Allard Beutel<br />Headquarters, Washington Nov. 29, 2004<br />(Phone: 202/358-4769)<br /><br />James Hartsfield<br />Johnson Space Center, Houston<br />(Phone: 281/483-5111)<br /><br />INTERNATIONAL SPACE STATION STATUS REPORT: SS04-042<br /><br /> The Expedition 10 crewmembers are back inside the <br />International Space Station after taking a short ride this <br />morning. They flew their Soyuz spacecraft from one docking <br />port to another to clear the way for two spacewalks next <br />year.<br /><br />Having configured Station systems for autonomous operation, <br />Expedition 10 Flight Engineer and Soyuz Commander Salizhan <br />Sharipov and Expedition 10 Commander Leroy Chiao undocked the <br />Soyuz from the Station's Pirs Docking Compartment at 4:32 <br />a.m. EST, as they flew 225 miles over the southern Atlantic <br />Ocean. <br /><br />Sharipov, seated in the center seat of the Soyuz descent <br />module compartment, and Chiao seated to his left, backed the <br />capsule away from the Station approximately 98 feet. They <br />flew the Soyuz laterally along the Station approximately 45 <br />feet before rotating the craft 135 degrees to align it with <br />the Earth-facing docking port on the adjacent Zarya module. <br />The vehicle was held in position for eight minutes of <br />station-keeping, ensuring correct alignment of docking <br />mechanisms, before the crew began the final approach toward <br />the Station. <br /><br />Docking was at 4:53 a.m. EST, as the Soyuz and the Station <br />passed over western Asia. Within minutes, hooks and latches <br />engaged between the Soyuz and Zarya firmly linking the return <br />vehicle and the Station. After a series of leak checks, the <br />crew reentered the Station at 6:54 a.m. EST, and they began <br />reconfiguring Station systems for normal operations. <br /><br />Repositioning of the Soyuz cleared Pirs, which also serves as <br />an airlock, for a pair of spacewalks by Chiao and Sharipov <br />planned for early next year. <br /><br />Information about crew activities on the Space Station, <br />future launch dates and Station sighting opportunities from <br />Earth, is available on the Internet at:<br /><br />http://spaceflight.nasa.gov/<br /><br />-more-<br />-2-<br /><br />Details about Station science operations are available on the <br />Internet from NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center, <br />Huntsville, Ala., Payload Operations Center at:<br /><br />http://scipoc.msfc.nasa.gov/<br /><br />For information about NASA and other agency missions, visit:<br /><br />http://www.nasa.gov