[sarex] STS-115 MCC Status Report #13

[Arthur Rowe]

SUBMITTED BY ARTHUR N1ORC - MSAT A/C #31468

4 p.m. CDT, Friday, Sept. 15
Mission Control Center, Houston, Texas

	09.15.06
STATUS REPORT: STS-115-13

STS-115 MCC Status Report #13

Astronauts Joe Tanner and Heide Stefanyshyn-Piper finished the third and 
final spacewalk of Atlantis' mission today, powering up a cooling 
radiator for the new solar arrays unfolded Thursday on the International 
Space Station.

After about a 45-minute delay in the airlock due to a depressurization 
pump power problem, Tanner and Piper began the spacewalk at 5 a.m. CDT. 
They completed the excursion at 11:42 a.m. CDT.

In addition to their work with the radiator, Tanner and Piper also 
replaced an S-Band radio antenna. The antenna, which provides backup 
communication between the space station and the ground, will be needed 
during the next mission. That flight, set for December, will require a 
complicated power down of the station to bring the new power systems on 
line.

They finished a couple of tasks that will reduce the workload for future 
spacewalkers, including installing insulation for another communications 
antenna. Tanner took photos of the shuttle’s wings using an infrared 
camera to test the camera's ability to detect damage.

The STS-115 crew – Commander Brent Jett, Pilot Chris Ferguson and 
Mission Specialists Dan Burbank, Tanner, Piper and Steve MacLean – is in 
its fourth day of joint operations with the station crew.

The astronauts will get time off for part of the day tomorrow before 
transferring the last of the cargo between the shuttle and the space 
station. Atlantis will undock from the station at 7:50 a.m. CDT Sunday, 
circling the orbiting complex once as it departs.

The next STS-115 mission status report will be issued Saturday morning 
or earlier if events warrant.