Shuttle Crew Inspects Heat ShieldsShuttle Crew Inspects Heat Shields

The crew of space shuttle Endeavour hit the sack early Tuesday to rest up for the full workload that awaits them over the next several days.

The astronauts entered their prescribed sleep period at 9:14 a.m. EST and are scheduled to doze for the next eight hours. Once they awake, they'll start preparations for docking with the International Space Station. The rendezvous is expected to occur shortly after midnight Wednesday.

Endeavour blasted off at 4:14 a.m. early Monday, following a one-day delay caused by inclement weather.

Much of their first day in space was spent performing tasks that were routine but essential. Crewmembers inspected Endeavour's heat-resistant tiles and reinforced carbon surfaces on the leading edges of the spacecraft's wings and on its nose.

They also checked out tools that will be used for docking with the ISS.

Endeavour is carrying a five-member crew, including commander George Zamka, pilot Terry Virts, and mission specialists Kay Hire, Steve Robinson, and Nicholas Patrick.

The crew will be busy throughout the 13-day mission, officially known as STS-130.

The mission's main goal is delivery of a connecting module to the ISS that will increase its interior space. The module comes with an attached cupola—a robotic, windowed control station that will provide panoramic views of the Earth, celestial objects, and other spacecraft.

The mission also calls for the astronauts to perform three spacewalks to conduct maintenance and repair operations on the ISS.

STS-130 is Endeavour's 24th flight and the 130th for the space shuttle program overall. NASA is cancelling the program at the end of 2010, and there are only four remaining missions scheduled through the remainder of this year.

The Obama administration's budget request, officially unveiled last week, also calls for the space agency to discontinue the Constellation program, which would have seen NASA astronauts return to the moon no later than 2020.

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