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The astronauts onboard the International Space Station spent
Sunday preparing for the first spacewalk, which was rescheduled for Monday at 9:35 a.m. EST, due
to unidentified health issues with German astronaut Hans Schlegel.
Schlegel was replaced by Stanley Love, who together with Rex
Walheim, will perform tasks to prepare the European Space Agency’s Columbus laboratory for
installation on the station. Included in these tasks is installing the Power
Data Grapple Fixture on Columbus, which will allow the station’s robotic arm to
grab the laboratory module and move it from space shuttle Atlantis’ payload bay
to the space station’s Harmony module.
In addition, the spacewalkers will detach nitrogen lines and
otherwise begin work to remove the Nitrogen Tank Assembly, a part of the
station’s thermal control system, from the P1 truss. The assembly needs to be
replaced because the nitrogen is running low.
Schlegel and Pilot Alan Poindexter will coordinate the
spacewalk activities from inside the orbiting complex, NASA announced.
It is possible that Schelgel will join Rex Walheim in the
second spacewalk. However, NASA refused to disclose any details about Schelgel
problems.
The European Space Agency said on its website that
Schelgel’s condition is “not life- or mission-threatening
in any way, but that could affect his efficiency during a spacewalk”.
NASA also said the STS-122 mission was extended one day with
a landing planned for the morning of Tuesday, February 19.
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