A highlight of space shuttle mission STS-130 is just hours away as the shuttle and International Space Station crews prepare to install the final components of the U.S. segment of the station during a spacewalk this evening.
The wakeup call at 3:14 p.m. CST for the astronauts aboard Endeavour was “Beautiful Day” by U2, played for Mission Specialist Kay Hire, who will be working with Pilot Terry Virts tonight to operate the station’s Canadarm2 to install the Tranquility module during the EVA by Mission Specialists Bob Behnken and Nicholas Patrick.
The 6½ hour spacewalk is scheduled to begin shortly after 8 p.m. The spacewalkers will prepare the new module to be lifted from the shuttle cargo bay by the robotic arm, and once Tranquility is in place they’ll start connecting it to station utilities.
Behnken and Patrick also will relocate a temporary platform from the Special Purpose Dexterous Manipulator, or DEXTRE, to the station’s port truss and install two handles on the robot.
The space station flight control team is monitoring the operation of the station’s water purification system after Commander Jeff Williams’ installation of a new Distillation Assembly and Fluids Control Pump Assembly yesterday.
The system that processes urine into drinking water will be allowed to complete processing runs, to generate water samples for testing after being returned to Earth, before the components are relocated into the new module.
The next shuttle status report will be issued after the crew work day, or earlier if warranted.
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