Expedition 24 crew members clockwise from the bottom are Russian cosmonaut Alexander Skvortsov, commander; NASA astronauts Tracy Caldwell Dyson and Doug Wheelock; Russian cosmonauts Mikhail Kornienko and Fyodor Yurchikhin; along with NASA astronaut Shannon Walker, all flight engineers. Image credit: NASAThree departing Expedition 24 crew members will spend at least another day on the International Space Station following an unsuccessful attempt to undock their Soyuz spacecraft overnight.
At 12:12 a.m. EDT Friday, the Mission Control Centers in Houston and Moscow concurred on a plan to reopen the Soyuz hatches and allow Alexander Skvortsov, Tracy Caldwell Dyson and Mikhail Kornienko to reenter the station. The planned undocking was prevented when commands being sent to disengage the hooks and latches holding the Soyuz TMA-18 spacecraft failed. The spacecraft remains securely docked to the Poisk module.
Engineers are continuing to troubleshoot the problem. Expedition 25 Commander Doug Wheelock and Flight Engineers Shannon Walker and Fyodor Yurchikhin sent down video and still photos of a small star-shaped gear with two broken teeth, and experts are evaluating whether the part is related to the commanding problem.
Flight controllers are aiming for an undocking at 10:02 p.m. Friday, which would result in a landing at 1:21 a.m. Saturday, or 11:21 a.m. Kazakhstan time, near Arkalyk. The six-person station crew is scheduled to awaken about 10:30 a.m. Friday to begin preparations for the second undocking attempt.
NASA Television coverage of the Soyuz hatch closing activities will begin at 6:15 p.m. Friday, and landing coverage will begin at midnight.
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