International Space Station Status Report: SS06-038

International Space Station Status Report: SS06-038

The astronauts aboard the International Space Station spent much of their week preparing for the arrival of the Space Shuttle Atlantis, set for launch Aug. 27 on the STS-115 mission. Commander Pavel Vinogradov, Flight Engineer and NASA Science Officer Jeff Williams and European Space Agency astronaut Thomas Reiter of Germany prepared for Atlantis to deliver a new section of the station’s girder-like truss. During Atlantis’ mission, astronauts will attach the new P3/P4 truss, a segment that includes a huge new set of solar arrays and a giant rotary joint that allows the arrays to track the sun. The mission will mark the resumption of station assembly by delivering the first large new component to the station since late 2002.

During the shuttle flight, Atlantis’ crew members will perform three spacewalks to complete the installation and setup of the new segment. The spacewalks will begin from the station’s Quest Airlock. Complex robotics work is involved as the 17.5-ton, bus-sized truss section is handed from the shuttle arm to the station arm for installation.

In preparation for Atlantis, the station crew trained on the robotic Canadarm2 and packed items for return to Earth on the shuttle. They also reviewed Atlantis’ mission timeline and trained to photograph the shuttle’s heat shield as the orbiter does a backflip while approaching the station. The crew also did several physiological and psychological tests and experiments designed to learn more about how humans react to long periods of weightlessness. Early this week Williams worked with flight controllers and the Dynamic Onboard Ubiquitous Graphics program on robotic arm activities. The program simulates the arm’s operation for training.

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