STS-78 Day 12 Highlights

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On Monday, July 1, 1996, 6:00 a.m. CDT, STS-78 MCC Status Report # 23 reports:

"Canada Day" is being observed on the Space Shuttle Columbia today as Canadian Payload Specialist Bob Thirsk and his six crewmates spend their 12th day in orbit on the Life and Microgravity Spacelab mission.

The STS-78 crew was awakened just after 1 a.m. CDT by the Canadian national anthem "Oh Canada" as performed by the Vienna State Opera Orchestra. This morning, Thirsk is scheduled to deliver a holiday message to Prime Minister Jean Chretien and other dignitaries gathered at Parliament Hill in Ottawa.

Also this morning, Mission Specialist Susan Helms will discuss the progress of Columbia's flight with WBBM Radio in Chicago in an audio-only interview.

Columbia continues to operate flawlessly, circling the Earth once every 90 minutes at an altitude of 168 statute miles.

On Monday, July 1, 1996, 4:00 p.m. CDT, STS-78 Payload Status Report # 12 reports: (MET 011/06:10:00)

Sunday's half-day off for the Columbia Crew was a brief interlude to the third and final set of intensive life science experiment runs scheduled for the Life and Microgravity Spacelab Mission. Researchers will compare the crew's test results taken at intervals before, during and after the mission to study the effects of weightlessness on the human body.

The crew -- Pilot Kevin Kregel, Payload Commander Susan Helms, Mission Specialists Dr. Charles Brady and Dr. Richard Linnehan and Payload Specialists Dr. Robert Thirsk and Dr. Jean-Jacques Favier -- continued experiments today to measure the effects of microgravity on the pulmonary system during rest, heavy exercise and deep breathing. During the Astronaut Lung Function Experiment, three electrodes monitor heart activity while the vest-like Respitrace Suit monitors rib cage and chest motions. The suit was modified Saturday to accommodate for the lengthening of the spine that crew members have experienced during the mission. Helms reported this morning that the suit seems to be working better after the adjustment was made to lengthen the suit's shoulder straps.

Wearing head and torso sensors, Linnehan and Thirsk resumed the Torso Rotation Experiment to determine how eye, head and body coordination is changed by longer stays in space. Today's test began the third and final stage of the experiment. Results could help researchers identify causes of motion sickness during spaceflight, develop counter measures and lead to practical ways on Earth to avoid motion sickness in cars, boats, or aircraft.

In another life science experiment, Linnehan, Brady, Favier and Thirsk used the Torque Velocity Dynamometer to perform hand-grip strength tests. The four crew members have been participating in a series of tests which measure how spaceflight affects muscle strength, energy expenditure and fatigue.

Commander Tom Henricks, Kregel, Thirsk and Favier continued an experiment which studies the effects of spaceflight on thought processes and mental reaction. Today the crew members participated in tests which show the speed and accuracy of their responses to rotated letters, math problems, letter sequences and rotated images. Results of this study may be used to plan future crew schedules, taking advantage of periods of peak mental performance.

In the microgravity research area, processing of a three-component sample in the Effects of Convection experiment led by Dr. Thierry Duffar of the French Atomic Energy Commission at Grenoble, France, concluded today in the Advanced Gradient Heating Facility. Knowledge from this experiment may help manufacturers produce higher quality metal alloys and semiconductor crystals.

After the Effects of Convection experiment concluded, Brady and Favier inserted a cartridge into the high- temperature furnace, beginning the Interactive Response of Advancing Phase Boundaries to Particles experiment. Designed by Ulrike Hecht of the Aachen Center for Solidification in Space in Aachen, Germany, this experiment investigates the effects of solidification conditions on the spread of particles in a sample as it crystallizes. The study focuses on the different shapes that form on the boundary of the solid region of the sample and how the development of these shapes is affected as the boundary contacts floating particles. Researchers hope to understand the interaction between free-floating particles and the growing edge of a solidifying material. This information will help verify theoretical models used to develop materials and design better industrial processes.

Kregel and Henricks removed the second of two experiments developed by Dr. Dudley Saville of Princeton University, in Princeton, N.J., from the Bubble, Drop and Particle Unit. The experiment examined the shape changes which occur in a fluid bridge suspended between two electrodes, as the voltage is varied. The research may find application in industrial processes where control of a liquid column or spray is important, such as with ink-jet printing or polymer fiber spinning.

Later, Favier and Brady began the Bubbles and Drops Interaction with Solidification Fronts experiment in the bubble facility. A solid tetracosane test sample was implanted with gas bubbles and then melted at a low temperature. Once completely melted and transparent, the sample was cooled and solidified. The experiment, designed by Dr. Rodolfo Monti of University of Naples, investigates the interaction between the moving pre-formed bubbles and the melting and solidifying edge. Researchers hope to learn how to prevent flaws caused by gases occurring in glass and crystal as they solidify.

The onboard phase of the Medaka fish experiment concluded on Friday, and today the crew prepared the experiment's facility for Sunday's scheduled landing. Investigators on Earth will study the Medaka fish embryos which have been preserved, testing a hypothesis that gravity is required for normal embryo development. As humans undertake longer duration spaceflights, understanding the impact of microgravity on vertebrate development becomes increasingly important.

On Monday, July 1, 1996, 6:00 p.m. CDT, STS-78 MCC Status Report # 24 reports:

Columbia's crew went back to work full time today following yesterday's half-day off. In addition to the continued science investigations in the Spacelab module, a couple of crew members took part in two events to discuss the progress of the mission and to recognize a holiday.

Susan Helms, payload commander and flight engineer throughout the mission, was interviewed this morning by Chicago radio station WBBM and talked about the myriad of life and microgravity science investigations that make up the STS-78 mission. She compared life in space to that on Earth and explained the reasons for conducting extensive research into why the human body behaves the way it does in space and how understanding that behavior can assist people on Earth.

Also today, Canadian Payload Specialist Bob Thirsk recognized the 129th birthday of his country. July first marks `Canada Day' and Thirsk sent greetings in honor of the occasion.

The astronauts' sleep shift continues to move slightly earlier each day to condition them for the late night wakeup call on landing day, now scheduled for Sunday, July 7. Today the crew went to sleep at 4:39 and will be awakened just after midnight -- at 12:39 Tuesday morning.

Columbia continues to operate trouble-free, circling the Earth once every 90 minutes at an altitude of 168 statute miles.

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