HISTORY
The German funded D-2 mission was performed in collaboration with ESA. It flew in April 1993 when the Space Shuttle Columbia was carrying the ESA build Spacelab in the cargo bay. The mission launched on April 26, 1993 and returned on May 6th 1993.
D-2 became the second Spacelab flight under German mission management; around-the-clock operations performed by crew, divided into two teams. Some 88 experiments were conducted, covering materials and life sciences, technology applications, Earth observations, astronomy and atmospheric physics.
The Anthrorack equipment was an advanced mini-diagnostic laboratory, allowed most comprehensive medical screening to date of human adaptation to weightlessness.
EQUIPMENT
Danish Aerospace Company (DAC) developed a major part of ESAs Anthrorack facility. The Damec equipment in Anthrorack, comprised the Respiratory Monitoring System (RMS) and the bicycle ergometer. It included the following:
- Quadrupole Mass Spectrometer (QMS)
- Respiratory Valve Unit (RVU)
- Calibration and rebreathing Gas Supply System (GSS)
- Washout Gas Supply System (WGSS)
- Bicycle Ergometer
These service elements constituted 15-20% of the Anthrorack facility. DAC personnel have performed all phases of design, manufacturing, space qualification, and verification of the hardware, and they supported the in orbit operations from the German control center outside Munich.