Space Shuttle Crew to Pack and Enjoy Off-Duty Time

The crew awoke at 11:35 a.m. EDT to “Rocket” performed by Andrew Peterson. The song was played for Mission Specialist Pat Forrester.

The astronauts aboard the International Space Station and space shuttle Discovery turn their focus to final packing today. After nearly seven days of busy joint activities and three spacewalks, the shuttle crew will also get a half-day off.

Shuttle commander Rick Sturckow, pilot Kevin Ford, Forrester and mission specialists Jose Hernandez, Danny Olivas, Tim Kopra and Christer Fuglesang are slated to spend the morning packing up the Leonardo Multi-Purpose Logistics Module with supplies and equipment that will be returned to Earth. They will also install control panels on the Node 2 common berthing mechanism.

Their station counterparts, Commander Gennady Padalka and flight engineers Mike Barratt, Nicole Stott, Roman Romanenko, Robert Thirsk and Frank De Winne will assist with the transfer and perform station maintenance.

Early in the crew day, Kopra and Olivas have time set aside for a media opportunity with journalists from Texas and the military. At 1:54 p.m. EDT, their interviews with KFOX-TV, KXAN-TV and the Military Times will air live on NASA TV.