Endeavour Touches Down In California
Posted on: Monday, 1 December 2008, 01:20 CST
Seven astronauts returned to Earth aboard space shuttle Endeavour on Sunday after having completed a 16-day mission aboard on the International Space Station.
The Endeavour crew was forced to make a last minute adjustment to its initial plan to land at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida, where it took off from on November 14. Instead, bad weather caused NASA to direct the crew to the Edwards Air Force Base in California, where they touched down at 4:25 p.m. EST.
"Welcome back. That was a great way to finish a fantastic flight," Mission Control radioed.
"And we're happy to be here in California," shuttle commander Christopher Ferguson replied.
Returning home from a six-month mission was former space station resident Gregory Chamitoff, who had rocketed away from the planet at the end of May.
Endeavour crew members’ families were also hoping for a Florida landing. That’s where they were waiting when the shuttle touched down in California.
NASA officials said it would make no sense to keep Endeavour in orbit an extra day if the weather wasn't expected to improve in Florida.
As Endeavour soared over Houston, home to Mission Control, Ferguson could see all the bad weather in Florida.
"I think you made a good call," he radioed.
NASA also prefers to land in Florida to save about a week and almost $2 million to ferry the shuttle cross-country.
The crew spent 12 days installing new equipment on the orbiting outpost including a water recycling system that will enable NASA to add three more astronauts to the space station's permanent live-aboard crew.
Astronauts also completed a total of four spacewalks to repair the station's power system and delivered two new bedrooms, a second toilet, exercise equipment, a small galley and other gear.
NASA's next station visit is slated for February when the outpost's last solar wing panel will be installed.
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Image Caption: Space shuttle Endeavour and the STS-126 crew land at Edwards Air Force Base, Calif. after completing a mission to the International Space Station. Photo credit: NASA/Tony Landis
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Source: redOrbit Staff & Wire Reports
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User Comments (1)
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Posted by Rjvoss on 12/03/2008, 12:52 Video showing the shuttle landing with 2 sonic booms milliseconds apart, one for the nose of the craft, and the other for the tail. http://www.liveleak.com/view?i=220_1228202868 |
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