Space Shuttle Endeavour STS-118

Crew:

The seven crew are:

1. Scott J. Kelly (Commander)
2. Charles O. Hobaugh (Pilot)
3. Richard A. Mastracchio
4. Dr. Dafydd (Dave) Williams - Canadian Space Agency
5. Barbara R. Morgan (Mission Specialist)
6. Tracy E. Caldwell (Mission Specialist).
7. Benjamin Alvin Drew (Mission Specialist)

Mission

The mission marks the first flight of an Educator Astronaut, the successor program to NASA's Teacher in Space Project (which ended in tragedy when the Space Shuttle Challenger exploded 73 seconds after liftoff during STS-51-L). It is the final scheduled flight of the Spacehab module and is the first flight of Endeavour since STS-113 in November 2002, the last successful flight before the loss of Space Shuttle Columbia on STS-107.

The STS-118 mission delivered the starboard S5 truss segment to the International Space Station. This mission featured mission specialist Barbara Morgan as the first Educator Mission Specialist. Morgan trained as the backup to Christa McAuliffe, NASA's Teacher in Space candidate in 1986, who was killed in the space shuttle Challenger accident. While McAuliffe and Morgan were classified as spaceflight participants and not mission specialists in 1986, after the Teacher in Space Project was cancelled, Morgan applied and was accepted into the NASA Astronaut Corps as NASA's first Educator Astronaut. Morgan became the first teacher in space on STS-118 and will share what she learns from the experience with students during and after her flight. This mission also served as Endeavour's return to flight after being grounded for refit and maintenance.

Quick Update:

As of Monday 20 August, the seven-member STS-118 crew is preparing for its return to Earth aboard Space Shuttle Endeavour after a successful stay at the
International Space Station.

Mission managers continue to monitor Hurricane Dean. Early Monday (20 Aug)
Dean, with winds near 150 mph, was about 150 miles southeast of
Grand Cayman, moving west at about 20 mph.

The STS-118 crew members spent almost nine days at the international
outpost. They continued the on-orbit construction of the station and
transferred tons of cargo between the two spacecraft. The STS-118
crew conducted four spacewalks at the station. The two major
objectives were the installation of the S5 and the replacement of a
failed attitude control gyroscope.

About Space Shuttle Endeavour and Payload

The mission will be Endeavour's first flight in more than four years. Endeavour has undergone extensive modifications, including the addition of safety upgrades already added to shuttles Discovery and Atlantis. Endeavour also features the new Station-to-Shuttle Power Transfer System, or SSPTS (pronounced “spits”), that will allow the docked shuttle to draw electrical power from the station and extend its visit to the orbiting lab. Three spacewalks are planned to install the S5 truss segment and repair one of the station’s control moment gyroscopes, a minirefrigerator-sized spinning wheel used to control the station’s orientation. Three days and one spacewalk may be added to the 11-day mission if SSPTS works as planned. The STS-118’s seven-member crew includes Barbara Morgan, a mission specialist astronaut who will fly 22 years after first being selected as the backup in the Teacher in Space Project.

Endeavour will include in its cargo bay a Spacehab module, a pressurized, closet-like room carrying supplies. This is the 22 and last shuttle flight of any Spacehab module. The shuttle also will deliver 5,000 pounds of supplies, including spare parts, food, clothing, scientific ex­periments and then bring down 5,000 pounds of garbage and spare parts no longer needed on the sta­tion.

Approximately 10 million basil seeds will launch and return with STS-118. After the mission, the seeds will be distributed to students and educators as part of a comprehensive education plan.