Atlantis Ready for Landing Friday

The STS-129 crew spent its final full day in space Thursday. The crew tested Atlantis’ flight control system, the flaps and rudders that will guide it through the atmosphere, and test fired the thruster jets that control its orientation in space and during early re-entry.

All crew members spent time stowing items in the shuttle’s cabin in preparation for the return to Earth. Landing is scheduled for 9:44 a.m. EST at Kennedy Space Center in Florida.

Crew Prepares for Friday Landing

Atlantis crew members spent part of Thanksgiving Day preparing for their scheduled Friday landing.

The shuttle and its seven-astronaut crew, Commander Charles Hobaugh, Pilot Barry Wilmore and Mission Specialists Leland Melvin, Randy Bresnik, Mike Foreman, Robert Satcher Jr. and Nicole Stott also had a Thanksgiving meal and talked with media representatives.

Hobaugh, Wilmore and Melvin tested Atlantis’ flight control system, the flaps and rudders that will guide it through the atmosphere, and test fired the thruster jets that control its orientation in space and during early re-entry.

Image above: The STS-129 crew members show some of their Thanksgiving food items during an in-flight media interview: Photo credit: NASA TV

All crew members spent time stowing items in the shuttle’s cabin in preparation for the return to Earth. Landing is scheduled for 9:44 a.m. EST at Kennedy Space Center in Florida.

Tuesday at 10 a.m., European Space Agency astronaut Frank De Winne handed over command of the station to NASA astronaut Jeff Williams. De Winne and Expedition 21 Flight Engineers Roman Romanenko and Robert Thirsk are scheduled to leave the station for return to Earth in a Soyuz capsule on Nov. 30.

For more information visit http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/shuttle/main/index.html

Thin Blue Line

The thin line of Earth's atmosphere and the setting sun are featured in this image photographed by the crew of the International Space Station while space shuttle Atlantis on the STS-129 mission was docked with the station.

Image Credit: NASA

For more information visit http://www.nasa.gov/multimedia/imagegallery/image_feature_1529.html

Flight Controllers Develop Workaround to Bypass Suspect Filter

A routine disposal overboard of waste water and urine collected aboard Atlantis was terminated early. It is not necessary to dump the now half-full collection tank before landing Friday. Flight controllers have a workaround available for the crew to bypass a suspected clogged filter and dump the liquid, if landing is delayed.

The STS-129 astronauts began their sleep shift at 5:28 p.m. EST and will awaken at 1:28 a.m. Thursday. Atlantis’ first landing opportunity is Friday at 9:44 a.m. at Kennedy Space Center in Florida.

Atlantis Undocks from Station, Scheduled for Friday Landing

Atlantis undocked from the International Space Station at 4:53 a.m. EST Wednesday, ending a successful resupply visit that included three spacewalks. The total docked time was 6 days, 17 hours and 2 minutes.

Atlantis brought to the station about 14 tons of cargo in its payload bay, including two large carriers with heavy spare parts that were installed on the station. The shuttle also carried about a ton of cargo in its crew cabin. It is bringing home about the same weight of cabin cargo from the orbiting laboratory.

Image above: Space shuttle Atlantis flies around the International Space Station after undocking. Photo credit: NASA

Atlantis Commander Charles Hobaugh, Pilot Barry Wilmore and Mission Specialists Leland Melvin, Randy Bresnik, Mike Foreman, Robert Satcher Jr. and Nicole Stott are scheduled to land at 9:44 a.m. Friday at Kennedy Space Center in Florida.

Tuesday at 10 a.m., European Space Agency astronaut Frank De Winne handed over command of the station to NASA astronaut Jeff Williams. De Winne and Expedition 21 Flight Engineers Roman Romanenko and Robert Thirsk are scheduled to leave the station for return to Earth in a Soyuz capsule on Nov. 30.

On Sunday, Bresnik told the flight controllers his new daughter, Abigail Mae Bresnik, had been born in Houston at 11:04 p.m. CST Saturday. He said his wife Rebecca and new daughter, 6 pounds, 13 ounces and 20 inches long, were doing well. Bresnik got the news by private phone patch through mission control shortly after the crew was awakened.

For more information visit http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/shuttle/main/index.html

A Different View

On flight day four of the STS-129 mission, a member of the crew photographed the aft section of space shuttle Atlantis through a window from aboard the International Space Station. Reflections on the window are visible in this image. The 11-day shuttle mission continued maintenance and upgrades to the orbital outpost.

Image Credit: NASA

For more information visit http://www.nasa.gov/multimedia/imagegallery/image_feature_1528.html

Shuttle Set to Undock From Station Wednesday

The space shuttle Atlantis and International Space Station crews began their sleep shift at 5:28 p.m. EST. The STS-129 astronauts are scheduled to wake up at 1:28 a.m. Wednesday and undock Atlantis from the station at 4:53 a.m.

Shuttle and Station Crews Bid Farewell, Prepare for Undocking

Space shuttle Atlantis and International Space Station crew members closed the hatches linking their two spacecraft at 1:12 p.m. EST Tuesday in preparation for the shuttle’s undocking and return home.

STS-129 Commander Charles Hobaugh, Pilot Barry Wilmore and Mission Specialists Leland Melvin, Randy Bresnik, Mike Foreman, Robert Satcher Jr. and Nicole Stott used their first hour separated from the station crew to get ready for undocking. They checked out rendezvous tools and set up a centerline camera. Undocking is scheduled for 4:53 a.m. Wednesday. Atlantis’ first landing opportunity is at Kennedy Space Center in Florida at 9:44 a.m. Friday.

Image above: The STS-129 and Expedition 21 crew members bid farewell. Photo credit: NASA TV

Stott is returning to Earth after more than 90 days in space, including 87 days on the station, 80 of them as a member of the Expedition 20 and 21 crews.

At 10 a.m., shortly after a joint crew photo, European Space Agency astronaut Frank De Winne handed over command of the station to NASA astronaut Jeff Williams. De Winne and Expedition 21 Flight Engineers Roman Romanenko and Robert Thirsk are scheduled to leave the station for return to Earth in a Soyuz capsule on Nov. 30.

On Sunday, Bresnik told the flight controllers his new daughter, Abigail Mae Bresnik, had been born in Houston at 11:04 p.m. CST Saturday. He said his wife Rebecca and new daughter, 6 pounds, 13 ounces and 20 inches long, were doing well. Bresnik got the news by private phone patch through mission control shortly after the crew was awakened.

For more information visit http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/shuttle/main/index.html

The Brightness of the Sun

The bright sun greets the International Space Station in this Nov. 22 image, taken from the Russian section of the orbital outpost and photographed by the STS-129 crew. The 11-day STS-129 mission installed a number of station upgrades and prepared the station for the installation of Node 3, which is slated for another mission.

Image Credit: NASA

For more information visit http://www.nasa.gov/multimedia/imagegallery/image_feature_1527.html

Flight Day 4

Astronaut Robert L. Satcher Jr., STS-129 mission specialist, participates in the mission's first spacewalk as construction and maintenance continue on the International Space Station.

Image credit: NASA
Nov. 19, 2009

For more information visit http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/shuttle/shuttlemissions/sts129/multimedia/gallery/09-11-19-2.html

Flight Day 8

A partial view of space shuttle Atlantis docked to the International Space Station, along with the station's Canadarm2, the Columbus laboratory and Harmony node are featured in this image photographed by a space-walking astronaut during the mission's third and final spacewalk.

Image credit: NASA
Nov. 23, 2009

For more information visit http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/shuttle/shuttlemissions/sts129/multimedia/gallery/09-11-23.html

Final STS-129 Spacewalk Complete

Mission Specialists Randy Bresnik and Robert Satcher Jr. completed a 5-hour, 42-minute spacewalk, the third and final spacewalk of the STS-129 mission, at 2:06 p.m. EST Monday.

Mission Specialist Mike Foreman was the intravehicular crew member who helped to direct today’s activities and coordinate communications between the spacewalkers and Mission Control in Houston.

The spacewalkers transfered an oxygen filled High Pressure Gas Tank (HPGT) from the EXPRESS Logistics Carrier 2, or ELC2, located on the starboard truss, to a spot on the outside of the Quest Airlock. The tank will be used to replenish atmosphere lost when spacewalkers enter and exit the station.

Image above: Mission Specialist Randy Bresnik works outside of the International Space Station during the final spacewalk of the STS-129 mission. Photo credit: NASA TV

While Satcher was relocating the HPGT, Bresnik installed the seventh Materials International Space Station Experiment, or MISSE 7. This is the most advanced of the MISSE payloads to date and will be the first to receive power directly from the station and use the station’s communication system to send commands and downlink real-time data.

The STS-129 mission is focused on the storage of spare hardware on the exterior of the station. The 11-day flight includes three spacewalks and the installation of two platforms to the station’s truss, or backbone. The platforms will hold spare parts to sustain station operations after the shuttles are retired. This equipment is large and can only be transported using the unique capability of the shuttle.

For the latest news and information on the STS-129 mission, visit the main shuttle page.

› Read more about STS-129

› Read more about Expedition 21
› View crew timelines

For more information visit http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/station/main/index.html

Randy Bresnik

Astronaut Randy Bresnik is pictured near the base of the Orbiter Boom Sensor System on the starboard side of the cargo bay of the space shuttle Atlantis, docked with the International Space Station. Astronauts Bresnik and Mike Foreman were in the midst of the second of three scheduled spacewalks for the STS-129 mission, working in cooperation with the five current crewmembers for the orbital outpost and with their five Atlantis crewmates, all of whom provided support for the spacewalk from inside the station.

Image Credit: NASA

For more information visit http://www.nasa.gov/multimedia/imagegallery/image_feature_1525.html