International Space Station crews are troubleshooting jammed bolts that must release before a dome-shaped observation deck can be pulled away and relocated. Using the station's 57.7-foot robotic arm, Endeavour mission specialist Kay Hire and pilot Terry Virts planned to remove the seven-windowed "cupola" from the forward end of the Tranquility module -- its launch position -- at 10:44 p.m. EST Sunday.
It took longer than expected to depressurize the observation deck, so the arm only grabbed ahold of the cupola's grapple fixture at 10:22 p.m.
Then around 11 p.m., a set of bolts holding the cupola to its berthing port jammed, further delaying the move. During follow-up efforts, two different bolts jammed.
"We think we may have got some uneven loading when we were bolting this thing up on the ground in 1-G," said Hal Getzelman, an astronaut communicating with the crew from Houston.
The robotic arm operations looked like they might be delayed early Sunday, when managers were concerned about interference between the cupola and protective hatch covers.
That issue was resolved, but new glitches have slowed this evening's timeline.
Once removed, it should take less than an hour to place the cupola in its permanent home, Tranquility's Earth-facing port.
Once it is there, spacewalkers on Tuesday will unlock shutters that will allow the seven windows to be opened for the first time in space.
"It will give us a big view in a lot of different directions," Virts said late Sunday, responding to a videotaped question from a student.
Other crew members continue to work inside Tranquility, to prepare plumbing for connections to life support systems, take water samples from the cooling system and remove launch bolts.
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