Expedition 7
| No.: | 1 | 2 |
| Nation: |  |
 |
| Surname: | Malenchenko | Lu |
| Given names: | Yuri Ivanovich | Edward Tsang |
| Position: | ISS-CDR | Flight Engineer |
| Spacecraft (Launch): | Soyuz TMA-2 | Soyuz TMA-2 |
| Launch date: | 26.04.2003 | 26.04.2003 |
| Launchtime: | 03:54 UTC | 03:54 UTC |
| Spacecraft (Landing): | Soyuz TMA-2 | Soyuz TMA-2 |
| Landingdate: | 28.10.2003 | 28.10.2003 |
| Landingtime: | 02:40 UTC | 02:40 UTC |
| Mission duration: | 184d 22h 46m | 184d 22h 46m |
| Orbits: | 2890 | 2890 |
Backup Crew
| No.: | 1 | 2 |
| Nation: | |
|
| Surname: | Kaleri | Foale |
| Given names: | Aleksandr Yuriyevich | Colin Michael |
| Position: | ISS-CDR | Flight Engineer |
Launch from the Baikonur Cosmodrome; landing 42 km south of Arkalyk in Kazakhstan.
The Expedition 7 officially began with undocking of Russian spacecraft Soyuz TMA-1 on May 03, 2003 at 22:43:00 UTC and Expedition 6 ended.
The ISS Expedition 7 was called a "caretaker" crew. Following a two day solo flight Soyuz TMA-2 docked to ISS on April 28, 2003. Yuri Malenchenko and Edward Lu replaced the Expedition 6 crew.
Due to the reduced crew size, the scientific work had to be scaled down as well. Only 15 different experiments were conducted during the mission. Yuri Malenchenko and Edward Lu were also tasked with periodic maintenance work on the station, as well as spacewalk training (although no spacewalks were planned).
Progress M1-10 was launched at 10:34 UTC on June 08, 2003. The spacecraft docked with the Pirs module at 11:14:53 UTC on June 11, 2003. Progress M1-10 carried supplies to the International Space Station, including food, water and oxygen for the crew and equipment for conducting scientific research. The freighter remained docked for three months before undocking at 19:41:44 UTC on September 04, 2003 to make way for Soyuz TMA-3. Following undocking, it remained in orbit for a month, conducting an earth observation mission. It was deorbited at 11:26 UTC on October 03, 2003, burning up in the atmosphere over the Pacific Ocean, with any remaining debris landing in the ocean at around 12:38:49 UTC.
Progress M-48, the next unmanned vessel, was launched at 01:47:59 UTC on August 29, 2003. The spacecraft docked with the Aft port of the Zvezda module at 03:40:45 UTC on August 31, 2003. Progress M-48 carried supplies to the International Space Station, including food, water and oxygen for the crew and equipment for conducting scientific research. The freighter remained docked for five months before undocking at 08:35:56 UTC on January 28, 2004 to make way for Progress M1-11. It was deorbited at 13:11 UTC on the same day. The spacecraft burned up in the atmosphere over the Pacific Ocean, with any remaining debris landing in the ocean at around 13:57:12 UTC.
The Soyuz spacecraft is composed of three elements attached end-to-end - the Orbital Module, the Descent Module and the Instrumentation/Propulsion Module. The crew occupied the central element, the Descent Module. The other two modules are jettisoned prior to re-entry. They burn up in the atmosphere, so only the Descent Module returned to Earth.
Having shed two-thirds of its mass, the Soyuz reached Entry Interface - a point 400,000 feet above the Earth, where friction due to the thickening atmosphere began to heat its outer surfaces. With only 23 minutes left before it lands on the grassy plains of central Asia, attention in the module turned to slowing its rate of descent.
Eight minutes later, the spacecraft was streaking through the sky at a rate of 755 feet per second. Before it touched down, its speed slowed to only 5 feet per second, and it lands at an even lower speed than that. Several onboard features ensure that the vehicle and crew land safely and in relative comfort.
Four parachutes, deployed 15 minutes before landing, dramatically slowed the vehicle's rate of descent. Two pilot parachutes were the first to be released, and a drogue chute attached to the second one followed immediately after. The drogue, measuring 24 square meters (258 square feet) in area, slowed the rate of descent from 755 feet per second to 262 feet per second.
The main parachute was the last to emerge. It is the largest chute, with a surface area of 10,764 square feet. Its harnesses shifted the vehicle's attitude to a 30-degree angle relative to the ground, dissipating heat, and then shifted it again to a straight vertical descent prior to landing.
The main chute slowed the Soyuz to a descent rate of only 24 feet per second, which is still too fast for a comfortable landing. One second before touchdown, two sets of three small engines on the bottom of the vehicle fired, slowing the vehicle to soften the landing.
Amateur Radio on the International Space Station (ARISS): Ever since the Amateur Radio on the International Space Station (ARISS) hardware was first launched aboard space shuttle Atlantis on STS-106 and transferred to ISS during Expedition 1, it has been regularly used to perform school contacts. With the help of Amateur Radio Clubs and ham radio operators, astronauts and cosmonauts aboard the International Space Station (ISS) have been speaking directly with large groups of the general public, showing teachers, students, parents, and communities how amateur radio energizes students about science, technology, and learning. The overall goal of ARISS is to get students interested in mathematics and science by allowing them to talk directly with the crews living and working aboard the ISS.
Effect of Prolonged Space Flight on Human Skeletal Muscle (Biopsy): The Biopsy researchers take calf muscle biopsies of crew members before and after their stay aboard the International Space Station (ISS). This allows scientists to begin developing an in-space countermeasure exercise program aimed at keeping muscles at their peak performance during long missions in space.
Cellular Biotechnology Operations Support Systems: Fluid Dynamics Investigation (CBOSS-FDI): CBOSS-FDI will optimize the procedures for dispersion of cells and molecules in microgravity to enable future successes for growing cells in space. This investigation will use image analysis to assess how well the particles mix and if the size of particles causes distribution differences.
Coarsening in Solid Liquid Mixtures-2 (CSLM-2): Coarsening in Solid Liquid Mixtures-2 (CSLM-2) investigates the rates of coarsening of solid particles embedded in a liquid matrix. During this process, small particles shrink by losing atoms to larger particles, causing the larger particles to grow (coarsen) within a liquid lead/tin matrix. This study defines the mechanisms and rates of coarsening that govern similar processes that occur in materials such as turbine blades, dental amalgam fillings, aluminum alloys, etc.
Chromosomal Aberrations in Blood Lymphocytes of Astronauts-1 (Chromosome-1): Chromosomal Aberrations in Blood Lymphocytes of Astronauts-1 (Chromosome-1) studies space radiation on humans. The expected results will provide a better knowledge of the genetic risk of astronauts in space and can help to optimize radiation shielding.
Hand Posture Analyzer (HPA): Hand Posture Analyzer (HPA) examines the way hand and arm muscles are used differently during grasping and reaching tasks in weightlessness. Measurements are compared to those taken before and after flight to improve understanding of the effects of long-duration space flight on muscle fatigue.
Toward Understanding Pore Formation and Mobility During Controlled Directional Solidification in a Microgravity Environment (PFMI): Using a transparent model material, this experiment studies the fundamental phenomena responsible for the formation of certain classes of defects in metal castings. Investigators examine the physical principles which control the occurrence of defects in manufacturing on Earth in order to develop methods to reduce flaws, defects or wasted material.
Mechanisms of Action and Influence, and Effectiveness of Various Methods of Phrophylaxis Directed Toward Prevention of Disturbances of the Human Locomotion System in Weightlessness (Profilaktika-1 (Prophylaxis-1)): Profilaktika uses physical activity to counteract the effects of microgravity on the human body. During physical activity such as riding the stationary bike or running on the treadmill: gas levels are measured via a breathing mask and heart rate is evaluated.
On October 20, 2003 Russian spacecraft Soyuz TMA-3 brought the Expedition 8 to the station. Finally the station command changed from Russian cosmonaut Yuri Malenchenko to US astronaut Michael Foale. Expedition 7 offically ended with undocking of Soyuz TMA-2, carrying Yuri Malenchenko and Edward Lu, on October 27, 2003 at 23:17:09 UTC.
During the stay on board of the ISS the crew of Expedition 7 carried out the following scientific experiments:
Acoustika-M (Acoustical Investigation of Voice and Audio Links (Conncections) of the Crew on ISS),
ARISS (Amateur Radio on the International Space Station),
Biodegradation (Initial stage of Biodegradation and Biodeterioration in Space),
Biopsy (Effect of Prolonged Space Flight on Human Skeletal Muscle),
Biorisk (Influence of Factors of the Space Environment on the Condition of the System of Microorganisms-Hosts Relating to the Problem of Environmental Safety of Flight Techniques and Planetary Quarantine),
Biotest (Biochemical Status of Humans in Long Duration Space Flight),
Brados (Acquisition of Data About the Radiological, Electromagnetic and Different Physical Environments on Board ISS, and Their Effects on the Safety of the Crew, Space Equipment and Materials),
Cardio-ODNT (Dynamics of the Main Factors of Cardiac Function, of Central and Regional Circulation in Rest and During the Influence of Lower Body Negative Pressure),
CBOSS-FDI (Cellular Biotechnology Operations Support Systems: Fluid Dynamics Investigation),
CEO (Crew Earth Observations),
Chromosome-1 (Chromosomal Aberrations in Blood Lymphocytes of Astronauts-1),
Clinical Nutrition Assessment (Clinical Nutrition Assessment of ISS Astronauts, SMO-016E),
Conjugation (Development of Methods for Designing New Recombinants Producing Strains of Bacteria in Space Flight),
CSLM-2 (Coarsening in Solid Liquid Mixtures-2),
Diatomeya (Stability of Geographical Position and Configuration of Borders of Bioproductive Water Zones of the World Oceans, Observations by Orbition Station Crews),
Diurez (Fluid and Electrolyte Metabolism and Hormonal Regulaltion of Fluid Volume),
EarthKAM (Earth Knowledge Acquired by Middle School Students),
Environmental Monitoring (Environmental Monitoring of the International Space Station),
EPO (Education Payload Operations),
EPO-Demos (Education Payload Operation - Demonstrations),
EPO-Scientific Principles-Demos (Education Payload Operations-Scientific Principles-Demonstrations),
Farma (Characteristics of Pharmacological Responses (absorption, distribution and elimination of acetominophene) in Long Duration Space Flight),
Gematologia (Morphofunctional Characteristic of Blood Cells and the Intensity of Erythropoiesis in Humans by the Influence of Factors of Space Flight),
HPA (Hand Posture Analyzer),
Identifikatsia (Identification of the Sources of Dynamic Loads on ISS),
Inflight Education Downlinks (International Space Station Inflight Education Downlinks),
InSPACE (Investigating the Structure of Paramagnetic Aggregates from Colloidal Emulsions),
Interactions (Crewmember and Crew-Ground Interaction During International Space Station Missions),
Iskazheniye (Determination and Analysis of Magnetic Interference on ISS),
ISSI (In Space Soldering Investigation),
ISS Acoustics (International Space Station Acoustic Measurement Program),
Izgib (Effect of Performance of Flight and Science Activities on the Function of On-Orbit Systems on ISS (Mathematical Model)),
JAXA-GCF (Japan Aerospace and Exploration Agency - Granada Crystallization Facility High Quality Protein Crystallization Project),
Kromka (Verification of the Effectiveness of Devices for the Protection of the Exterior Surface of ISS from Contaminants Deposited by Pulsed Cycling of Liquid-Jet),
Meteoroid (Recording Meteoroidal and Technogenic Particles on the External Surface of the Service Module of the Russian Segment of ISS),
Mezhkletochnoe Vzaimodeistvie (Intercellular Interactions in Space Flight),
MISSE-1 and 2 (Materials International Space Station Experiment - 1 and 2),
Mobility (Promoting Sensorimotor Response Generalizability: A Countermeasure to Mitigate Locomotor Dysfunction After Long-Duration Space Flight),
Molniya-SM (Investigation of Lightning Discharges in the Earth's Atmosphere and Lower Ionosphere),
MSK (Cultivation of Mesenchymal Stem Cells From Bone Marrow in Space Flight),
Paradont (Condition of Peridontal Tissues in Space Flight),
PCG-STES-RGE (Protein Crystal Growth-Single Locker Thermal Enclosure System-Regulation of Gene Expression),
PCG-STES-SA (Protein Crystal Growth-Single Locker Thermal Enclosure System-Science and Applications of Facility Hardware for Protein Crystal Growth),
PFMI (Toward Understanding Pore Formation and Mobility During Controlled Directional Solidification in a Microgravity Environment),
Pilot (Individual Characteristics of Psychophysiological Regulatory Status and Reliaility of Professional Activities of Cosmonauts in Long Duration Space Flight),
Plasma Crystal (Dusty and Liquid Plasma Crystals in Conditions of Microgravity),
Platan (Search for Low Energy Heavy Particles of Solar and Galactic Origin),
Poligen (Revealing Genotypical Characteristics, Defining Individual Differences in Resistance of Biological Oranisms to Factors of Long Duration Space Flight),
Privyazka (Development of High Precision Orientation of Scientific Devices in Space with Reports of Deformation of the ISS Hull),
Profilaktika (Mechanisms of Action and Influence, and Effectiveness of Various Methods of Phrophylaxis Directed Toward Prevention of Disturbances of the Human Locomotion System in Weightlessness),
Prognoz (Development of a Method of Operational Prediction of Work Load on Crew Piloting Objectives),
Pulse (Vegatative (Autonomic) Regulation of the Cardio-Respiratory System of Humans in Conditions of Weightlessness),
Rastenia (Growth and Development of Higher Plants through Multiple Generations),
SKR (Skorpion: Development and Acquisition of Multifunctional Control-Measurement Device for Controlling the Environment of Scientific Experiments Inside a Pressurized Station),
Sprut-MBI (Determination of Intracellular and Extracellular Fluid Volume in Humans in Space Flight),
Starmail (ISS Russian Segment Downlink of Text Messages and Earth Pictures),
Subregional Bone (Subregional Assessment of Bone Loss in the Axial Skeleton in Long-term Space Flight),
Tenzor (Definition of Dynamic Characteristics of ISS),
Uragan (Hurricane: Experimental Development of Groundbased System of Monitoring and Predicting the Progression of a Naturally Occurring Technogenic Catastrophe),
Vektor-T (Study of a High Precision System for Prediction Motion of ISS).