Endeavour returns after record-setting mission to ISS

The space shuttle Endeavour lands at Kennedy Space Center, after a record-setting mission to the ISS to install a Japanese laboratory and a Canadian repair robot.

The space shuttle Endeavour landed at Kennedy Space Center, after a record-setting mission to the International Space Station to install a Japanese laboratory and a Canadian repair robot, NASA said.

HT Image

Endeavour landed at 0609 IST on Thursday after a 16-day mission that included a record 12-day docking at the ISS and five spacewalks - the most ever embarked upon in a single mission.

The shuttle touched down after an initially scheduled landing 90 minutes earlier was postponed due to poor weather conditions.

The Endeavour's mission, which went by practically without a hitch, was greeted with enthusiasm by everybody at NASA.

"This has been a two-week adventure and it's been a pleasure and honour to be on it," shuttle co-pilot Greg Johnson told NASA mission control at Houston, Texas, after the crew got their wake-up call on Wednesday at around 2030 IST.

Endeavour commander Dominic Gorie late Sunday described the mission as an all-around success.

"We've done awesome," Gorie said. "Every spacewalk was a win, every robotic operation was a win."

His comments came after mission specialists Robert Behnken and Mike Foreman attached a 50-foot sensory boom to the outside of the space station.

ISS flight director Dana Weigel said the spacewalk, often referred to by NASA officials as an EVA, or an extra-vehicular activity, had set a new record.