Ahead of schedule, astronauts today opened a container carrying tons of gear they will move into the International Space Station in the coming days. "The hatch is open. No damage or anything noticed," said Amercian astronaut Mike Fincke, the commander of the station's three-person Expedition 18 crew, around 6:45 p.m. "The ISS Expedition 18 and STS-126 crews are really happy to have Leonardo on board. It looks beautfiul."
The Italian-made Leonardo "moving van" was the heaviest ever launched in a shuttle, holding about 14,500 pounds of cargo.
The equipment incldues essentials necesarry for the station to double its permanent crew sizes from three to six people, including a second toilet, sleep stations and a kitchen set.
Unloading of the cargo is scheduled to start around noon Tuesday, about an hour before the start of the Endeavour mission's first spacewalk.
You can watch those events here at The Flame Trench. Click on the NASA TV image on the right side of the page to launch a viewer.
Because of its placement in cargo racks lining Leonardo, a resistive weight training machine is expected to be among the first items unpacked.
The orbiting moving crews may get a head start unloading a water recycling system, since managers have decided further inspections of shuttle heat shields are not necessary.
"That's really good news for us," said senior shuttle program manager LeRoy Cain.
Here's a look ahead at Tuesday's schedule in space:
8:55 a.m. Crew wake-up.
9:30 a.m. Preparations continue for first spacewalk.
12:10 p.m. Cargo transfers begin from Leonardo moving van.
1:45 p.m. Heidemarie Stefanyshyn-Piper and Steve Bowen begin first spacewalk.
8:15 p.m. First spacewalk ends.
10 p.m. Mission status briefing.
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