Station Crew Waits for Arrival of Space Shuttle Endeavour

(NASA) – Expedition 20 Commander Gennady Padalka and Flight Engineers Michael Barratt, Koichi Wakata of the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency, Roman Romanenko, Robert Thirsk of the Canadian Space Agency and Frank De Winne of the European Space Agency, are packing and preparing for the arrival of space shuttle Endeavour and the STS-127 crew.

They also are reviewing photography procedures for documenting the condition of the shuttle’s heat protection tiles as it completes a rendezvous pitch maneuver during its approach to the station. The STS-127 crew began its journey to the International Space Station at 6:03 p.m. EDT Wednesday when space shuttle Endeavour lifted off from Kennedy Space Center, Fla. Endeavour is scheduled to arrive at the station on Friday. The shuttle crew will complete construction of the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency’s Kibo laboratory and deliver a new crew member, astronaut Tim Kopra, to the orbital outpost.

Expedition 20 Commander Gennady Padalka uses a computer in the Zvezda service module of the International Space Station. Credit: NASA