Katherine Trinidad
Headquarters, Washington
202-358-3749
katherine.trinidad@nasa.gov

George Diller
Kennedy Space Center, Fla.
321-867-2468
george.h.diller@nasa.gov

RELEASE: 07-177

SHUTTLE ENDEAVOUR CREW RETURNS HOME AFTER SUCCESSFUL MISSION

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - The space shuttle Endeavour and its crew are
home after completing a 13-day journey of more than 5.2 million miles
in space. Endeavour's STS-118 mission successfully added another
truss segment, a new gyroscope and external spare parts platform to
the International Space Station.

Endeavour's Commander Scott Kelly, Pilot Charlie Hobaugh and mission
specialists Tracy Caldwell, Rick Mastracchio, Barbara R. Morgan,
Alvin Drew and Canadian Space Agency astronaut Dave Williams landed
at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida on Tuesday at 12:32 p.m.
EDT.

Williams, Mastracchio and station flight engineer Clayton Anderson,
with the help of their crewmates, made four spacewalks to accomplish
the construction tasks. The spacewalkers also completed work in
preparation for upcoming assembly missions, such as relocating an
equipment cart and installing support equipment and communication
upgrades.

During the mission, a new system that enables docked shuttles to draw
electrical power from the station to extend visits to the outpost was
activated successfully. Because the system worked, two additional
days were added to Endeavour's mission.

STS-118 was the 119th space shuttle flight, the 22nd flight to the
station, the 20th flight for Endeavour and the second of four
missions planned for 2007.

Although managers addressed several issues with Endeavour's heat
shield, including a small gouge in the protective tile on the
orbiter's belly, inspections in orbit revealed no critical damage.
Endeavour's thermal protection system was declared safe for re-entry
on Monday. The orbiter will be processed immediately for its next
flight, targeted for February 2008.

With Endeavour and its crew safely home, the stage is set for the next
phase of International Space Station assembly. Preparations continue
for space shuttle Discovery's scheduled launch in October of the
STS-120 mission to deliver the pressurized Node 2 connecting module
to the station.

For more on the STS-118 mission and the upcoming STS-120 mission,
visit:

http://www.nasa.gov/shuttle