Tuesday, June 18, 2013

MCC: flew to the ISS cargo ship with the "mold" - BBC Russian

ISS

Opening the door can lead to contamination of the air station

Opening hatches European space freighter ATV-4, which docked with the International Space Station on Friday, has been delayed due to concerns of the Russian side that the truck may be contaminated with mold or bacteria.

“A delay in opening the hatch is associated with the possibility of contamination with mold or bacteria several packings with the goods,” – said Monday the TV NASA TV. As noted, the hatch opening may lead to penetration of polluted air to the space station.

To prepare for the opening of hatches was stopped at the initiative of the Russian Mission Control Center. According to the MCC, the level of contamination is not dangerous for the crew, but the login process the ship had to be revised.

“ATV good condition. However, on the morning of the scheduled opening of the hatches had been delayed due to the ongoing discussions between the Russians and NASA on the exact content of upcoming operations with the crew over the entrance to the ship. graphics processing There is a hatch opening, to be held in For several days, “- said the head of the mission Alberto Novelli.

planned that the opening of the hatches between the spacecraft and the station will be held in the afternoon on Monday, but after sampling the atmosphere inside the ship, it was decided to suspend the transition. During an emergency meeting in the Moscow MCC Russian experts discussed the current problem with Houston, but the final decision is not taken.

According to the project blog ATV, the problem may take up to several days. Up to this point the hatches between the spacecraft and the station will be closed.

European transport ship ATV-4 “Albert Einstein”, which is designed to deliver fuel, scientific equipment, food, air and water, docked with the Russian segment of the International Space Station on Friday.

Docking was 20 minutes later than planned, as the European Space Agency needed extra time to check the efficiency of laser reflectors ship.

reported earlier that the Russian cargo ship “Progress”, which was not revealed after the start of an antenna could damage the reflectors ATV-4.

“For ATV-4 docking with the ISS need three working laser reflector. distance between the antenna of” Progress “and the reflector is very small, so it was feared that could hurt the reflector antenna. However, we saw that all reflectors are working, so the docking took place successfully, “- said the representative of ESA Rene Pishel.

ATV-4 delivered to the ISS more than 6.5 tonnes of cargo, in particular, fuel, water, oxygen, food and experimental equipment. The ship will stay in the station until October 28, after which will be undocked and sunk in a non-navigational area of ??the Pacific Ocean.

ATV made European consortium EADS Astrium. Its length is 10.3 meters, diameter – 4.5 meters. The ship consists of two parts: a sealed cargo hold and the service module.

ATV – the only spacecraft, with the exception of the Russian “Progress”, able to perform the functions of refueling, orientation and regular correction of the ISS orbit. In addition, in case of a threat of collision with space debris ATV can perform evasive station.

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