Image above: Astronaut Mike Foreman, STS-123 mission specialist, floating upside-down, looks over a checklist on the middeck of space shuttle Endeavour while docked with the International Space Station. Credit: NASA

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Dextre to be activated

Canadarm2, the International Space Station’s robot arm, grabbed the pallet that secured Dextre during its journey to the orbital outpost and returned the pallet to space shuttle Endeavour’s payload bay for the trip back to Earth.

The Canadian-built Dextre, which is attached to a power and data grapple fixture located on the U.S. laboratory Destiny, will be activated at 1:13 a.m. EDT. The new robotic system is the final element of the International Space Station’s Mobile Servicing System.

Mission Specialists Rick Linnehan and Mike Foreman finished assembling Dextre Sunday during the second spacewalk of STS-123.

Image above: Space Shuttle Endeavour, docked to the Pressurized Mating Adapter on the International Space Station, is featured in this image photographed by a crewmember during the STS-123 mission’s third spacewalk. The newly installed Japanese Logistics Module - Pressurized Section is visible at top right.

The station and shuttle crews also will prepare hardware to be used in a shuttle tile repair test on the next spacewalk, and they will get some much needed off duty time.

Foreman and Mission Specialist Robert Behnken, KE5GGX, are slated to begin the mission’s fourth spacewalk at 6:28 p.m. Thursday. The two will perform tasks that include the shuttle tile repair test and change out of a circuit breaker on the station.