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After Thursday’s relocation of the Soyuz TMA-14 spacecraft and off-duty time over the weekend, the International Space Station’s Expedition 20 crew returned to work Monday, focusing on preparations for the arrival of space shuttle Endeavour later this month.
Commander Gennady Padalka and Flight Engineer Mike Barratt practiced photography techniques with digital cameras that they will use during Endeavour’s approach to the station to collect high-resolution imagery of the shuttle’s heat shield. The entire station crew spent time packing items to be returned to Earth aboard the shuttle at the end of its mission.
Endeavour is slated to launch July 11 from Kennedy Space Center, Fla. to begin the STS-127 mission. The shuttle crew will deliver the final elements of the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency’s Kibo laboratory and will return Flight Engineer Koichi Wakata to Earth. STS-127 Mission Specialist Timothy Kopra will stay behind and replace Wakata.
Padalka, Barratt and Wakata conducted Soyuz descent training with Russian specialists to maintain proficiency on systems used for entry and landing in their Soyuz vehicle.
Wakata also replaced some components in the Waste Hygiene Compartment as part of its regular maintenance.
Flight Engineer Bob Thirsk – with help from Flight Engineer Frank De Winne – worked with the Integrated Cardiovascular (ICV) experiment in the Columbus laboratory. ICV researches the extent of cardiac atrophy and seeks to identify its mechanisms.
Flight Engineer Roman Romanenko performed maintenance on the ventilation system in the station’s Russian segment, cleaning fan screens and air ducts.
Padalka, Barratt and Wakata undocked the Soyuz from the aft port of the Zvezda service module at 5:29 p.m. EDT Thursday and piloted it over to the Pirs docking compartment, redocking the vehicle at 5:55 p.m. The move clears the way for the arrival of the ISS Progress 34 supply ship, which is scheduled to arrive later this month.
Commander Gennady Padalka and Flight Engineer Mike Barratt practiced photography techniques with digital cameras that they will use during Endeavour’s approach to the station to collect high-resolution imagery of the shuttle’s heat shield. The entire station crew spent time packing items to be returned to Earth aboard the shuttle at the end of its mission.
Endeavour is slated to launch July 11 from Kennedy Space Center, Fla. to begin the STS-127 mission. The shuttle crew will deliver the final elements of the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency’s Kibo laboratory and will return Flight Engineer Koichi Wakata to Earth. STS-127 Mission Specialist Timothy Kopra will stay behind and replace Wakata.
Padalka, Barratt and Wakata conducted Soyuz descent training with Russian specialists to maintain proficiency on systems used for entry and landing in their Soyuz vehicle.
Wakata also replaced some components in the Waste Hygiene Compartment as part of its regular maintenance.
Flight Engineer Bob Thirsk – with help from Flight Engineer Frank De Winne – worked with the Integrated Cardiovascular (ICV) experiment in the Columbus laboratory. ICV researches the extent of cardiac atrophy and seeks to identify its mechanisms.
Flight Engineer Roman Romanenko performed maintenance on the ventilation system in the station’s Russian segment, cleaning fan screens and air ducts.
Padalka, Barratt and Wakata undocked the Soyuz from the aft port of the Zvezda service module at 5:29 p.m. EDT Thursday and piloted it over to the Pirs docking compartment, redocking the vehicle at 5:55 p.m. The move clears the way for the arrival of the ISS Progress 34 supply ship, which is scheduled to arrive later this month.
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