STS-70 Day 4 Highlights

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On Sunday, July 16, 1995, 7 a.m. CDT, STS-70 MCC Status Report # 06 reports:

As Discovery's crew began its fourth day in orbit, all of the space shuttle' systems continued to perform exactly as designed, providing a "no hassles" workplace for the astronauts' scientific investigations.

The crew was awakened at 1:11 a.m. CDT to the sounds of Mission Specialist Nancy Currie's 8-year-old daughter, Stephanie, and her Ferguson Elementary School second- grade classmates singing "God Bless the USA"

Pilot Kevin Kregel is still having difficulty aligning the internal navigation equipment on the HERCULES video camera, a payload sponsored by the Department of Defense Space Test Program that allows the video to be automatically marked with the latitude and longitude of its subject areas. Payload controllers continued to investigate methods that may make it easier for the crew to take sightings on stars and align the camera as the flight progresses.

Mission Specialist Mary Ellen Weber also reported that the colon cancer tissue samples growing in the Bioreactor Development System so far look better than those cultured on the ground. The BDS is designed to use ground-based and space-bioreactor systems to grow individual cells into organized tissue that is morphologically and functionally similar to the original tissue or organ. The BDS is composed of a rotating cylinder that suspends cells and tissues in a growth medium, simulating some aspects of microgravity. The system has been in use for several years for ground-based research.

Other work today will include operations with a microbial contamination monitor that will be used to check the purity of drinking water samples, additional measurements of the astronauts’ visual acuity with the Visual Function Tester, and continued study of the glowing effect created by spacecraft surfaces as they encounter atomic oxygen in low orbit.

On Sunday, July 16, 1995, 2 p.m. CDT, STS-70 MCC Status Report # 07 reports:

With its spacecraft continuing to perform flawlessly, Discovery's crew sailed through a third day of work with the various experiments, ranging from biological studies to Earth-observing cameras.

Although the crew has experienced some difficulty with aligning the HERCULES camera using star sightings, investigators with the Department of Defense study said they are delighted with the views they have seen from the device so far. The crew sent Mission Control views of Florida and the Bahamas today taken by the camera, which automatically prints the latitude and longitude of the subject matter on the video. The crew members also sent video of star alignments they have performed, and investigators say the video provides excellent insights into possible improvements to the device.

Other experiments included observations of a series of small steering jet firings by Discovery using the Windex experiment, an optical device that studies the glowing phenomena created as the shuttle encounters atomic oxygen in orbit. The crew also reported at least 60 contacts with amateur radio operators around the world using the Shuttle Amateur Radio Experiment. During the mission, the astronauts will speak with students at 10 schools worldwide using the ham radio. In another study, the Visual Function Tester, crew members reported their eyesight is affected slightly by weightlessness, taking somewhat longer to adjust and focus on near objects. The experiment studies this reaction to weightlessness, which has been noted since the early flights of the Gemini Program.

The crew also took time out to hold a press conference this morning, answering questions from reporters in Florida and Ohio, the home state of four out of the five astronauts aboard Discovery.

The crew is wrapping up their day now and preparing to begin an eight-hour sleep period at 4:12 p.m. They will awaken for Day 5 of STS-70 at 12:12 a.m. CDT Monday.

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