The
astronaut crew of space shuttle Discovery may be glad to be back on Earth, but
the spaceflyers will never forget their role in boosting the International
Space Station to full power.
It was the
views of their handiwork that clinched it, five members of Discovery's
seven-astronaut crew told reporters after landing
at NASA's Kennedy Space Center Saturday in Cape Canaveral, Fla.
"It was
really a sight to see," Discovery skipper Lee Archambault said of his last eyeful
of the space station.
The shuttle
touched down at 3:13 p.m. EDT (1913 GMT) to end a 13-day mission that delivered
the last pair of gleaming
solar wings to the space station. The result, as the astronauts saw after
leaving the outpost, was a stunning, symmetrical orbiting lab that is the largest
manmade structure in space.
"It was
just an amazing view," said Discovery pilot Dominic "Tony" Antonelli as he
tried to explain the feeling of seeing the space station with its new solar
wings. "I just had to look out the window and take it all it. It was just
fabulous."
Archambault
and Antonelli returned to Earth alongside mission specialists Joseph Acaba,
Steven Swanson, Richard Arnold II, John Phillips and Sandra Magnus. The shuttle
astronauts circled the Earth 202 times and traveled 5.3 million miles (8.5
million km) during their mission.
Gravity's
embrace
Magnus
returned home to end a nearly 4 1/2-month mission aboard the station and will
spend the next few weeks readjusting to Earth's gravity.
"She seemed
to be in very good spirits," said Archambault, adding that Arnold stayed behind
to keep her company when the rest of Discovery's crew met with reporters.
"She's doing extremely well for someone who's been in space for four months."
Magnus
spent 134 days living in space, most of that time as a flight engineer aboard
the space station. She was replaced by Japanese astronaut Koichi Wakata, who
launched aboard Discovery on March 15, and told reporters before landing she
was looking forward to finally being outside again, as well as sushi, chocolate
milkshake and cheesy foods like pizza.
The
astronauts said they weren't sure if Magnus, who earned a reputation as an
inventive cook in space, had yet managed to order some of her hopeful
foods.
"We were
talking about that this morning though," Antonelli said. "So I'm pretty sure
it's still pretty close to the top of the list."
Swanson and
Phillips said they were proud of helping complete the space station's power
grid by adding its fourth set of solar wings. The extra power is expected to
help the station support a larger, six-person crew later this year.
For
Antonelli, Acaba and Arnold, it was their first career spaceflight and turned
up some new insights.
"I think
the whole living in 1 G thing is for the birds," said Antonelli, as he
reminisced of the weightlessness of space. "Zero G, I think, is the way to go."
Acaba, who
like Arnold is a former schoolteacher, said the experience of seeing the planet
from orbit and watching lightning storms while floating in the calm of space
has given him a new perspective.
"I'll
definitely be looking at things differently now that we're back on the ground,"
Acaba said.
Discovery
astronauts and the space station crew also received an unexpected phone call
from
President Barack Obama during their mission, one that surprised all of the
spaceflyers.
"When the
President of the United States takes time out of his day to show interest in
what you're doing, no matter who you are or what you are, it's very humbling,"
said Archambault, adding that it was an honor for his crew and that of the
station's. "It was very, very nice surprise."
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