STS-126
Backdropped by a blue and white Earth, Endeavour prepares to perform the Rendezvous pitch maneuver prior to docking with the International Space Station.
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| Mission type | ISS assembly |
|---|---|
| Operator | NASA |
| COSPAR ID | 2008-059A |
| SATCAT no. | 33441 |
| Mission duration | 15 days, 20 hours, 30 minutes, 34 seconds |
| Distance travelled | 10,645,986 kilometres (6,615,109 mi) |
| Orbits completed | 251 |
| Spacecraft properties | |
| Spacecraft | Space Shuttle Endeavour |
| Launch mass | 121,061 kilograms (266,894 lb) |
| Landing mass | 101,343 kilograms (223,422 lb) |
| Crew | |
| Crew size | 7 |
| Members |
Christopher Ferguson Eric A. Boe Donald Pettit Stephen G. Bowen Heidemarie Stefanyshyn-Piper Robert S. Kimbrough |
| Launching | Sandra H. Magnus |
| Landing | Gregory Chamitoff |
| Start of mission | |
| Launch date | 15 November 2008, 00:55 UTC |
| Launch site | Kennedy LC-39A |
| End of mission | |
| Landing date | 30 November 2008, 21:25 UTC |
| Landing site | Edwards Runway 4L |
| Orbital parameters | |
| Reference system | Geocentric |
| Regime | Low Earth |
| Perigee | 343 kilometres (185 nmi) |
| Apogee | 350 kilometres (190 nmi) |
| Inclination | 51.6 degrees |
| Period | 91.6 minutes |
| Docking with ISS | |
| Docking port |
PMA-2 (Harmony forward) |
| Docking date | 16 November 2008, 22:01 UTC |
| Undocking date | 28 November 2008, 14:47 UTC |
| Time docked | 11 days, 16 hours, 46 minutes |
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 From left to right: Magnus, Bowen, Pettit, Ferguson, Boe, Kimbrough and Stefanyshyn-Piper |
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STS-126 was a Space Shuttle mission to the International Space Station (ISS) flown by Space Shuttle Endeavour. The purpose of the mission, referred to as ULF2 by the ISS program, was to deliver equipment and supplies to the station, to service the Solar Alpha Rotary Joints (SARJ), and repair the problem in the starboard SARJ that had limited its use since STS-120. STS-126 launched on 14 November 2008 at 19:55:39 pm EST from Launch Pad 39A at NASA's Kennedy Space Center with no delays or issues.Endeavour successfully docked with the station on 16 November. After spending 11 days, 16 hours, and 46 minutes docked to the station, during which the crew performed four spacewalks, and transferred cargo, the orbiter undocked on 28 November 2008. Due to poor weather at Kennedy Space Center, Endeavour landed at Edwards Air Force Base on 30 November 2008 at 21:25 UTC (13:25 PST).
Originally scheduled to fly on STS-126 was Joan E. Higginbotham, who was Mission Specialist 4 on STS-116. On 21 November 2007, NASA announced a change in the crew manifest due to Higginbotham's decision to leave NASA to take a job in the private sector. Stephen G. Bowen was originally assigned to STS-124 but was moved to STS-126 to allow Discovery to rotate Greg Chamitoff with Garrett Reisman.
STS-126 was scheduled to be a sixteen-day mission with four spacewalks, largely dedicated to servicing and repair of the Solar Alpha Rotary Joints (SARJ). An additional docked day was added to the flight plan to give the crew more time to complete their tasks. The starboard SARJ had shown anomalous behavior since August 2007, and its use has been minimized pending diagnosis and repair. Both the starboard and port SARJs were serviced. In addition to lubricating both bearings, the remaining 11 trundle bearings in the starboard SARJ were replaced. Trundle bearing assembly five was removed during an Expedition 16 EVA for further examination in December 2007.
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