STS-112 facts for kids

Quick facts for kids
STS-112

Canadarm2 takes the S1 truss out of the payload bay of Atlantis, prior to its installation on the ISS
Mission type	ISS assembly
Operator	NASA
Mission duration	10 days, 19 hours, 58 minutes, 44 seconds
Distance travelled	7,200,000 kilometres (4,500,000 mi)
Orbits completed	170
Spacecraft properties
Spacecraft	Space Shuttle Atlantis
Launch mass	116,538 kilograms (256,922 lb)
Landing mass	91,390 kilograms (201,480 lb)
Payload mass	12,572 kilograms (27,717 lb)
Crew
Crew size	6
Members	Jeffrey S. Ashby Pamela A. Melroy Piers Sellers Sandra H. Magnus David A. Wolf Fyodor N. Yurchikhin
Start of mission
Launch date	7 October 2002, 19:45:51 (2002-10-07UTC19:45:51Z) UTC
Launch site	Kennedy LC-39B
End of mission
Landing date	18 October 2002, 15:44:35 (2002-10-18UTC15:44:36Z) UTC
Landing site	Kennedy SLF Runway 33
Orbital parameters
Reference system	Geocentric
Regime	Low Earth
Perigee	273 kilometres (170 mi)
Apogee	405 kilometres (252 mi)
Inclination	51.6 degrees
Period	91.2 minutes
Docking with ISS
Docking port	PMA-2 (Destiny forward)
Docking date	9 October 2002, 15:16 UTC
Undocking date	16 October 2002, 13:13 UTC
Time docked	6 days, 21 hours, 57 minutes
(L-R): Sandra H. Magnus, David A. Wolf, Pamela A. Melroy, Jeffrey S. Ashby, Piers J. Sellers and Fyodor Yurchikhin Space Shuttle program ← STS-111 STS-113 →

STS-112 was an exciting 11-day Space Shuttle mission to the International Space Station (ISS). The mission was flown by the Space Shuttle Atlantis. It was a very important flight for building the ISS, known as assembly flight 9A.

Atlantis launched on October 7, 2002, from the Kennedy Space Center in Florida. Its main job was to deliver a huge, 28,000-pound part called the Starboard 1 (S1) truss segment to the Space Station. After traveling 4.5 million miles, Atlantis landed safely back at the Kennedy Space Center on October 18, 2002.

During the launch, a piece of foam broke off the shuttle's external tank. It hit the left Space Shuttle Solid Rocket Booster, causing a dent. NASA looked into this issue. They decided it was safe to continue with planned launches. The next shuttle launch after this one was the Space Shuttle Columbia disaster (STS-107).

Atlantis was supposed to fly again in March 2003. However, because of the Columbia accident, all Space Shuttles were temporarily stopped from flying. Atlantis didn't fly again until September 9, 2006, on mission STS-115.

Meet the Crew

The STS-112 mission had a crew of six brave astronauts. Here's who they were:

Position	Astronaut
Commander	Jeffrey S. Ashby Third and last spaceflight
Pilot	Pamela A. Melroy Second spaceflight
Mission Specialist 1	Piers Sellers First spaceflight
Mission Specialist 2	Sandra H. Magnus First spaceflight
Mission Specialist 3	David A. Wolf Third spaceflight
Mission Specialist 4	Fyodor N. Yurchikhin, RKA First spaceflight

What the Mission Carried

The Space Shuttle Atlantis carried several important items into space for the International Space Station.

The S1 Truss Segment

The S1 Radiator panels being manufactured at the Michoud Assembly Facility

Illustration of the International Space Station after STS-112.

The most important cargo for STS-112 was the S1 truss segment. A truss is like a strong, supportive framework. This S1 segment helps hold up the Space Station's radiators, which are important for cooling the station.

Companies like Boeing and Lockheed Martin started building this truss in 1998. It was finished in 1999 and then sent to NASA for final checks before its space journey.

Crew Equipment Translation Aid (CETA) Cart

Atlantis also delivered a special cart called the Crew Equipment Translation Aid (CETA) Cart. This cart attaches to the Mobile Transporter on the ISS. Astronauts use it to move equipment around the outside of the Space Station during spacewalks.

Science Experiments on Board

STS-112 carried several science experiments to the Space Station. These included:

• Plant Generic Bioprocessing Apparatus (PGBA)
• Commercial Generic Bioprocessing Apparatus (CGBA)
• Protein Crystal Growth Single-locker Thermal Enclosure System (PCG-STES-PCAM)
• Samples for the Zeolite Crystal Growth Furnace (ZCG) experiment

These experiments helped scientists learn more about how plants grow, how proteins form, and how crystals grow in the microgravity of space.

Shuttle Preparations

Getting Atlantis ready for launch was delayed a little bit. In June 2002, tiny cracks were found in the metal liners of the shuttle's fuel lines. These liners are inside the pipes that carry liquid hydrogen fuel to the engines. Even though the main fuel pipes were fine, engineers worried that small pieces of metal from the liners could break off. If this happened, it could cause a serious engine problem during launch. After careful review, NASA decided it was safe to fly.

Mission Timeline: A Day-by-Day Look

October 7 (Flight Day 1 – Launch)

Atlantis launches on STS-112.

Space Shuttle Atlantis blasted off from Launch Pad 39B at the Kennedy Space Center. The launch happened smoothly, just as planned. For the very first time in Space Shuttle history, a "rocketcam" video camera was attached to the external tank. This camera sent live video of the launch back to NASA! The video was almost perfect until the two solid rocket boosters separated. At that point, their exhaust made the camera lens foggy.

NASA also looked into a small issue with some explosive bolts. These bolts help the solid rocket boosters separate. During this launch, only one set of explosives fired in ten bolts, instead of all of them. All 10 nuts still exploded as planned, but NASA wanted to understand why this happened.

A more significant event during launch was when a piece of foam, about 4x5x12 inches, broke off the external tank. It hit the lower left solid rocket booster, making a dent about 4 inches wide and 3 inches deep. NASA decided this was not a major risk for future flights. This decision became very important later, especially after the STS-107 tragedy.

October 8 (Flight Day 2 – Getting Ready for Docking)

Sandra Magnus washes her hair in the middeck of Atlantis

On their second day in space, the STS-112 crew got ready to meet up and dock with the International Space Station. The astronauts checked their spacewalk suits and equipment. Commander Jeff Ashby and Mission Specialist Sandy Magnus checked the shuttle's robotic arm to make sure it was ready. The crew also prepared the docking system and other tools needed for linking up with the ISS.

During the day, Atlantis fired its engines three times. These "Orbital Maneuvering System" (OMS) burns helped the shuttle get into the correct orbit to approach the Space Station.

Astronaut David Wolf also checked on an experiment called SHIMMER. This experiment uses a special camera to look at Earth's atmosphere, searching for signs of ozone loss. The crew worked with Mission Control to get the experiment ready for observations.

October 9 (Flight Day 3 – Docking with the ISS)

Atlantis during rendezvous and docking operations. The steel truss segment and radiators can be seen clearly in the payload bay

Space Shuttle Atlantis successfully docked with the International Space Station at 15:17 GMT. This began a week of teamwork between the shuttle crew and the Expedition 5 crew already living on the ISS. Commander Jeffrey Ashby carefully guided Atlantis to connect with the Pressurized Mating Adapter-2 (PMA-2) at the front of the station. The two spacecraft were flying 245 miles above Earth.

After checking that everything was sealed tightly, the hatches between Atlantis and the ISS were opened. The astronauts from Atlantis floated into the Destiny Module and were greeted by the three-person station crew. This was the first time the Expedition 5 crew had visitors!

After a safety briefing, the combined crews started preparing for a busy day. Some astronauts got the spacewalk suits ready, while others reviewed how to use the robotic arm to move the new truss segment.

• 

  The Space Station, as seen by an STS-112 crew member.

• 

  The STS-112 crew gets a safety briefing from Station Commander Valery Korzun.

October 10 (Flight Day 4 – First Spacewalk)

David Wolf carries a camera during EVA 1.

The day started early for the Atlantis crew. Astronauts Peggy Whitson and Sandy Magnus used the station's robotic arm, Canadarm2, to grab the S1 truss structure. They carefully moved it out of Atlantis' cargo bay and attached it to the Space Station. Four motorized bolts locked the two parts together.

At the same time, Astronauts Dave Wolf and Piers Sellers got ready for the mission's first spacewalk, also known as an EVA (Extravehicular Activity). This was the 44th spacewalk to help build and maintain the Space Station. Wolf and Sellers left the Quest Airlock at 11:21 AM EDT. Wolf wore a spacesuit with red stripes, while Sellers wore an all-white suit. Wolf worked to connect power, data, and fluid lines between the S0 and S1 trusses. Sellers, on his first spacewalk, released the locks on three folded-up radiators on the S1. This allowed the radiators to be moved into position to cool the station.

The spacewalk lasted seven hours and one minute, which was longer than planned. There was a small problem with the Canadarm2, which meant Wolf had to finish installing a camera system without the robot arm's help. Near the end of the spacewalk, Wolf reported that his helmet earphones were losing power.

Throughout the spacewalk, astronaut Pamela Melroy helped guide the spacewalkers. Shuttle Commander Jeff Ashby operated the shuttle's robotic arm, providing camera views. After finishing their tasks, Wolf and Sellers returned to the Quest Airlock.

• 

  Astronauts Whitson and Magnus work inside the Destiny Lab to remove the S1 truss.

• 

  The S1 truss is moved from the cargo bay of Atlantis.

• 

  Piers Sellers works on the S1 truss during a spacewalk.

• 

  Pamela Melroy checks a list on the flight deck of Atlantis during the spacewalk.

October 11 (Flight Day 5 – Rest and Transfers)

The STS-112 and Expedition 5 crewmembers share a meal in the Zvezda Service Module.

On Flight Day 5, the shuttle and station crews had some time off. Then, they started moving items between Atlantis and the ISS. They transferred completed science experiments back to the shuttle to return to Earth. They also moved new experiments to the ISS. For example, liver cell tissue samples were moved to the shuttle for study on Earth.

They also moved special containers for growing protein crystals in microgravity. Seven containers of water were transferred to the station. Commander Jeff Ashby also started transferring about 15 pounds of nitrogen gas from Atlantis to the station.

Spacewalkers David Wolf and Piers Sellers, with help from Pilot Pamela Melroy, got their spacewalk equipment ready for the next EVA. They refilled water in their spacesuits and prepared their tools.

The crew also spoke with news reporters. Astronauts Magnus, Wolf, and Sellers talked about their first spacewalk and what it was like in space. Wolf mentioned that the manual work they did at the end of EVA 1 made their heart rates go up very high! Russian cosmonauts also gave interviews to the Russian press. Before going to sleep, the crew reviewed the plans for their second spacewalk.

Spacewalks

Astronauts David Wolf and Piers Sellers performed all three spacewalks during the STS-112 mission. These spacewalks were crucial for installing and setting up the new parts of the Space Station.

Shuttlecam: A New View

A camera called the "Shuttlecam" was mounted on the shuttle's external tank. It recorded Atlantis' journey into orbit. This was the first time such footage was ever captured! However, after the solid rocket boosters separated, the camera lens got foggy from the exhaust.

After the Space Shuttle Columbia disaster (STS-107), this type of camera was used on all future missions. It helped capture images of any debris falling from the external tank during launch.

Wake-Up Calls from Home

NASA has a fun tradition of playing music to wake up astronauts in space. This started during the Gemini program and was first used on Apollo 15. Each song is chosen specially, often by the astronauts' families. The songs usually have a special meaning to an astronaut or relate to what they will be doing that day.

Images for kids

• 

  STS-112 lands at the Shuttle Landing Facility, 18 October 2002.

• 

  JoAnn H. Morgan with STS-112 Pilot Pamela Melroy (left) and Mission Specialist Sandra Magnus (center) after the landing of Space Shuttle Atlantis.

See also

In Spanish: STS-112 para niños