This
story was updated at 6:20 p.m. EST.
Two
astronauts breezed through the first spacewalk of their mission Thursday as
they upgraded the International Space Station with a spare antenna and other
gear.
Atlantis
shuttle astronauts Mike Foreman and Robert Satcher, Jr. zoomed through more
than six hours of orbital work outside the station to install the large antenna
and connect some new data cables. At times, they were two hours ahead of
schedule.
Satcher, an
orthopedic surgeon-turned-astronaut, also put his Earthly skills to work by
greasing up some snares that serve as grasping "hands" on a Japanese robotic
arm and a station attachment point. It was delicate work.
"We have
photographic evidence of the highest-recorded orthopedic surgery...ever," joked
crewmate Randy Bresnik, who choreographed the spacewalk from inside
Atlantis. "We know NASA didn't just hire Bobby for his good looks."
Foreman and
Satcher began their orbital work at 9:24 a.m. EST (1424 GMT), but swiftly
tackled their main chore to move the hefty spare antenna from Atlantis' cargo
bay to a storage point on the station.
"What a
beautiful view," Satcher exclaimed as he began the first spacewalk of his
career while flying 220 miles (354 km) above Earth.
But
Foreman, a veteran spacewalker on his fourth excursion, had his eyes on his
partner.
"Hard to
believe Bobby, but I think your feet look bigger from space," he said.
The
astronauts were so far ahead of schedule, they even managed to squeeze in an
extra chore during the six-hour, 37-minute excursion.
"You guys
are rocking the house," Bresnik told the spacewalkers.
For the
extra task, they deployed a swing-out platform to hold even more spare station
gear in the future, but had to tackle some tough bolts in the process. In the
end, Foreman had to bang on the bolt with a hammer while Satcher wiggled it to
free the stuck part. A small piece of debris, possibly part of a metal pin,
drifted away during their exertions, but posed no risk to the station or
shuttle, NASA officials said.
"You guys
get the official MacGyver award for your work on that," Bresnik said.
Thursday's
spacewalk came one day after Atlantis arrived
at the station with six astronauts aboard.
The
astronauts have already delivered one massive cargo carrier laden with other
spare parts - among them extra pumps, a gyroscope and tons of other gear. A
second carrier will be installed later in the flight.
Atlantis'
11-day mission blasted off on Monday. It is largely a delivery run to stock the
space station with spare parts that can only be hauled by a NASA shuttle.
NASA plans
to retire its three remaining space shuttles by the end of next year and wants
to store as many spare parts on the station as possible to keep it running
through at least 2015, and possibly longer pending a
review by the Obama administration.
The
spacewalk was not the only high point in space Thursday. Mission Control
radioed the Atlantis crew to tell the astronauts they won't have to take
another look at their heat shield Friday after an inspection and photo survey
earlier this week found it to be in good shape. The crew will make a final
health check of the heat shield after leaving the station next week as a
standard safety precaution.
American
astronaut Nicole Stott celebrated her 47th birthday aboard the space station today
as she prepares to return home next week aboard Atlantis. Stott has lived on
the station since late August and is looking forward to seeing her husband and
son back on Earth.
Bresnik
also has other things on his mind. His wife Rebecca is expected to give birth
Friday to a baby girl, the couple's second child, in Houston, Texas.
Mission
Control roused the crew with the song "In Wonder" performed by The Newsboys, a
tune chosen for Bresnik
by his wife.
"Thanks to my
wonderful wife Rebecca for that song and the wonder of creation that's going on
inside of her and what's going to happen tomorrow," Bresnik radioed Mission Control.
SPACE.com
is providing complete coverage of Atlantis' STS-129 mission to the
International Space Station with Staff Writer Clara Moskowitz and Managing
Editor Tariq Malik based in New York. Click here for shuttle mission
updates and a link to NASA TV.
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