Laptops, laptops, laptops!
Continuing with our Columbus specialist training, today Butch and I spent some time with our instructor Bernd looking at some maintenance tasks related to the Columbus laptop.
We have many, many laptops on ISS and no, not all laptops are created equal. Some laptops, that we call PCS, are on the ISS control bus and have displays that allow crewmembers to monitor the status of onboard systems and to send commands. Truth to be told, most system commanding is done from the ground by specialists sitting on console in the various control centers. As crewmembers we are mainly trained on procedures that would be critical in case of an emergency or a loss of communication situation.
Columbus, just like the Japanese laboratory JEM, has its own laptop for telemetry and commanding, which is called PWS. I hope you’re not getting tired of acronyms already, because this is just the beginning!
We also have SSC laptops that are not on the control bus and contain application software for planning, procedure viewing, inventory management but also videoconferencing and IP phone calls.
Finally for internet access and some more application software we have CSL laptops.
Oh, I almost forgot: lots of experiment racks come with their own dedicated laptop as well!
11/09/2013