STS-72 Mission Status Report #9
Mission Control Center

Wednesday, Jan. 17, 8 a.m. CST

Astronauts Leroy Chiao and Winston Scott tested connectors, cables and
work platforms for almost 7 hours in Endeavour's cargo bay this morning
during the second spacewalk of the STS-72 mission. Shortly after the
astronauts completed their spacewalk, Endeavour's flash evaporator system 
was successfully purged and is again working at full capacity.

Chiao and Scott floated into the bay at 11:54 p.m. Tuesday as
Endeavour passed over the African continent. The spacewalk began about
one hour later than expected as the astronauts took longer to don
their suits than had been expected.  The spacewalk concluded at 6:34
a.m., with the two astronauts logging 6 hours 53 minutes and 41
seconds working in the vacuum of space.

Chiao and Scott worked with utility boxes, slidewires and a portable
work stanchion affixed to Endeavour's robot arm to gather
additional data on methods and procedures which may be incorporated in
the techniques which will be used to assemble the International Space
Station.

Flight controllers had to juggle spacewalk activities throughout the
night due to the delayed start and a drop in temperature in the
thruster fuel lines on the Japanese Space Flyer Unit satellite.
Commander Brian Duffy maneuvered Endeavour to a warmer attitude
allowing SFU temperatures to increase. The maneuver slightly delayed
one of the priority tasks of the spacewalk --- a test of how well
Scott's spacesuit would repel the freezing temperatures of space.

Late in the spacewalk, Scott finally climbed into foot restraints on
the OAST-Flyer satellite platform for the thermal evaluation
exercise. Endeavour was maneuvered to the coldest position possible,
with its payload bay facing out toward deep space and allowing
temperatures to dip to about 104 degrees below zero at the point where
Scott was positioned to test the ability of his spacesuit to repel the
bitter cold temperature of space.

It was Chiao's second spacewalk and the first for Scott, who
choreographed the first spacewalk of the flight early Monday. Scott
traded places with Dan Barry, who acted as spacewalk coordinator
throughout tonight's EVA.

Pilot Brent Jett and Mission Specialist Koichi Wakata worked alongside
Barry on Endeavour's aft flight deck, operating the ship's robot
arm to move Chiao and Scott about the cargo bay in support of their
various tasks.

As Chiao and Scott began their spacewalk, flight controllers
repressurized Endeavour's cabin to 14.7 pounds per square inch to
help warm the Shuttle in an effort to dislodge ice from the ship's
flash evaporator system. The system is used to dissipate heat from the
Shuttle and its avionics in association with radiators which are
mounted on the inside of the payload bay doors.  Shortly after 7:30
a.m., the FES core was successfully purged and the system is working
at full capacity.

Earlier, Wakata fielded questions from Japanese schoolchildren
representing Houston schools as part of a television program about the
mission which was aired in Japan.

Endeavour is currently orbiting the Earth at an altitude of about 192
statute miles.

An update to this status report will be issued at 5 p.m. The Johnson Space Center newsroom will close at 5 
p.m. today, reopening at 2 a.m. Thursday.

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