Teacher-Astronaut Describes Space For Earthbound Students

This story was updated at 6:16 p.m. EDT.

HOUSTON -- Juggling ping pong balls and blobs of juice, teacher-turned-astronaut Barbara Morgan and her crewmates described life in space to students on Earth Tuesday as NASA ponders a possible repair for their shuttle Endeavour.

Morgan, 55, and her crewmates discussed their STS-118 spaceflight and answered questions for students at the Discovery Center of Idaho in Boise in the first of three planned educational events spaced throughout their 14-day mission to the International Space Station (ISS).

"Well, astronauts and teachers actually do the same thing. We explore, we discover and we share," Morgan said when asked about her dual role. "The great thing about being a teacher is you get to do that with students, and the great thing about being an astronaut is you get to do it in space. And both are absolutely wonderful jobs."

Joining Morgan in the broadcast were fellow Endeavour astronauts Dave Williams, Alvin Drew, Jr. and ISS flight engineer Clayton Anderson. Together they answered questions ranging from the visible effects of global warming from space and how stars appear out the space station's windows.

"When we look outside, it's very much like trying to look at stars in Boise," Morgan, a former McCall, Idaho, schoolteacher, said as she answered one question, adding that the lights on the ISS and Endeavour are very bright. "You can see some, but then if you go up high in the mountains up to McCall and you have all the lights out, that's what it'll be like once we undock from station and turn all our lights out."

Morgan originally joined NASA in 1985 as the agency's backup to Teacher in Space Christa McAuliffe before the tragic Challenger accident in January 1986. McAuliffe originally planned to teach a class lesson from space. NASA recalled Morgan from her teaching post in 1998 to train as a full-fledged mission specialist and educator astronaut.

While Morgan and her crewmates worked in space, NASA engineers continued evaluating whether the astronauts will have to repair a small, but deep gouge on the shuttle's tile-covered underbelly caused by fuel tank debris during their Aug. 8 launch. A decision on whether a fix is required is anticipated for Wednesday, mission managers have said.

In a separate interview session with reporters on Earth earlier today, Morgan and her crewmates said they were confident Endeavour was safe to fly home, but were prepared for any repair work if required.

Spare parts delivery

Before they made their space broadcasts, Morgan and her crewmates delivered a massive new spare parts platform to the ISS.

Dubbed the External Stowage Platform-3 (ESP-3), the exposed hardware depot weighs about 7,000 pounds (3,175 kilograms) and has space for seven major ISS components. The platform is stocked with a battery charging unit, a spare robotic arm joint and a nitrogen tank assembly for the station's cooling system and was stowed on the Port 3 truss segment of the orbital laboratory.

Morgan and STS-118 mission specialist Tracy Caldwell plucked the new spare parts platform out of Endeavour's payload bay with the orbiter's robotic arm, then handed it off to the station's own robotic appendage wielded by shuttle pilot Charlie Hobaugh for final installation.

The ability to store large components, especially those only NASA shuttles can carry, is vital for the ISS as the space agency prepares to retire its three aging orbiters in September 2010, mission managers said.

"Each time we bring spares on board, we're getting ready for shuttle retirement," Joel Montalbano, NASA's lead ISS flight director for Endeavour's STS-118 flight, told reporters late Monday. "So this is just another step in that preparation."

NASA is broadcasting Endeavour's STS-118 mission live on NASA TV. Click here for mission updates and SPACE.com's NASA TV feed.

• VIDEO: Endeavour's STS-118 Mission Profile
• VIDEO: Teaching the Future: Teacher-Astronaut Barbara Morgan
• Complete Space Shuttle Mission Coverage