The STS-129 and Expedition 21 crew members bid farewell. Photo credit: NASA TV

Atlantis to undock today

Atlantis’ crew will briskly work through the timeline to prepare for its 4:53 a.m. undocking from the International Space Station.

Atlantis Pilot Barry E. Wilmore will fly Atlantis around the station to help acquire imagery of the complex for ground experts to analyze.

Later in the day the crew will conduct a survey of Atlantis’ heat shield to ensure its integrity for Friday’s deorbit, entry and landing. Two news conferences are scheduled to discuss the mission and review the landing strategy, based on current weather predictions at the prime Kennedy Space Center Shuttle Landing Facility.

Atlantis will return station crew member Nicole Stott, KE5GJN, to Earth. Stott is returning to Earth after more than 90 days in space, including 87 days on the station, 80 of them as a member of the Expedition 20 and 21 crews.

Jeff Williams, KD5TVQ

European Space Agency astronaut Frank De Winne, ON1DWN handed over command of
the station to NASA astronaut Jeff Williams, KD5TVQ.

De Winne and Expedition 21 Flight Engineers Roman Romanenko and Robert Thirsk, VA3CSA, are scheduled to leave the station for return to Earth in a Soyuz capsule on November 30.