“Window on the World”

5 p.m. CST Tuesday, Feb. 16, 2010


Mission Control Center, Houston, Texas

02.16.10 STATUS REPORT : STS-130-18 STS-130 MCC Status Report #18 HOUSTON – The third of three planned spacewalks for the astronauts of space shuttle Endeavour is on tap for tonight to complete installation of the International Space Station’s Tranquility module and unlock the shutters on the station’s new observation deck.



The wakeup call for Endeavour’s astronauts at 3:14 p.m. was “Window on the World” by Jimmy Buffett, played for Mission Specialist Kathryn Hire.



Spacewalkers Robert Behnken and Nicholas Patrick are slated to begin their 6½-hour spacewalk at 8:09 p.m. Behnken will open the second of two ammonia loops to allow coolant to flow through Tranquility and disconnect temporary power cables while Patrick installs heater and data cables from the new node to Pressurized Mating Adapter 3, now located on Tranquility’s outboard docking port.



Next the two spacewalkers remove the insulation from the cupola’s seven windows, and Patrick releases launch locks from the windows so Pilot Terry Virts can open the window shutters from inside the module for the first time at approximately 11:30 p.m.



Other tasks for the spacewalk include installation of handrails and other EVA support equipment on Tranquility, routing video signal converter cables from the S0 Truss to the Zarya module to support future Canadarm2 operations from a base on the Russian segment of the station, and removal of clamps and a flex hose rotary coupler on the P1 Truss.



During the spacewalk station Commander Jeff Williams and other crew members will continue outfitting the Tranquility and cupola modules and perform closeout operations on components of the regenerative environmental control system before the last four racks of that system are relocated into Node 3 on Flight Day 11. Early tomorrow morning Flight Engineer Oleg Kotov will replace a failed vacuum valve in the Russian carbon dioxide removal unit.