STS-98 Status Report #02 8 Feb 2001 7:00 AM CST

The five-member
crew of Atlantis is in its first full day in space continuing its pursuit
of the International Space Station. After a slightly abbreviated sleep
period, Atlantis’ astronauts were awakened at 6:13 a.m. Central time
as the Shuttle trailed the Station by approximately 2,000 statute miles
(3,200 kilometers). The first wakeup call of the flight was “Where
You At”, a jazz selection by Pilot Mark Polansky’s late uncle,
Zoot Sims.

The first full
day in orbit for Astronauts Ken Cockrell, Polansky, Marsha Ivins, Tom
Jones and Bob Curbeam will focus on preparations for the unberthing
and installation of the Destiny laboratory to the International Space
Station. Ivins and Cockrell will check out the 50-foot long robotic
arm, and conduct a camera survey of the payload bay with the 16-ton
Destiny laboratory housed inside. Curbeam and Jones, with assistance
from Polansky, will test the space suits they will wear during three
scheduled space walks, the first of which is planned for Saturday as
Ivins uses the ship’s robot arm to install Destiny onto the Unity module
of the Station.

Cockrell and Polansky
will command a series of engine firings to refine Atlantis’ approach
to the station, positioning themselves for a Friday morning docking,
just before 11 a.m. Central time.

On board the station,
the Expedition One crew – Commander Bill Shepherd, Pilot Yuri Gidzenko
and Flight Engineer Sergei Krikalev – awoke just after 4 a.m. to mark
its 100th day in orbit. From on board they kept tabs as an unmanned
Progress resupply spacecraft, loaded with trash, undocked from the station
at 5:26 a.m. Central time as the Station flew high over Asia. A series
of engine firings on the Progress slowly increased the distance between
the two vehicles. Just before 11 a.m., the Progress will be commanded
to deorbit, causing it to burn up as it reenters the Earth’s atmosphere.

Today the Expedition
One crew will review its plans for joint operations with Atlantis’ crew
following docking Friday morning, perform some basic housekeeping tasks,
and enjoy a regularly-scheduled exercise session.

Atlantis’ crew
will conduct a series of interviews with media representatives just
after 4 p.m. this afternoon. The first Mission Status Briefing of the
flight is planned for 5:30 p.m. on NASA Television.

The next STS-98
status report will be issued around 6 p.m. today, or earlier, if events
warrant.