Shuttle backflips before docking with Space Station
Space shuttle Endeavour docked with the international space station today after making a giant backflip so astronauts on the outpost could check for damage.
The shuttle pulled up to the $100bn space station and parked as the two spacecraft soared above the South Pacific at around 2pm ET (7pm Irish Time).
While still 625 feet out, commander Scott Kelly steered Endeavour through a complete somersault so that the three space station residents could photograph the shuttle’s belly.
The backflip has been standard procedure ever since the Columbia disaster, providing a rare camera view of the shuttle’s often-nicked underside.
Nasa is especially eager to see the zoom-in digital pictures and video collected during this backflip because of concern over three pieces of foam insulation from the external fuel tank which may have struck Endeavour during Wednesday’s launch.
Two are believed to have hit the shuttle’s right wing.
Mission managers do not suspect any critical damage and said the three foam fragments were probably too small and one came off too late in the launch to pose any threat.
But they added they do not want to dismiss the possibility of damage, especially to the vulnerable wings, which is what happened during Columbia’s doomed mission four years ago when all seven crew members died.
Mr Kelly, a Navy commander, kept the space station crew informed of Endeavour's whereabouts as both vessels travelled at around 17,500mph and the shuttle closed in more than 210 miles up.
“You’re looking good,” he radioed.
“All right man, keep up the good work. We’re waiting for you,” astronaut Clay Anderson replied from the station.
Mr Anderson videotaped Endeavour’s backflip and close approach, while his two Russian crewmates took photographs on digital cameras equipped with high-powered zoom lenses.
Endeavour’s crew will deliver its major cargo – a two-ton truss that will become part of the space station’s backbone.
The shuttle is equipped with a new system for drawing power from the space station and, if it works, mission managers plan to extend the flight from 11 to 14 days.
The crew spent most of yesterday using Endeavour’s robot arm and an extension boom to search the shuttle’s wings and nose cap for damage.
Working from the cockpit, former teacher Barbara Morgan and her crewmates slowly swept the laser and camera-tipped boom while engineers on the ground looked for cracks or holes.
The meticulous survey has been standard procedure ever since the Columbia disaster. The 50ft boom, attached to the shuttle’s 50ft robot arm, was created specifically for the job.
“Hey, it’s great being up here,” Ms Morgan said in her first televised update from space.
“We’ve been working really hard, but it’s a really good, fun kind of work.”
Ms Morgan, 55, a former primary school teacher from Idaho, was Christa McAuliffe’s back-up for the inaugural teacher-in-space flight aboard Challenger in 1986.
Ms McAuliffe never made it to space as she was killed along with her six crewmates just over a minute after lift-off.
More than 20 years later, Ms Morgan plans to answer questions next week from schoolchildren in at least one state – Idaho – and is flying with 10 million basil seeds for eventual distribution to students and teachers.
