Space shuttle undockss, starts journey home
Houston, Texas The infinite shuttle Atlantis undockedded from the international space station early Monday for its journey back to Earth, termination an about nine-day visit to present, install and trigger off Europe’s new orbital laboratory.
Pilot Alan Poindexter mildly backed the bird away from the place after the fomite sprung loose from its dockage port.
He then guided the ship through a full lap about the revolving outpost, in the main so crew fellow members could take pictures of the station’s new constellation.
“We’re seeming forward to acquiring home and we’re headed home now,” Poindexter emphasised.
Just earlier Atlantis undockedded, shuttle commandant Stephen Frick gave thanks station commandant Peggy Whitson and her crew for their cordial reception.
“We had got a great time over there,” he informated. “We erudite a mickle and we truly, really savoured working with your crew.”
“Thanks you, guys,” Whitson reacted. “It’s a great new room you’ve appended on and we genuinely appreciate it.”
Atlantis’ crew came at the place Feb. 9 and plotted to speedily get to do work installing Columbus, Europe’s USD 2 000 000 000 share to the place. But German spaceman Hans Schlegel struck down ill after the launching, forcing NASA to draw him from the installing spacewalk and delay the expedition.
Schlegel, 56, chop recovered and assisted guide his spacewalkinging replacement from inside the place. He was well enough to take part in the mission’s second spacewalk. Neither he nor NASA disclosed the nature of his sickness.
Later Monday, the work party was to use up another close-up optical maser survey of Atlantis’ wing, this time to check into for any possible micrometeor damage that may have taken place in orbit. Reviews conducted earliest in the missionary station found a mangled corner on a thermal blanket near the shuttle’s tail, but engineers are positive it will stand up to the acute re-entry heat.
National Aeronautics and Space Administration is vigilanted when it comes to the shuttle’s thermal shielding, ever since Columbia was ruined in 2003 postdating a froth strike to its wing during launch.
Head home with Atlantis is astronauted Daniel Tani, who’s exhausted four calendar months at the infinite station. Tani was alleged to wing home on board Atlantis in December, but fuel gauge jobs delayed the shuttle’s trip.
Earlier the hatchings between the ballistic capsule closed on Sunday, Tani nonrecreational tribute to his mother, Arised, who was voted out in a machine accident piece he was in space — “my brainchild” — and his married woman, Jane, who “held the hard work piece I was having playfulness.”
“I can’t hold back to acquire back to her and my two little young women,” he informated.
Atlantis is scheduledded to set down Wednesday morn. Both the Kennedy Space Center and the relief landing site in California will be ready; the infinite agency wants the birdie down that mean solar day to yield the military enough time to destruct a discredited spy satellite.
The infinite agency already is seeming ahead to the next shuttle flight to the orbing station. Endeavour made the slow trip to the launching pad early Monday in readying for a March 11 liftoff.