Space shuttle Endeavour races toward space station
Sunday, 16 November 2008
CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla., Nov 15 (AP): Space shuttle Endeavour raced toward the international space station Saturday for a home makeover job after a brilliant moonlit launch that had NASA managers in awe.
The shuttle and its seven astronauts blasted into orbit Friday night on a mission to redo the insides of the space station, adding some extra bedrooms and a spare bathroom and kitchenette.
"It's our turn to take home improvement to a new level after 10 years of international space station construction," commander Christopher Ferguson called out.
Ferguson and his crew will double as plumbers and installers once they arrive at the 220-mile-high space station Sunday, hooking up extra cooking and sleeping equipment as well as a new water recycling system so the station's crew can expand next year.
The work will keep the astronauts up over Thanksgiving; NASA expects to add a 16th day to the mission, thanks to the on-time launch.
NASA almost delayed the launch because of a door frame left loose at the pad by a worker who promptly admitted his mistake. Launch controllers determined the flapping frame would not hit the shuttle.
Soon after liftoff, Mission Control informed the astronauts that a quick look at the launch pictures revealed two pieces of debris trailing Endeavour, one at 33 seconds after liftoff and the other around the two-minute mark.
The astronauts' main priority Saturday is to survey their ship's wings and nose with a laser-tipped boom for any signs of damage. The day-after-launch inspection has been standard procedure ever since the 2003 Columbia disaster.
The shuttle and its seven astronauts blasted into orbit Friday night on a mission to redo the insides of the space station, adding some extra bedrooms and a spare bathroom and kitchenette.
"It's our turn to take home improvement to a new level after 10 years of international space station construction," commander Christopher Ferguson called out.
Ferguson and his crew will double as plumbers and installers once they arrive at the 220-mile-high space station Sunday, hooking up extra cooking and sleeping equipment as well as a new water recycling system so the station's crew can expand next year.
The work will keep the astronauts up over Thanksgiving; NASA expects to add a 16th day to the mission, thanks to the on-time launch.
NASA almost delayed the launch because of a door frame left loose at the pad by a worker who promptly admitted his mistake. Launch controllers determined the flapping frame would not hit the shuttle.
Soon after liftoff, Mission Control informed the astronauts that a quick look at the launch pictures revealed two pieces of debris trailing Endeavour, one at 33 seconds after liftoff and the other around the two-minute mark.
The astronauts' main priority Saturday is to survey their ship's wings and nose with a laser-tipped boom for any signs of damage. The day-after-launch inspection has been standard procedure ever since the 2003 Columbia disaster.