Image above: Astronaut Clay Anderson, Expedition 15 flight engineer, works with a spacesuit in the Quest Airlock of the International Space Station. Image credit: NASA

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Ham astronaut Clay Anderson KD5PLA, gets ready for his first spacewalk

Commander Fyodor Yurchikhin, RN3FI, and Flight Engineer Clay Anderson, KD5PLA, are gearing up for next Monday’s spacewalk.

The crew has been configuring spacewalk tools and reviewing spacesuit systems. The July 23 spacewalk will be Anderson’s first and Yurchikhin's third.

In advance of space shuttle Endeavour visiting the International Space Station in August, the crew has been packing items for return to Earth on the shuttle.

Clay Anderson has also been practicing Rendezvous Pitch Maneuver (RPM) photography with a digital camera. The RPM imagery is taken of the shuttle’s thermal protection system as it approaches the station.

The U.S. Oxygen Generation System (OGS) has been deactivated for approximately 90 days. Reactivation of the OGS will not occur until after Expedition 16 arrives at the station in October.