The International Space Station will get a new control moment gyroscope today, courtesy of the space shuttle Endeavour and spacewalking astronauts Rick Mastracchio and Dave Williams.

The second spacewalk of Endeavour's flight to the station is scheduled to begin just after 10:30 a.m. CDT.

The Endeavour crew, Commander Scott Kelly, Pilot Charles Hobaugh, and Mission Specialists Tracy Caldwell, Mastracchio, Williams, Barbara Morgan and Alvin Drew, and station crew members, Commander Fyodor Yurchikhin and Flight Engineers Oleg Kotov and Clay Anderson, were awakened for spacewalk day at 5:46 a.m. CDT by "Outta Space" performed by Billy Preston. It was played for Drew.

With five days of pilfering power from the International Space Station under their belt, mission managers today decided to extend space shuttle Endeavour's flight from 11 to 14 days.

The crew is now scheduled for undocking on Aug. 20 for an Aug. 22 landing. The three extra days are made possible by the new Station-to-Shuttle Power Transfer System, which allows the shuttle to draw power from the station while docked. The crew members will use the extra time to add a fourth spacewalk, during which Mission Specialist Dave Williams and space station Flight Engineer Clay Anderson will install equipment used to stow the Orbiter Boom Sensor System at the station between shuttle flights.

Mission managers decided Sunday to extend the STS-118 mission by three days. The decision came after the successful operation of the new Station-to-Shuttle Power Transfer System (SSPTS).

Endeavour is now scheduled to undock from the International Space Station on Aug. 20 and land Aug. 22. In addition to the extra time at the orbital outpost, managers added a fourth spacewalk that is scheduled to take place Aug. 17.

The SSPTS reroutes power from the space station to the shuttle during docked operations, allowing the orbiter to conserve materials needed to generate power and spend more time in space.

Already the largest human-made object orbiting the Earth, the International Space Station continued its on-orbit growth spurt with the addition of the Starboard 5 (S5) truss segment. The S5 was attached at about 1:35 p.m. EDT during STS-118's first spacewalk.

The S5 will serve as a spacer segment between the Starboard 4 and 6 (S6) segments. The S6 and its solar arrays will be attached during a future shuttle mission. The S5 is the newest piece of the station's backbone, called the Integrated Truss Structure, which will eventually span the length of a football field and contain four sets of solar arrays.

HOUSTON -- Astronauts aboard NASA's space shuttle Endeavour will take a close look at a gouge on the underbelly of their orbiter Sunday while mission managers decide whether to add a few extra days to their flight to the International Space Station (ISS).

"The primary thing that we're going to look for is how deep it is," John Shannon, chairman of Endeavour's STS-118 mission management team, said of the damage during a Saturday briefing here at NASA's Johnson Space Center.

A piece of foam insulation about the size of a grapefruit fell from a bracket on Endeavour's external tank and bounced off a metal strut to damage the belly-mounted tiles during the orbiter's Aug. 8 launch. Radar images caught a spray of debris and possible ice reminiscent of that seen during the debris hit that led to NASA's 2003 Columbia accident, but Shannon said the event was much less severe than that which afflicted Columbia.

HOUSTON - Veteran International Space Station astronaut and space shuttle flyer Ed Lu has left NASA to accept a position in the private sector. Lu flew on two shuttle missions and lived six months aboard the station as a member of the orbiting laboratory's seventh crew.

"Ed has done an exceptional job as an astronaut during his twelve years of service," said Chief of the Astronaut Office Steve Lindsey. "He contributed greatly to the construction and operations on the International Space Station, particularly in the very difficult period after the Columbia tragedy. Additionally, his involvement in development of the Crew Exploration Vehicle will help NASA tremendously as we look forward to exploring our solar system. He will be missed by the Astronaut Office and NASA. We wish him the very best in his future endeavors."

ARISS contact with One Stop Learning Center in NY City on 7 August 2007 recorded live on EchoLink by Dieter kx4y from the live audio feed into EchoLink by Graham G7EVY from audio provided via a bridge telephone connection.

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Space Shuttle Endeavour docked with the International Space Station at 2:02 p.m. EDT today, setting the stage for the on-orbit expansion of the outpost. Expedition 15 Commander Fyodor Yurchikhin and Flight Engineers Oleg Kotov and Clay Anderson will welcome the seven-member STS-118 crew aboard the station after the hatches between the vehicles open at about 3:21 p.m.

Endeavour delivered the Starboard 5 (S5) truss, which will be attached to the station Saturday. The STS-118 crew also will conduct a spacewalk Saturday to assist in the installation and activation of the S5.

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ARISS contact with Arnold Palmer Hospital as recorded live on EchoLink.

Audio File: 

QSO_2007_07_17_191210.mp3