[sarex] ISS STATUS REPORT #04-58

[Arthur Z Rowe <n1orc@xxxxxxxxxxxx>]

Submitted by Arthur - N1ORC - Amsat A/C #31468

*International Space Station Status Report #04-58*
*8:20 p.m. CDT, Saturday, Oct. 23, 2004*
*Expedition 9 Crew*

After traveling more than 78 million miles aboard the International 
Space Station, Expedition 9 Commander Gennady Padalka and Flight 
Engineer Mike Fincke returned to Earth today.

Returning with them was Russian Space Forces Test Cosmonaut Yuri 
Shargin, who had spent eight days aboard the orbiting complex conducting 
research.

After a flawless descent by the ISS Soyuz 8 spacecraft, Padalka, Fincke 
and Shargin landed on target in north-central Kazakhstan, about 43 miles 
(70 kilometers) northeast of the town of Arkalyk, at 7:36 p.m. CDT. 
Recovery forces arrived at the site within minutes of the touchdown.

Padalka and Fincke spent 187 days, 21 hours and 17 minutes in space. 
They launched on April 18, on the same Soyuz spacecraft that brought 
them home. For six months, the pair maintained systems and conducted 
scientific research onboard the Station.

Fincke's return also is his first opportunity to meet his four-month-old 
daughter, Tarali Paulina, born June 18 while he was in space. The crew's 
families are expected to greet them upon their arrival at Star City, 
Russia, a few hours after landing. Padalka and Fincke will remain in 
Star City for several weeks of post-flight debriefings and medical exams 
before returning to Houston in mid-November.

Among their accomplishments on the Station was an unprecedented 
spacewalking repair, using Russian spacesuits and gear to replace a U.S. 
circuit breaker, restoring power to a U.S. gyroscope. Fincke also 
performed some of the most complex U.S. spacesuit repairs ever 
accomplished in orbit, replacing water pumps in the suits' cooling 
systems, equipment not designed for in-flight repairs. They completed a 
total of four spacewalks, including sorties that prepared the Station 
for the arrival of a new European cargo ship next year.

Aboard the Station, the Expedition 10 crew, Commander and NASA Station 
Science Officer Leroy Chiao and Flight Engineer Salizhan Sharipov, are 
beginning a six-month mission that will include two spacewalks and 
preparations for the return of Space Shuttle flights. Expedition 10 is 
scheduled to return to Earth on April 25, 2005.

Chiao and Sharipov will have light duty for the next three days as they 
rest after completing a busy handover period. For the past week, they 
have been learning about Station operations from the two men who called 
the ship home since April. Padalka and Fincke briefed Chiao and Sharipov 
on day-to-day operations and gave them hands-on opportunities at Station 
maintenance: Sharipov joined Padalka in completing repairs to the 
Elektron oxygen-generating system, and Chiao helped Fincke with the 
maintenance on the U.S. spacesuits. During his time aboard, Shargin 
completed a program of scientific experiments.

Information on the crew's activities aboard the Space Station, future 
launch dates, as well as Station sighting opportunities from anywhere on 
the Earth, is available on the Internet at:

http://spaceflight.nasa.gov/

Details on Station science operations can be found on an Internet site 
administered by the Payload Operations Center at NASA's Marshall Space 
Flight Center in Huntsville, Ala., at:

http://scipoc.msfc.nasa.gov/

The next ISS status report will be issued on Friday, Oct. 29, or earlier 
if events warrant.

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