Genesis I

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This article is about the space station module. For other uses, see Genesis (disambiguation).

Genesis I

Image from one of the seven exterior cameras on Genesis I.
Station statistics
Call sign:	NORAD #29252 IDC #2006-029A ⁽¹⁾
Crew:	Unmanned
Launch:	July 12, 2006 14:53:30 UTC ⁽³⁾
Launch pad:	Dombarovskiy base, Russia ⁽³⁾
Reentry:	2013–2019 ⁽⁴⁾
Mission status:	On orbit
Mass:	1,360 kg (3,000 lb) ⁽⁵⁾
Length:	4.4 m (14.4 ft) ⁽²⁾
Diameter:	2.54 m (8.3 ft) ⁽²⁾
Living volume:	11.5 m³ (406.1 ft³) ⁽²⁾
Atmospheric pressure:	51.7 kPa (7.5 psi) ⁽⁶⁾
Perigee:	521.0 km (323.7 mi) ⁽¹⁾
Apogee:	594.0 km (369.1 mi) ⁽¹⁾
Orbit inclination:	64.51 degrees ⁽¹⁾
Average speed:	27,243.0 km/h 16,928.0 (mi/h) ⁽²⁾
Orbital period:	95.8 minutes ⁽¹⁾
Orbits per day:	15.03 ⁽¹⁾
Days in orbit:	>500 days ⁽¹⁾
Number of orbits:	>7,500 ⁽¹⁾
Distance travelled:	>324,000,000 km (200,000,000 mi) ⁽¹⁾
References: 1^[1], 2^[2], 3^[3], 4^[4], 5^[5], 6^[6]
Genesis I

Genesis I is an experimental space habitat designed and built by the private American firm Bigelow Aerospace and launched in 2006. It was the first module to be sent into orbit by the company, and is testing various systems, materials and techniques related to determining the viability of long-term inflatable space structures. Such structures, including this module and others built by Bigelow Aerospace, are based on the NASA Transhab design, which provides increased interior volume at a reduced launch diameter and potentially reduced mass compared to traditional rigid structures.

1 Spacecraft history
2 Systems
3 Payload
4 References
5 See also

[edit] Spacecraft history

Genesis I was launched on July 12, 2006 at 14:53:30 UTC aboard an ISC Kosmotras Dnepr rocket, launched from Dombarovskiy missile base near Yasniy, Russia. Spacecraft control was transferred to Bigelow Aerospace at 15:08 UTC after a successful orbital insertion.^[3] Designed as a one-third scale model of the full size BA 330, when in orbit the main body of the craft measures 4.4 m (14.4 ft) long and 2.54 m (8.3 ft) in diameter, with an interior habitable volume of 11.5 cubic meters (406.1 cubic feet). As part of the expandable design, however, the module launched with a diameter of only 1.6 m (5.25 ft), inflating to its full size after entering orbit.^[7] The expansion process took approximately ten minutes.^[4]

Genesis I suffered a major radiation event in December 2006 as a result of a solar storm. Mission controllers were able to restart the system in time, though the situation was described as being "one fault away from the spacecraft being dead." Despite this, no lasting damage appears to have occurred and the spacecraft was operating in "excellent shape" as of March 2007.^[8]

The spacecraft completed its 10,000th orbit on May 8, 2008, some 660 days after launch. Since that launch, "Genesis 1 has traveled the equivalent of more than 270 million miles, which would take it to the Moon and back 1,154 times," and has taken more than 14,000 images, including images of all seven continents. Its electrical equipment has been continuously powered since it first became operational.^[9]

[edit] Systems

Genesis I is outfitted with eight GaAs solar panel arrays, four on each end, which produce one kilowatt total power^[10] and maintain a 26 volt battery charge.^[11] The craft carries thirteen cameras, seven external to monitor the physical condition of the spacecraft, such as the outer shell and solar arrays, and six internal to photograph the various objects and experiments.^[2] Internal systems established an atmospheric pressure of 7.5 psi (51.7 kPa)^[6] and use passive thermal control to keep temperatures at an average of 26 degrees Celsius (79 degrees Fahrenheit),^[11] with observed limits of approximately 4.5 °C (40 °F) and 32 °C (90 °F).^[12] Genesis I uses a single gas tank for its inflation system, and guidance/stabilization control is performed using a network of torque rods, sun sensors, GPS and a magnetometer.^[13]

[edit] Payload

Aside from the various systems and monitoring equipment, Genesis I is orbiting with a wide variety of cargo. Bigelow employees contributed numerous photographs, toys, cards and other items, which can be seen in still images floating around the cabin. Bigelow also placed a life-sciences experiment on board, which contains Madagascar hissing cockroaches (Gromphadorhina portentosa) and so-called Mexican jumping beans, which are seeds containing the live larva of the moth Cydia deshaisiana.^[14]^[15] In addition, the company allowed NASA to include a prototype for the GeneSat series of nanosatellites. This device, called GeneBox, tested the systems and procedures that will be used on future GeneSat missions. While GeneBox carries no living organisms, future flights will use sensors and optics to measure how weightlessness affects genes and the genetic activity of cells and microscopic life.^[16]^[17]