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The Endeavour and ISS crews will work on the
"home improvements" [Photo: NASA TV] |
The space shuttle Endeavour has docked with the International Space Station three days after launch late last week, delivering equipment and supplies on a mission to double the living space on the orbiting complex.
The crew of seven astronauts will help expand the station into what a Nasa expert described as a two-kitchen, two-bath and five-bedroom house to support six residents.
In addition to expanding the living area with two new sleeping quarters, the 15-day mission will equip the station with a second toilet, exercise equipment, two new ovens to heat food, a freezer, a refrigerator and an oven for scientific experiments.
The Endeavour lifted off from Cape Canaveral, Florida, on Friday on the remodelling mission which includes repairing the station's power-generating solar arrays.
"This mission is all about home improvement," Commander Chris Ferguson, who piloted the spacecraft, said during launch preparations. "Home improvement inside and outside the station."
As part of the $250m upgrade the astronauts will also install a system that can turn urine back into drinking water to allow enough recycling for a six-person ISS crew.
Meanwhile engineers on the ground checked for damage to the shuttle by reviewing photographs of the launch which revealed a gap in the heat shield after a piece of thermal blanket ripped off during take-off.
Nasa said in a statement, however, that the missing piece was considered "of no great concern since it is not an area that experiences high heat during re-entry".
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