Crew members aboard Endeavour and the International Space Station got good news on two fronts when they were awakened for a day to be devoted largely to transfer of materials from the station to be returned to Earth.

The starboard Solar Alpha Rotary Joint, which rotates in a paddle-wheel fashion the 240-foot solar wings on the station's right side, was automatically tracking the sun for the first time in more than a year during a three-hour, two-orbit test begun at 4:55 a.m. CST. The joint appeared to function well after repairs during the four spacewalks by Endeavour astronauts, but it will be some time before results of this and subsequent tests are known.