STS-130/(20A) Mission Thread

[EarthlingX]

Roger, 17 ft away from the station ..
STS-130:1:19:51:00
.. docking confirmed ..
..west of Portugal ..

 

[Testing]

Capture. a light bump considering involved.the masses

 

[Testing]

Suck it in soon. Awaiting dampning.

 

[EarthlingX]

Endeavour Docks With International Space Station
Wed, 10 Feb 2010 05:11:45 AM GMT

At 12:06 a.m. EST, Commander George Zamka backed space shuttle Endeavour into pressurized mating adapter #2 on the International Space Station’s Harmony node. The two spacecraft were flying 225 miles up & off the northern coast of Spain at the time they docked.

The shuttle and station crews will open hatches and hold the traditional welcome ceremony at 2:04 a.m. Endeavour’s crew will be working with Expedition 22 commander NASA astronaut Jeff Williams and flight engineers cosmonaut Max Suraev, NASA astronaut T.J. Creamer and Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency astronaut Soichi Noguchi.

Less than an hour after hatches are open, Mission Specialist Nicholas Patrick and Creamer will operate the station’s robotic arm to remove the Orbiter Boom Sensor System (OBSS) from Endeavour’s payload bay and hand it off to the shuttle robotic arm being operated by Terry Virts and Kay Hire.

Today’s Mission Status Briefing is set for 3:30 a.m. and will air live on NASA TV.

 

[EarthlingX]

..
still vibrations ..
..

 

[Testing]

Still awaiting not unpresidented dampning problem for hard dock. Don't overstress the ring and tube.

 

[EarthlingX]

STS-130:01:20:19:00

STS-130:01:20:33:00

 

[Testing]

Hard Dock delayed but not out of family. Good night all. Hard dock! Docking confirmed!

 

[EarthlingX]

Good night


STS-130:01:20:50:00

Me too ..

edit. 2010.02.11 (just noticed)
about those 'vibrations' :
Earth's Gravity Kept Astronauts Waiting at Space Station's Door

By Tariq Malik
SPACE.com Managing Editor
posted: 10 February 2010
04:27 pm ET

(edit 2010.02.14, picture)


Astronauts aboard space shuttle Endeavour had to wait an uncommonly long time to board the International Space Station. NASA blamed the orbital holdup on no less than the entire planet Earth — actually, its gravitational pull.

 

[Zipi]

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eQz_XsV8e3s[/youtube]

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CqV7LE-rM9U[/youtube]

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UP_KySLxq6Y[/youtube]

 

[EarthlingX]

Shuttle and Station Hatches Open
Wed, 10 Feb 2010 07:22:39 AM GMT

Hatches between space shuttle Endeavour and the International Space Station were opened at 2:16 a.m. EST.

Correction from previous update: At docking, the shuttle and station were 215 miles up and over the Atlantic west of Portugal.

STS-130:02:01:32:00

 

[EarthlingX]

Shuttle Astronauts Make Midnight Docking at Space Station

By Tariq Malik
SPACE.com Managing Editor
posted: 10 February 2010
12:13 am ET

This story was updated at 2:57 a.m. ET.

The space shuttle Endeavour and its astronaut crew made a midnight docking at the International Space Station Wednesday to deliver NASA's last big room and a new set of windows to the high-flying laboratory.

 

[3488]

Thanks everyone for the updates.

The below image is of Endeavour passing over Hainan Island & Leizhou Peninsula which includes Zhanjiang City & Dong Hai Dao, Guangdong Province, China, where my ex wife is from (found it a little upsetting, but it's a lovely image & still decided to post it here).

Orbital Sunrise on: Tuesday 9th February 2010.

Andrew Brown.

 

[EarthlingX]

Thank you Andrew, for these pictures

I see no people on that picture, so no worries

Supply Transfers, Spacewalk Preps on Schedule Wednesday
Wed, 10 Feb 2010 08:00:30 PM GMT

Space shuttle Endeavour's crew will awaken at 4:14 p.m. EST. Wednesday's work will focus on supply transfers, spacewalk preparations and Water Recovery System repairs. Thursday's work will focus on installation of the new Tranquility module onto the Unity module and the mission's first spacewalk.

 

[EarthlingX]

STS-130:02:12:22:00

Crew Preparing Spacewalk Equipment, Transferring Supplies
Wed, 10 Feb 2010 09:32:21 PM GMT

The crew of space shuttle Endeavour awoke at 5:19 p.m. EST to the song “Also Sprach Zarathustra” by Richard Strauss, played for Mission Specialist Nicholas Patrick, who fondly remembers the music from the 1968 film 2001: A Space Odyssey.

After wake up, the crew was notified that a focused inspection will not be necessary.

Today Endeavour’s crew will begin transferring supplies from the shuttle’s middeck to the space station, including spacewalking equipment, and then will have the afternoon off. Tonight, spacewalkers Bob Behnken and Patrick will sleep in the Quest airlock as part of the overnight “campout” procedure that helps purge nitrogen from their bloodstreams, preventing decompression sickness once they move out into the vacuum of space. The campout will be repeated the night before each spacewalk.

A Mission Management Team news briefing is set for 4:30 p.m. and will air live on NASA TV.

 

[3488]

Just captured this from NASA TV.

Endeavour docked to ISS.

Andrew Brown.

 

[3488]

Just captured this from NASA TV.

Saudi Arabia from orbit at night from Endeavour & ISS passing over. Lights are from towns & oil fields in the desert.

Andrew Brown.

 

[Aerospace_Cadet]

STS-130... All is well at 220 miles up... or is it?

NASA has a habit downplaying any bad news that may come up. Then when something goes wrong they act like they are shocked. Take the STS-130 for example. There are three areas of damage to the shuttle of which they have only shown one.

First the pressure equalization valve that is sticking out of the top of the wing is now being called a "Metal seal". Okay.. is it a seal or a valve?

Second there is a ceramic spacer on one of the windows that is coming off. I have no idea what this means but it sure doesn't sound good to me!

Third we hear of a tile repair that was done on the pad that has failed. Funny how the headlines read that the heatshield has checked out ok when obviously there is a problem. How come they never told us of this repair that was done on the pad?

I don't think it's a great idea especially around now to make it seem like spaceflight is easy and without danger. Then people may get the idea that anyone can do it!

 

[MeteorWayne]

Re: STS-130... All is well at 220 miles up... or is it?

Do you have any support for these assertions?? If so, we'd love to hear about them.

Reliable links would add to your credibility.

 

[shuttle_guy]

Re: STS-130... All is well at 220 miles up... or is it?

These are all minor problems. The window "seal or valve" is just a tile insert over a fastener. Not reason for any concern on any of the items you mentioned.

 

[EarthlingX]

STS-130:02:20:45:00

Off Duty Time for Shuttle and Station Crews
Thu, 11 Feb 2010 05:15:26 AM GMT

The STS-130 and Expedition 22 crew members are scheduled for some off duty time for the latter portion of their day before a spacewalk procedures review at 4:09 a.m. EST Thursday.

First time off-duty in a while ..

Picture from the interview they had earlier:

 

[EarthlingX]

Space com article about the activities:

Astronauts Work to Fix Space Urine Recycler

By Tariq Malik
SPACE.com Managing Editor
posted: 10 February 2010
07:15 pm ET

Astronauts aboard the International Space Station tackled a tricky repair of their urine recycling system Wednesday while engineers on Earth study two issues on the space shuttle Endeavour.

Meanwhile, engineers at NASA's Mission Control center in Houston are studying two minor concerns on the shuttle Endeavour.

Photos of the spacecraft taken before it arrived at the space station revealed a ceramic spacer jutting out near one of Endeavour's cockpit windows. Also, a once-repaired crack in a white heat-resistant tile on top of the shuttle's cockpit has reappeared.

Deputy shuttle program manager LeRoy Cain said neither issue is expected to pose a serious concern for Endeavour or its crew. But engineers are checking them out just to be sure, he added.

A repair of either item is not expected to be required, but they would be within reach of spacewalkers should one be needed, Cain said.

Mission Control also radioed Endeavour's crew to say the shuttle's heat shield looks to be in good shape. No extra inspections will be required during the eight days Endeavour is linked to the station, mission managers said.

 

[EarthlingX]

2010.02.11 09:16 GMT

STS-130:03:00:00:00

 

[EarthlingX]

Spacewalkers Camping Out Before First Spacewalk
Thu, 11 Feb 2010 01:45:26 PM GMT

Spacewalkers Nicholas Patrick and Robert Behnken began their overnight campout in the station's Quest airlock a little before 8 a.m. EST in preparation for the first of three spacewalks during space shuttle Endeavour's visit to the orbiting laboratory. They are sleeping in the reduced 10.2 psi pressure of the airlock to avoid decompression sickness, or the bends.

 

[EarthlingX]

First Spacewalk Tonight for STS-130
Thu, 11 Feb 2010 09:22:33 PM GMT

The crew of space shuttle Endeavour awoke at 4:14 p.m. EST to the song “Beautiful Day” by U2, played for Mission Specialist for Kay Hire.

The fifth day of the mission will focus on the first spacewalk and robotics work to install the Tranquility node. The spacewalk is expected to begin at around 9:09 p.m., although could begin a little earlier if the crew is ready.

Spacewalkers Nicholas Patrick and Bob Behnken will prepare Tranquility for its removal from Endeavour’s payload bay and then install avionics cabling once the new module is in place. Terry Virts and Hire will operate the station’s robotic arm to install Tranquility with the Cupola. The spacewalkers also will remove a tool platform from the station’s special purpose dexterous manipulator, or DEXTRE, while Tranquility is being maneuvered. Station Commander Jeff Williams and Hire will begin a leak check of the interface to Tranquility.

STS-130-03:12:17:00