STS-76 Day 6 Highlights
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- On Wednesday, March 27, 1996, 7 a.m. CST, STS-76 MCC Status Report # 10
reports:
- Astronauts Linda Godwin and Rich Clifford successfully completed the
first ever spacewalk from a docked Space Shuttle this morning,
installing four experiments on the exterior of the Russian Mir space
station.
- Starting at 12:36 a.m. CST, Godwin and Clifford spent six hours, two
minutes and twenty-eight seconds spacewalking in Atlantis's cargo bay
and on the exterior of the Mir's docking module. They smoothly
performed all of the objectives planned for the spacewalk, the most
important of which was to install the four experiments to monitor the
space environment on the exterior of Mir for the next year and a half.
- The Mir Environmental Effects Payload, as the experiments are called,
were clamped to outside rails on the docking module. They will gather
information on space debris encountered outside the Mir; the amounts
and types of contaminants around the station; and the corrosive
effects of space on various materials. When retrieved and brought back
to Earth, the experiments will provide valuable insight to engineers
about the space environment likely to be encountered by the future
International Space Station.
- Godwin and Clifford also detached a television camera from the
outside of the Mir docking module to return it to Earth, and they
evaluated a variety of new spacewalking tools capable of being used on
both U.S. and Russian spacecraft.
- Shortly after the spacewalk was completed, the hatches between Mir
and Atlantis were reopened, reuniting the two space crews. Atlantis'
crew will begin a sleep period at 10:43 a.m. CST and awaken to begin
Day 7 of their mission at 6:43 p.m. CST.
- On Wednesday, March 27, 1996, 4 p.m. CST, STS-76 MCC Status Report # 11
reports:
- The Atlantis astronauts are due to awaken just before 7 p.m. tonight
to begin their final full day of joint docked operations with the Mir
space station. Transfer of water, supplies and experiment equipment
was nearly completed early Wednesday, moving 1500 pounds of water from
the Atlantis to Mir.
- A farewell ceremony is planned for 4:38 a.m. Thursday, followed by
closing of the hatches at 6:43 a.m. After the crew's sleep period
during the day Thursday, the orbiter will undock from Mir at
approximately 7 p.m. CST. Atlantis will fly around Mir for about an
hour and a half, taking photos before firing its engines at 8:53
p.m. and dropping into a lower orbit of about 220 nautical miles.
- Atlantis is expected to return home Sunday, landing at the Kennedy
Space Center in Florida about 6 a.m. CST. Weather considerations
could alter the landing site or day of landing.
- Earlier Wednesday, astronauts Linda Godwin and Rich Clifford
successfully completed the first ever spacewalk from a docked Space
Shuttle this morning, installing four experiments on the exterior of
the Russian Mir space station.
- Starting at 12:36 a.m. CST, the two spent six hours, two minutes and
twenty-eight seconds spacewalking in Atlantis's cargo bay and on the
exterior of the Mir's docking module. They smoothly performed all of
the objectives planned for the spacewalk, the most important of which
was to install the four experiments to monitor the space environment
on the exterior of Mir for the next year and a half.
- Shortly after the spacewalk was completed, the hatches between Mir
and Atlantis were reopened, reuniting the two space crews.
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