The COLUMBUS Free Flyer Thermal Control and Life Support

The paper describes the thermal control and life support design and related system aspects of the COLUMBUS Free-Flyer.

The specific requirements for the FreeFlyer thermal control and environmental control and life support are mainly driven

• by the particular performance to be provided in single mission phases
• by the overall operational life requirement of 30 years for the whole Free-Flyer flight configuration and the possibility for repair and maintenance in orbit
• by the different operating modes of the Resource Module as autonomous or composite configuration
• by the complex and partially different interfaces with HERMES and the Space Station Freedom.

During the Resource Module exchange at the Space Station Freedom the Pressurized Module is deactivated and thermally controlled by a heater system supplied with power by the space station. After attachment of the new Resource Module the internal servicing will be performed. During this phase the entire heat load of the Pressurized Module is transferred to the Space Station. During HERMES servicing and all free-flying phases the Free-Flyer thermal control is fully autonomous.

The Free-Flyer Environmental Control and Life Support System (ECLSS) is also strongly affected by the interfaces to the Space Station Freedom and HERMES. Reductions in complexity, cost, mass and power have been achieved by centralizing particular ECLSS functions, during the servicing phases.