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The Expedition One crew continued work today to make the International Space Station a home, and to prepare for the arrival of a Russian cargo ship later this week. Commander Bill Shepherd, Soyuz Commander Yuri Gidzenko and Flight Engineer Sergei Krikalev completed a full rehearsal of the upcoming arrival and docking of the Progress resupply vehicle, with all systems checking out perfectly. Gidzenko and Krikalev oversaw the test, activating all of the required station systems and simulating procedures they will follow for the actual automated rendezvous and docking. The rehearsal included maneuvering the station to the proper attitude, or orientation, for docking and activation of the TORU manual docking system that will be used should the automated KURS docking system encounter difficulties. Late last week, the crew had configured data cables for the Zarya module’s nadir, or downward facing, docking port, where the Progress will be berthed. Launch of the Progress is set for at 7:32 p.m. CST Nov. 15 (1:32 GMT Nov. 16). Docking is expected at 9:07 p.m. CST Nov. 17 (3:07 GMT Nov. 18). The Progress will contain about 2 tons of supplies and food for the crew, which will unload the vehicle during the next two weeks. In addition, the crew activated and checked out medical equipment and participated in several medical tests, including body mass measurements and hearing assessments. They also exercised on the station’s stationary bicycle and treadmill. Keeping track of the many pieces of equipment and supplies also was part of the crew’s day, as Shepherd conducted a routine equipment inventory and Krikalev worked to update the software on a bar-code inventory tool and management tool. Work on the software update will continue tomorrow. The station remains in excellent shape, orbiting at an altitude of 240 statute miles. The next Expedition One status report will be issued about 3 p.m. Wednesday or sooner if developments warrant. -end- NASA Johnson Space Center Shuttle Mission/Space Station Status Reports and other information are available automatically by sending an Internet electronic mail message to majordomo@listserver.jsc.nasa.gov. In the body of the message (not the subject line) users should type "subscribe hsfnews" (no quotes). This will add the e-mail address that sent the subscribe message to the news release distribution list. The system will reply with a confirmation via e-mail of each subscription. Once you have subscribed you will receive future news releases via e-mail. |
