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- On Monday, December 17, 2001, 6:00 a.m. CST, STS-108 MCC Status Report # 24 reports:
- Endeavour^Òs crew began a journey home today, waking up at 3:19 a.m. CST to ^ÓPlease Come Home For Christmas^Ô sung by Jon Bon Jovi. Weather permitting, Endeavour is scheduled to return to Earth just before noon today.
- On board Endeavour, Commander Dom Gorie, Pilot Mark Kelly and Mission Specialists Linda Godwin and Dan Tani, along with the returning Expedition Three crew of Frank Culbertson, Vladimir Dezhurov and Mikhail Tyurin, are preparing for a scheduled landing at the Kennedy Space Center. Preliminary weather forecasts predict generally acceptable conditions at the landing site, with a possibility of rain showers in the vicinity. The Entry flight team, led by Flight Director Leroy Cain, will receive its first weather briefing of the day at 6:30 a.m.
- The first KSC landing opportunity today would begin with a deorbit burn of Endeavour^Òs large orbital maneuvering engines at 10:50 a.m. resulting in an 11:55 a.m. central time (12:55 p.m. eastern) landing. If weather precludes landing on that first opportunity, there is a second opportunity, one orbit later, with an engine firing at 12:28 p.m. resulting in a 1:32 p.m. central (2:32 p.m. eastern) touchdown. The alternate landing site at Edwards Air Force Base in California has not been called up for launch support today.
- Just before 7 a.m., the crew will begin its formal deorbit preparations and by 8:10 a.m., Endeavour^Òs payload bay doors should be closed in preparation for reentry. The crewmembers will begin climbing into their seats at 9:50 a.m., with a final ^Ógo, no go^Ô call from the Entry Flight Director expected about 10:30 a.m. A landing today in Florida would conclude a voyage of more than 4.8 million miles for Endeavour and a 129-day stay in orbit for Culbertson, Dezhurov and Tyurin.
- The next Mission Control status report will be issued following today^Òs landing or as events warrant.
- On Monday, December 17, 2001, 1:00 p.m. CST, STS-108 MCC Status Report # 25 reports:
- Endeavour touched down at the Kennedy Space Center.in Florida today at 11:55 a.m. central time, returning the third resident space station crew to Earth after 129 days in space. Concluding a successful mission to the International Space Station, today's landing brings to an end a voyage of more than 4.8 million miles for Endeavour and marks the 57th shuttle landing at the Florida spaceport.
- On Endeavour's flight deck are Commander Dom Gorie, Pilot Mark Kelly and Mission Specialists Linda Godwin and Dan Tani. On the middeck, strapped into recumbent chairs to reduce the effects of reentry, is the Expedition Three crew, Commander Frank Culbertson, Pilot Vladimir Dezhurov and Flight Engineer Mikhail Tyurin.
- Following routine medical examinations, the STS-108 and Expedition Three crewmembers will enjoy a reunion with their families. All seven crewmembers are expected to return to a public welcome home at Hangar 990 at Houston's Ellington Field about 1 p.m. Wednesday.
- During their 12 days in orbit, the STS-108 crew worked with both the returning Expedition Three and newly-arrived Expedition Four crews to transfer more than three tons of material, hardware and supplies from Endeavour to the station. Godwin and Tani also conducted a spacewalk to install thermal protection on motor assemblies that control the motion of the station's large solar arrays.
- On board the International Space Station, the Expedition Four crew - Commander Yury Onufrienko and Flight Engineers Dan Bursch and Carl Walz - are settling in for a planned five-month stay on orbit, unloading the recently arrived Progress resupply vehicle. With the conclusion of the STS-108 mission, the final International Space Station Status Report of the year will be issued Friday, December 21.
Return to STS-108 Mission Summary - On Monday, December 17, 2001, 6:00 a.m. CST, STS-108 MCC Status Report # 24 reports: