Columbia's Blue Team to light fires for research
Saturday, Jan. 18, 2003 at 9 p.m. EST

Fire in a crewed spacecraft is a nightmare scenario for astronauts. That same fire, ignited in a controlled microgravity environment, can be transformed into a boon for science. Shuttle Columbia's Blue Team - Pilot Willie McCool and Mission Specialists Dave Brown and Mike Anderson - will ignite a small flame jet tonight in a specially designed Combustion Module to study the effects of soot.

The Blue Team was awakened at 6:39 p.m. EST and relieved the Red Team at about 8:09 p.m. EST to continue work on the 80+ experiments aboard Columbia. The astronauts are working in split shifts in order to conduct 24-hour operations during the 16-day mission.

With the SpaceHab module in Columbia's payload bay fully operational, the host of experiments conducted onboard continues to grow. Among those the Blue Team will work on tonight:

--MEIDEX or Mediterranean Israeli Dust Experiment - an Earth observation experiment consisting of a radiometric camera and a video camera, to measure a Mediterranean dust plume north of the Gulf of Sidra. Pilot Willie McCool will maneuver Columbia to permit slant visibility observations, sea-surface reflectivity observations, desert surface observations and observations of Transient Luminous Events, better known as sprites.

Red Team takes the day shift
Sunday, Jan. 19, 2003 at 10:15 a.m. EST

Columbia's Red Team of Rick Husband, Kalpana Chawla, Laurel Clark and Ilan Ramon have officially been on duty since 7:19 a.m. EST and are deep into busy schedule in which they will directly participate in nearly 20 experiments while many more continue without the help of the crew.

Many of the student experiments flying as part of the commercial Spacehab group involve watching how various tiny critters react to the weightless space environment.

Among those studies are watching ants tunnel through a transparent material to see if the microgravity causes them to change their behavior. From time to time a camera in the experiment beams down pictures that are broadcast on NASA TV and you can see the ants moving around, sometimes floating.

The Red Team will continue work until 7:59 p.m. EST and then head to bed at 9:39 p.m. EST.

We will post our daily mission story late this afternoon and then update this page again by 11 p.m. EST tonight.

And for those of you who asked, it will be the Raiders and Eagles winning today for the right to play in next week's SuperBowl.

Columbia's Blue Team to study effects of solar radiation
Sunday, Jan. 19, 2003 at 10 p.m. EST

Life on Earth is possible because our climate conditions are relatively mild. One element of that climate - temperature - is affected by heat exchanges between the Earth and void of outer space. When these heat exchanges are altered by artificial influences, such as greenhouse gases, Earth's climate can be adversely affected. Understanding these changes is one of tonight's tasks for shuttle Columbia's Blue Team of Pilot Willie McCool and Mission Specialists Dave Brown and Mike Anderson.

The Blue Team was awakened at 5:39 p.m. EST and relieved Columbia's Red Team at about 7:59 p.m. EST to continue work on the 80+ experiments aboard Columbia. The astronauts are working in split shifts in order to conduct 24-hour operations during the 16-day mission.

With the SpaceHab module in Columbia's payload bay operating in around-the-clock mode, the host of experiments conducted onboard steadily increases. Among those the Blue Team will work on tonight:

--Solar Constant Experiment-3 (SOLCON-3): The SOLCON instrument is designed to accurately measure the solar constant and identify variations in the value during a solar cycle. SOLCON measures the solar irradiance in space to avoid perturbations by the atmosphere of the Earth. It is also used as a reference to construct a long-duration time series of the solar irradiance. This data will ensure continuity of the solar constant level obtained by instruments mounted on free flyers, over climate time-scale duration.

--LSP-2 or Laminar Soot Processes experiment. One of three experiments housed in SpaceLab's specially designed Combustion Module, the study of Laminar Soot Processes is designed to gain a better understanding of soot formation, oxidation and radiative properties within flames.

The Blue Team will work on their experiments until about 7:24 a.m. EST Monday when they will be relieved by the Red Team. The Blue Team will begin a scheduled sleep period at 9:09 a.m. EST Monday.

All systems aboard Columbia continue to function well.

We will next update this box Monday morning at 10 a.m. EST, earlier if events warrant.

No holiday in space for Columbia
Monday, Jan. 20, 2003 at 10 a.m. EST

While a lot of folks in the United States enjoy a day off today, the seven-member crew of Columbia are continuing their 24-hour, always open operations.

The Red Team of Rick Husband, Kalpana Chawla, Laurel Clark and Ilan Ramon began their 12-hour shift at 7:24 a.m. EST.

Flight Day Five activities will include maneuvering the shuttle to point in different directions so instruments in the cargo bay can look for dust storms in Earth's atmosphere and a certain type of lightning known as sprites. The maneuvering also will allow measurements of the amount of solar energy our planet receives from the sun.

Another round of combustion studies are planned for today. The astronauts are setting fire to materials in an enclosed module to continue research on how flames propagate in microgravity. The design of future spacecraft is likely to be influenced by these experiments.

An as part of their daily routine, the crew are taking blood, urine and saliva samples from each other for ongoing biology studies looking at such things as bone loss and the effects of spaceflight on muscles.

The Blue Team of Willie McCool, David Brown and Mike Anderson are to be awakened for their next shift at 5:09 a.m. EST and take over from the Red Team at 7:24 p.m. EST. The Red Team will then retire at 9:09 p.m. EST.

Stay tuned to this page for complete coverage of the STS-107 mission. We will post a story later this afternoon and then update this box again before 11 p.m. EST, earlier if events warrant.

Columbia's Blue Team continues soot research
Monday, January 20, 2003 at 11 p.m. EST

Shuttle Columbia's Blue Team of Pilot Willie McCool and Mission Specialists Dave Brown and Mike Anderson will continue with experiments tonight in Spacehab's Combustion Module - the study of Laminar Soot Processes (LSP) designed to gain a better understanding of soot formation, oxidation and radiative properties within flames.

Meanwhile, flight controllers in Houston are closely monitoring the cooling system in Spacehab. A minor electrical current spike was observed Monday afternoon in one of two systems designed to collect and distribute water produced from condensation buildup caused by the operation of Spacehab's cooling system. Cool air from the Orbiter is now being re-directed to flow into Spacehab to lower temperatures and avoid the use of Spacehab's cooling system, while preventing any further buildup of liquid condensation.

The Blue Team was awakened at 5:09 p.m. EST and relieved Columbia's Red Team at about 7:24 p.m. EST to continue work on the 80+ experiments aboard Columbia. The division of the two teams into 12-hour shifts assures that scientific research is conducted round-the-clock.

Pilot Willie McCool will maneuver Columbia to facilitate two onboard experiments - MEIDEX and SOLCON-3. MEIDEX or Mediterranean Israeli Dust Experiment is an Earth observation experiment consisting of a radiometric camera and a video camera, to measure a Mediterranean dust plume north of the Gulf of Sidra. SOLCON-3 or Solar Constant Experiment-3 is designed to accurately measure the solar constant and identify variations in the value during a solar cycle.

The Blue Team will work on their experiments until about 6:39 a.m. EST Tuesday when they will be relieved by the Red Team of Rick Husband, Kalpana Chawla, Laurel Clark and Israeli astronaut Ilan Ramon. The Blue Team will begin a scheduled sleep period at 8:39 a.m. EST Tuesday.

Excluding the minor problem with the Spacehab cooling system, all other systems aboard Columbia continue to function well.

We will next update this box Tuesday morning at 10 a.m. EST, earlier if events warrant.

Red Team continues studies
Tuesday, Jan. 21, 2003 at 10 a.m. EST

On duty since 6:39 a.m. EST, the Red Team (Husband, Chawla, Clark and Ramon) haven't missed a beat continuing work on these experiments during today's day shift.

--Mediterranean Israeli Dust Experiment, the Israeli experiment studying dust particles in Earth's atmosphere.

--Microbial Physiology Flight Experiments, a study of the human immune system.

--Physiology and Biochemistry Team, a set of four experiments.

--Astroculture, a plant growing experiment in which researchers hope to create a new fragrance from a flower for potential commercial use in products such as perfume or lotions.

--Osteoporosis Experiment in Orbit, a Canadian Space Agency experiment that studies how certain drug agents affect bone cell activity.

--Shuttle Ozone Limb Sounding Experiment, an instrument in the payload bay that looks at sunlight scattered in Earth's atmosphere from an extreme slant angle to measure ozone.

--Zeolite Crystal Growth, a furnace aimed at creating larger zeolite crystals, which are as hard as rocks but work like sponges. Such crystals could be used to safely store hydrogen for use as an everyday fuel instead of petroleum.

--Mechanics of Granular Materials, an experiment that studies water-saturated columns of sand under pressure in the absence of gravity. Information learned could help construct more earthquake-proof buildings or more solid foundations in sandy soil.

--BONES, a European Space Agency biology experiment studying bone cells and skeletal tissue in microgravity.

--Bioreactor Demonstration System, an experiment to see if there is a connection between certain types of bone cells and prostrate cancer.

--Solar Constant Experiment, an instrument in the cargo bay measures solar energy reaching Earth.

--Laminar Soot Process, experiments designed to study how different things burn in microgravity.

--Vapor Compression Distillation, a full-scale demonstration of technology being developed to recycle crewmember urine and wastewater aboard the International Space Station.

The Red Team heads to bed at 8:39 p.m. EST, and our next update to this box will be posted by 11 p.m. EST.

Columbia's Blue Team takes a break
Tuesday, Jan. 21, 2003 at 11 p.m. EST

Shuttle Columbia's Blue Team of pilot Willie McCool and mission specialists Dave Brown and Mike Anderson will only work a half-shift this evening, followed by five hours of well deserved relaxation.

Mission planners recognized the around-the-clock aspects of this marathon science mission would take a toll on the crew and prudently scheduled a few hours of 'vacation' time for the astronauts to unwind.

The Blue Team was awakened at 4:39 p.m. EST and relieved Columbia's Red Team at about 6:24 p.m. EST to continue work on the 80-plus experiments aboard Columbia. The division of the two teams into 12-hour shifts was designed to maximize the scientific research of the mission.

During their abbreviated shift, the Blue Team will continue observations with the Mediterranean Israeli Dust Experiment, which is an Earth observation experiment consisting of a radiometric camera and a video camera, to measure a dust plume north of the Gulf of Sidra.

Studies of soot with the Laminar Soot Process apparatus will continue tonight in Spacehab's Combustion Module, while examinations of bone cell activity in microgravity will be conducted using the Osteoporosis Experiment in Orbit apparatus.

Meanwhile, flight controllers in Houston are closely managing the cooling system in the Spacehab module, controlling the heating and humidity of Spacehab through minor adjustments to systems aboard Columbia and the science module.

The Blue Team will work on their experiments until about 1:09 a.m. EST Wednesday when they will wrap-up early for their off-duty period. They will be officially relieved by the Red Team of Rick Husband, Kalpana Chawla, Laurel Clark and Israeli astronaut Ilan Ramon at 6:09 a.m. EST. The BlueTeam will then begin a scheduled sleep period at 8:09 a.m. EST Monday.

Excluding the minor problem with the Spacehab cooling system, all other systems aboard Columbia continue to function well.

We will next update this box Wednesday morning at 10 a.m. EST, earlier if events warrant.

Columbia's Red Team takes a break
Wednesday, Jan. 22, 2003 at 10:30 a.m. EST

The four astronauts who make up shuttle Columbia's Red Team are enjoying a morning of off duty time, giving them a chance to enjoy the sights outside, play around in the microgravity and -- because astronauts tend to be overachievers -- catch up on some work and chores.

Crewmembers Husband, Chawla, Clark and Ramon are scheduled to officially get back to work about 12:40 p.m. EST after lunch. They'll hand over to the Blue Team at 6:04 p.m. EST and go to bed at 8:09 p.m. EST.

On tap for the Red Team's science agenda are additional runs of the combustion experiment, this time in an effort to produce balls of flame; checks of the astroculture experiment that looks at growing flowers in space to create new fragrances; and attempts to operate the device that is to purify simulated-urine into drinking water.

In the meantime, NASA has updated the timeline of events for this mission, most notably changing the landing time on Feb. 1 to 9:17 a.m. EST. This is a routine adjustment often made during the flight as the shuttle's orbit changes slightly and Mission Control re-calculates the re-entry trajectory.

Stay tuned to this page for complete mission coverage. Our next update is expected about 11 p.m. EST tonight.

Finally, a note to those of you who asked, a technical problem prevented us from posting an update to this box last night. You can read Roger's update by clicking below on the link to Previous Updates.

Columbia's Blue Team back to work after 'vacation'
Wednesday, January 22, 2003 at 11:30 p.m. EST

Shuttle Columbia's Blue Team of pilot Willie McCool and mission specialists Dave Brown and Mike Anderson are back at work following a brief five-hour 'vacation' on Wednesday. Mission planners allowed the astronauts a few hours of relaxation from the around-the-clock regimen of this marathon science mission.

The Blue Team was awakened at 4:09 p.m. EST and relieved Columbia's Red Team at about 6:04 p.m. EST to continue work on the 80-plus experiments aboard Columbia. The division of the crew into two teams working 12-hour shifts is designed to maximize the scientific research of the mission.

The Blue Team will work tonight on SOFBALL, or Structures of Flame Balls at Low Lewis-number experiment, designed to improve understanding of lean (low fuel) burning combustion which may lead to improvements in engine efficiency, reduced emissions, and fire safety.

Pilot Willie McCool will maneuver Columbia for a series of observations by MEIDEX or Mediterranean Israeli Dust Experiment. The Blue Team will calibrate the MEIDEX equipment to facilitate measurement of small particles in the atmosphere over the Mediterranean Sea and Atlantic Ocean off the coast of the Sahara desert.

The crew will also work with the Advanced Respiratory Monitoring System, a European Space Agency experiment to evaluate how the human body adapts to weightlessness.

Cooling and humidity control in the Spacehab module is being managed through minor adjustments to systems aboard Columbia and the science module. A minor electrical current spike was observed Monday afternoon in one of two systems designed to collect and distribute water produced from condensation buildup caused by the operation of Spacehab's cooling system.

The Blue Team will work on their experiments until about 5:39 a.m. EST Thursday when they will be officially relieved by the Red Team of Rick Husband, Kalpana Chawla, Laurel Clark and Israeli astronaut Ilan Ramon. The Blue Team will then begin a scheduled sleep period at 7:39 a.m. EST.

All systems aboard Columbia continue to function well.

We will next update this box Thursday morning at 10 a.m. EST, earlier if events warrant.

One week after launch, science keeps going and going
Thursday, Jan. 23, 2003 at 10 a.m. EST

Shuttle Columbia launched one week ago today and yet the mission isn't quite half-way finished yet. Landing remains scheduled for Feb. 1 -- one week from this Saturday.

The marathon science mission continues with the Red Shift of Rick Husband, Kalpana Chawla, Laurel Clark and Israeli astronaut Ilan Ramon currently on duty, working in both the shuttle's crew cabin and the Spacehab science module tucked inside the cargo bay.

The Red Team was awakened at 4:09 a.m. EST, took over science chores from the Blue Team at 5:39 a.m. EST, will continue working until 5:39 p.m. EST and go to bed at 7:39 p.m. EST.

Today's list of science acronyms include MEIDEX, OSTEO, SOFBALL, VCD, ZCG, BDS, ARMS, MPFE and AST.

If you're just starting to follow the mission you can read more about each of these experiments in earlier updates, but here's the quick summary of what each acronym is about -- in order:

Looking for dust in the atmosphere, studying bone loss, igniting balls of fire, purifying simulated urine into drinking water, growing a certain kind of crytsal, growing prostate cancer and bone cells together, learning more about how the human body adapts to space, studying changes in the immune system and growing flowers to possibly create new fragrances.

The crew also will continue their daily experiment-related chores of taking blood, urine and saliva samples; making entries in a diary about how well they rested overnight and carefully recording the food they eat and their amount of exercise.

In the meantime Columbia continues to obey the laws of gravity, circling the planet every 90 minutes almost 180 miles (290 kilometers) above the surface.

We will next update this box by 11 p.m. EST tonight, earlier if events warrant.

Blue Team begins second week of science studies
Thursday, Jan. 23, 2003 at 10:30 p.m. EST

Columbia's Blue Team of pilot Willie McCool and mission specialists Dave Brown and Mike Anderson are beginning their second week of science studies during this around-the-clock mission of orbital experiments.

The Blue Team was awakened at 3:39 p.m. EST and relieved Columbia's Red Team at about 5:39 p.m. EST to continue work on the 80-plus experiments aboard Columbia. The seven-member crew has been divided into two teams working 12-hour shifts to maximize the scientific research of this marathon two-week mission.

The Blue Team will again work tonight on SOFBALL, or Structures of Flame Balls at Low Lewis-number experiment. Tiny lean and log-lasting flames, invisible to the human eye but visible to the crew and investigators, are being studied to improve understanding of lean (low fuel) burning combustion which may lead to improvements in engine efficiency, reduced emissions, and fire safety.

The crew also will continue their daily experiment-related chores of taking blood, urine and saliva samples; making entries in a diary about how well they rested overnight and carefully recording the food they eat and their amount of exercise.

Cooling and humidity control in the Spacehab module are being properly maintained through minor adjustments to systems aboard Columbia and the science module.

The Blue Team will work on their experiments until about 5:14 a.m. EST Friday when they will be officially relieved by the Red Team of Rick Husband, Kalpana Chawla, Laurel Clark and Israeli astronaut Ilan Ramon. The Blue Team will then begin a scheduled sleep period at 7:39 a.m. EST.

All systems aboard Columbia continue to function well as it circles the planet every 90 minutes almost 180 miles (290 kilometers) above the surface.

We will next update this box Friday morning at 10 a.m. EST, earlier if events warrant.

Columbia mission on the back stretch
Friday, Jan. 24, 2003 at 10:30 a.m. EST

Today the Columbia mission passes the half-way mark of its 16-day research effort.

The shuttle was launched from the Kennedy Space Center on Jan. 16 at 10:39 a.m. EST and is now set to land back in Florida on Feb. 1 at 9:15 a.m. EST.

As is now the familiar routine, the Red Team of astronauts Rick Husband, Kalpana Chawla, Laurel Clark and Ilan Ramon are on duty for the day shift, working in the shuttle's crew cabin and attached Spacehab module.

They began work at 5:14 a.m. EST and will continue working the various experiments until 5:19 p.m. EST.

On the flight plan today are continuations of experiments dealing with Earth's ozone layer, cancer cell growth, human biology, combustion, the scent of flowers growing in space, bone loss and dust storms in Earth's atmosphere.

Although not directly involved with this mission, the NASA TV schedule for this flight also lists a pair of events this afternoon worth noting. At 1 p.m. EST NASA will host a pre-launch news conference for Saturday's planned Pegasus launch of the SORCE spacecraft. Then at 2 p.m. NASA Administrator Sean O'Keefe will host one of his periodic NASA Update shows.

Both events can be seen on NASA TV and by clicking on the link above to see our feed of the agency's broadcast.

We will next update this page by 11 p.m. EST tonight, sooner if events warrant.

Columbia's Blue Team pursuing the perfect flame
Friday, Jan. 24, 2003 at 9 p.m. EST

Shuttle Columbia's Blue Team of pilot Willie McCool and mission specialists Dave Brown and Mike Anderson will place NASA's oldest Orbiter into "free drift" mode tonight in their quest for a long-lasting blue flame, including the first one using methane for fuel.

Columbia's maneuvering rockets will be temporarily shut-down to eliminate thruster firings that could affect the longest flame tests of the mission, lasting 2 hours, 47 minutes, part of the SOFBALL (Structures of Flame Balls) experiment. Tiny lean but long-lasting flames, all but invisible to the human eye, are being studied to improve understanding of low-fuel burning combustion which may lead to improvements in engine efficiency, reduced emissions, and fire safety.

The Blue Team was awakened at 3:39 p.m. EST and relieved Columbia's Red Team at about 5:19 p.m. EST to continue their second week of on-orbit studies of the 80-plus experiments aboard Columbia. The seven-member crew has been divided into two teams working 12-hour shifts to maximize the scientific research of this marathon mission.

The crew will resume work with the Mechanics of Granular Materials experiment, looking at how sandy soil full of water behaves under pressure. They will continue their daily experiment regimen of taking blood, urine and saliva samples and making journal entries about their sleep habits, food intake and exercise.

The Blue Team will also make time from their experiments to answer questions during several television interviews.

Temperature and humidity control in Spacehab are being properly maintained by periodically adjusting cooling loop settings in Columbia and the science module.

The Blue Team will work on their experiments until about 5:14 a.m. EST Saturday when they will be officially relieved by the Red Team of Rick Husband, Kalpana Chawla, Laurel Clark and Israeli astronaut Ilan Ramon. The Blue Team will then begin a scheduled sleep period at 7:39 a.m. EST.

All systems aboard Columbia continue to function well as it orbits the planet 180 miles (290 kilometers) above the surface.

We will next update this box Saturday morning at 10 a.m. EST, earlier if events warrant.

Day shift works a familiar routine
Saturday, Jan. 25, 2003 at 10 a.m. EST

Shuttle Columbia's Red Team members are up and busy working their full slate of science experiments scheduled for today.

Rick Husband, Kalpana Chawla, Laurel Clark and Ilan Ramon were awakened at 3:39 a.m. EST and officially went on duty at 5:14 a.m. EST, beginning a planned 12-hour work day. They are scheduled to go to bed at 7:39 p.m. EST.

Studies planned for today involve the Israeli MEIDEX set of experiments studying Earth's atmosphere, crystal growing and experiments involved in understanding the way the human body reacts and adapts to space.

Plus there are plans to continue experiments with growing flowers in space and examining the way sand and water behave under pressure in the absence of gravity.

Meanwhile, as this busy but relatively quiet day aboard Columbia is happening, a launch team at the Canaveral Spaceport is preparing a Pegasus XL winged rocket for an air launch from an L-1011 jumbo jet. The rocket is to carry NASA's SORCE spacecraft into Earth orbit, where it will study the sun.

The launch window opens at 3:10 p.m. EST and the event will be carried live on NASA TV. For updates on this launch event today please see our Next Launch page.

We will update this box by 11 p.m. EST tonight, sooner if events warrant.

Columbia's Blue Team to study human biology
Saturday, Jan. 25, 2003 at 10 p.m. EST

Shuttle Columbia's Blue Team of pilot Willie McCool and mission specialists Dave Brown and Mike Anderson will shift their focus tonight to the study of human biology and physiology.

The crew will utilize the European Space Agency's BIOPACK experiments, short for Bacterial Physiology and Virulence on Earth and in Microgravity. The BIOPACK is a collection of eight experiments in 78 containers used to conduct biological research on mammalian cell and tissue cultures under varying gravity conditions, including a study of human DNA.

The Blue Team was awakened at 3:39 p.m. EST and relieved Columbia's Red Team at about 5:14 p.m. EST to continue their around-the-clock studies using the 80-plus experiments aboard Columbia. The seven-member crew has been divided into two teams working 12-hour shifts to maximize the scientific research of this marathon two-week mission.

Pilot McCool will again maneuver Columbia for observations using the Mediterranean Israeli Dust Experiment or MEIDEX cameras. MEIDEX will be used to continue photographing dust particles, sprites and other electrical phenomena in the upper atmosphere. The astronauts hope to use the camera to observe a substantial plume of dust and smoke that extends from the Nigerian coast westward toward the Atlantic and an additional plume off the coast of Mauritania and Mali.

MEIDEX will also be used to observe electrical discharges or "Sprites" in thunderstorms over Western Australia near Perth.

The crew will again work with the Mechanics of Granular Materials experiment, looking at how sandy soil full of water behaves under pressure.

The Blue Team will work on their experiments until about 5:19 a.m. EST Sunday when they will be officially relieved by the Red Team of Rick Husband, Kalpana Chawla, Laurel Clark and Israeli astronaut Ilan Ramon. The Blue Team will then begin a scheduled sleep period at 7:39 a.m. EST.

All of Columbia's systems continue to operate in excellent shape as it circles the planet 180 miles (290 kilometers) above the surface.

We will next update this box Sunday morning at 10 a.m. EST, earlier if events warrant.

Super Bowl Sunday arrives
Sunday, Jan. 26, 2003 at 10 a.m. EST

The biggest day in professional sports is here -- at least in the United States -- but no one aboard shuttle Columbia will be able to watch the game.

Instead, a by-now-routine schedule of daily chores, housekeeping and conducting science experiments is what's in store for the seven-member crew.

Red Team members Rick Husband, Kalpana Chawla, Laurel Clark and Ilan Ramon were awakened at 3:39 a.m. EST and officially went on duty at 5:19 a.m. EST, beginning a planned 12-hour work day. They are scheduled to go to bed at 7:39 p.m. EST.

Blue Team members Willie McCool, Mike Anderson and David Brown will be awakened at 3:39 p.m. EST, so all seven astronauts will be awake as the big game gets underway.

But don't expect any television appearances by the crew before, during or after the game. Neither the shuttle crew nor the International Space Station crew of Ken Bowersox, Don Pettit or Nikolai Budarin taped anything, NASA officials said.

Past crews have participated in the Super Bowl and other big events by doing such things as flipping the coin at the beginning of the game.

The official Cape Canaveral Bureau Super Bowl prediction: Oakland Raiders by a field goal.

We will update this page again by 11 p.m. EST, earlier if events warrant.

Blue Team to wrap up combustion studies
Sunday, Jan. 26, 2003 at 10:15 p.m. EST

Shuttle Columbia's Blue Team of pilot Willie McCool and mission specialists Dave Brown and Mike Anderson will complete combustion studies using the SOFBALL (Structures of Flame Balls) experiment tonight, then turn their attention to caring for the rodents living in SPACEHAB's Animal Enclosure Module.

The Blue Team awakened at 3:39 p.m. EST and relieved Columbia's Red Team at about 5:19 p.m. EST to continue their around-the-clock scientific research.

SOFBALL successfully produced tiny lean and long-lasting flames to study lean combustion that may help engineers design engines with better fuel efficiency and reduced emissions of pollution. After completing tonight's experiments, SPACEHAB's Combustion Module will be reconfigured for the Water Mist experiment to study fire suppression techniques in spaceflight.

The Blue Team will also spend some time refreshing water for 13 rodents in the Animal Enclosure Module. Data is being acquired on the effect of microgravity on the rodents’ neurovestibular system.

Pilot McCool will also maneuver Columbia to receive data tonight from the SOLSE, or Shuttle Ozone Limb Sounding Experiment, which uses imaging devices in the shuttle’s cargo bay to study the Earth’s ozone layer.

The Blue Team will work on their experiments until about 5:09 a.m. EST Monday when they will be officially relieved by the Red Team of Rick Husband, Kalpana Chawla, Laurel Clark and Israeli astronaut Ilan Ramon. The Blue Team will then begin a scheduled sleep period at 7:39 a.m. EST.

Columbia's systems continue to operate in excellent shape as it orbits 180 miles (290 kilometers) above the planet.

For those of you who asked, tonight's Super Bowl saw Florida's own Tampa Bay Buccaneers routing the Oakland Raiders 48-21, a far cry from Professor Banke's official pre-game prediction of an Oakland win by 3 points. The Banke crystal ball's record is now 1-for-3 in the post-season - or an abysmal 1-for-4 if his false prophecy of the Minnesota Vikings defeating the New England Patriots earlier in the season is included. (New England defeated Minnesota 24-17 on Nov. 24).