Canadian Space Agency
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The Mission at a Glance
Canadian Space Agency astronaut Julie Payette launched successfully aboard Space Shuttle Endeavour on July 15th, 2009 and returned to the International Space Station.
On flight day 4, a platform was attached to the outside of the space station's Japanese Laboratory Kibo. Science experiments will take place on this platform, allowing them to remain exposed to the harsh environment of space.
The astronaut crew also delivered critical supplies to the Station, as well as experiments that will be subsequently berthed to the laboratory platform.
The Japanese robotic arm and the parts of the Kibo laboratory that were installed by the STS-127 crew appear in the forefront.
Julie Payette was the flight engineer. Sitting in the flight deck with the Shuttle's commander and pilot, she was part of the cockpit crew that flies the Shuttle and docks it to the space station. Payette also operated three robotic arms during this robotics-intense mission, the Shuttle's Canadarm, the Station's Canadarm2 and a Japanese arm on Kibo. Canadian robotic technology was used almost every day of this assembly mission.
For the first time in history two Canadians were in space together during this mission, Payette and Canadian Space Agency astronaut Robert Thirsk, who is part of the Station crew. A record 13 astronauts, made up of Station and Shuttle crew, were in the Station during STS-127.
This 16-day mission included five spacewalks. After installing the laboratory platform, astronauts replaced six large batteries on a Station truss.
Mission STS-127 was the 127th mission of Space Shuttle Endeavour and the 29th to the International Space Station.
The International Space Station is seen from Space Shuttle Discovery as the two spacecraft begin their separation on March 25, 2009. This is how the Space Station appeared when Julie Payette and her fellow crew members reached the orbiting laboratory this summer.
STS-127 at a glance
127th space shuttle flight; 23th flight for Endeavour
29th International Space Station assembly mission (Mission 2J/A)
Mission to last 16 days
Five planned spacewalks
Primary Payload: Kibo Japanese Experiment Module Exposed Facility (JEM-EF), Kibo Japanese Experiment Logistics Module - Exposed Section (ELM-ES)
Launch: July 15, 2009 at 6:03 p.m. EDT
Launch window: 10 minutes
Landing : July 31, at 10:48 a.m. EDT
Space Shuttle Endeavour lands at Edwards Air Force Base in California after its last mission, STS-126, on November 30, 2008.
