Article Posted on : - May 22, 2010

Atlantis

NEW DELHI (BNS): International Space Station crew will have a busy weekend due to preparation for Atlantis departure.

The crew will Saturday operate the station's robotic arm to place the cargo pallet that holds the six old batteries the STS-132 mission replaced back into the space shuttle for return to Earth, NASA said.

On Friday Mission Specialists Michael Good and Garrett Reisman completed the final STS-132 spacewalk at 1:13 p.m. EDT. The spacewalk lasted 6 hours, 46 minutes.

The spacewalkers’ first task was the installation of an ammonia jumper on the port 4 and 5 truss. They finished the last of the battery replacement work, swapping the remaining two batteries and installing a battery that was left in a temporary stow position from the last spacewalk.

The final task was the transfer of a Power and Data Grapple Fixture (PDGF) from the orbiter’s payload bay to the station for storage. The PDGF will be installed to the Zarya module’s exterior on a spacewalk later this summer.

Pilot Tony Antonelli and Mission Specialist Steve Bowen assisted from inside the complex throughout the spacewalk. Mission Specialist Piers Sellers and Expedition 23 Flight Engineer Tracy Caldwell Dyson provided robotics support.

STS-132 Commander Ken Ham monitored the spacewalk activities and assisted with orbiter activities and transfer work.