07.12.11

2 a.m. CDT Tuesday, July 12, 2011
Mission Control Center, Houston, TexasSTATUS REPORT: STS-135-08

STS-135 MCC STATUS REPORT #08

HOUSTON – Transfer work will be going on inside and outside of the
International Space Station today, as the crew performs the first and
only spacewalk of the STS-135 mission.

Space shuttle Atlantis’ crew was awakened at 1:59 a.m. by the song
“More” by Matthew West. It was played for Mission Specialist Rex
Walheim.

Walheim today will be choreographing from inside the space station the
spacewalk being done outside by Expedition 28 Flight Engineers Mike
Fossum and Ron Garan. Fossum and Garan will be packing a pump module
that failed in 2010 into the shuttle’s cargo bay. It was moved into a
temporary storage location on external stowage platform-2 during the
STS-133 mission earlier this year. Returning it to Earth will allow
engineers to look into what caused its failure and then refurbish it
for use as a spare.

Fossum and Garan will also be installing the Robotic Refueling Mission
experiment on a platform used by the Special Purpose Dexterous
Manipulator, or Dextre, to hold spare parts. The Robotic Refueling
Mission will demonstrate and test the tools, technologies and
techniques needed to robotically refuel and repair satellites in
space.

The spacewalk is scheduled to begin at 7:44 a.m., and last six and a
half hours.

Meanwhile, inside the space station, every member of the shuttle crew
and many of the station crew will be working to unload the newly
installed Raffaello multipurpose logistics module. It brought up
9,400 pounds of cargo to the space station, all of which must be
unloaded and replaced with 5,700 pounds of trash and used equipment
to return home.

The next status report will be issued at the end of the crew’s day or
earlier if warranted. The crew is scheduled to go to sleep just
before 6 p.m.