Article Posted on : - Nov 17, 2008

The STS-126 and Expedition 18 crews greet each other. Photo credit: NASA TV

WASHINGTON, DC (BNS): Space shuttle Endeavour arrived at the International Space Station at 5.01 pm EST Sunday. NASA said that the STS-126 crew exchanged greetings with the ISS crew after the hatches between ISS and shuttle were opened at 7.16 pm.

The space shuttle is delivering equipment and supplies and a new crew member to the orbital outpost. The space shuttle is carrying the Leonardo logistics module with over 14,000 pounds of cargo for the complex.

STS-126 mission specialist Sandra Magnus replaced Expedition 18 flight engineer Greg Chamitoff, who will return to Earth with STS-126. The crew transfer became official when Magnus' custom-made seatliner was installed into the Russian Soyuz spacecraft docked to the station, NASA said.

The shuttle and station crews will prepare Monday for the first STS-126 spacewalk by mission specialists Heidemarie Stefanyshyn-Piper and Stephen Bowen. The spacewalk is set to take place Tuesday.

The space shuttle Endeavour’s latest mission will feature important repair work and prepare the ISS to house six crew members for long-duration missions. The 15-day flight with its four planned spacewalks will primarily focus on servicing the station's two Solar Alpha Rotary Joints, which allow its solar arrays to track the sun, NASA says. The starboard SARJ has had limited use since September 2007.

Among the supplies and equipment are items necessary to double the crew size from three to six members in spring of 2009. The new station cargo includes additional sleeping quarters, a second toilet and a resistance exercise device. The shuttle also will deliver a new crew member and bring back another after more than five months aboard the station.