International Space Station Major Constituent Analyzer On-orbit Performance

The Major Constituent Analyzer (MCA) is a mass spectrometer based system that measures the major atmospheric constituents on the International Space Station. A number of limited-life components require periodic change-out, including the ORU 02 analyzer and the ORU 08 Verification Gas Assembly. The m...

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Bibliographic Details
Published inNASA Center for AeroSpace Information (CASI). Conference Proceedings
Main Authors Gardner, Ben D, Erwin, Phillip M, Wiedemann, Rachel, Matty, Chris
Format Conference Proceeding
LanguageEnglish
Published Hampton NASA/Langley Research Center 10.07.2016
Subjects
Ammonia
Constituents
Filaments
International Space Station
Ion sources
Multinational space ventures
Space stations
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Summary:The Major Constituent Analyzer (MCA) is a mass spectrometer based system that measures the major atmospheric constituents on the International Space Station. A number of limited-life components require periodic change-out, including the ORU 02 analyzer and the ORU 08 Verification Gas Assembly. The most recent ORU 02 and ORU 08 assemblies are operating nominally. For ORU 02, the ion source filaments and ion pump lifetime continue to be key determinants of MCA performance. Additionally, testing is underway to evaluate the capacity of the MCA to analyze ammonia. Finally, plans are being made to bring the second MCA on ISS to an operational configuration.