, as well as an update on Atlantis' flight preparations in KSC's Orbiter Processing Facility Bay #3. A number of excellent questions have been received recently, and responses should be posted soon on the Q&A page. Also posted this week is a logo sent in by a flying colleague and friend of Jean-Loup's, called "La Postalle de Nuit."