She was assisting the Pilot in monitoring all shuttle navigation systems to ensure they were in good working order and was double checking spacecrafts maneuvers and trajectories throughout the flight. (Credit: NASA)įor launch into orbit and return to Earth as Flight Engineer/Mission Specialist 2 Julie Payette was sitting right in the middle of all the action - in the cockpit, just behind Commander Polansky and Pilot Hurley. Julie Payette as a post flight engineer / specialist. Together with the rest of the Shuttle and ISS crewmembers, there was a record 13 astronauts together in space, representing all the ISS partners - with 7 Americans, 2 Russians, 2 Canadians, a European and a Japanese. Some are physical science experiments that will help researchers understand the diffusion of liquids, which is useful in making the oil industry more efficient, while others are biological, looking at expanding understanding of how blood pressure and fainting affect both space travelers and people back on Earth. A number of Canadian experiments managed by the Canadian Space Agency ( CSA) were delivered by STS-127. He is one of the flight engineers who is conducting science experiments for Canada and international partners during a long-duration stay on the station, a first for a Canadian astronaut. Payette had also the honour of taking part in the first Canadian astronaut rendezvous in space when she met up with fellow Canadian Bob Thirsk, who arrived at the ISS in May 2009 aboard a Russian Soyuz space capsule (see the Expedition 20/21 Website for more information). Julie Payette was an integral part of all robotic operations of the mission manipulating Canadian, American and Japanese robotic arms. It was the first time in history when a Canadian in space controls robotics contributed by three countries. The 29th Shuttle trip to the Earth-orbiting laboratory promised to be an action-packed mission full of firsts, including several firsts for Canada. The Shuttle also delivered a new Flight Engineer, Timothy Kopra, who joined the Expedition 20 crew on the ISS, and provided a ride back to Earth for JAXA Flight Engineer Koicha Wakata.Ĭanadian astronaut Bob Thirsk training in a Soyuz Capsule simulator. Also on the docket for the Shuttle crew was a tricky replacement of six batteries at one of the farthest ends of the station's truss.Īlong with Payette on STS-127 were Commander Mark Polansky (veteran of 2 Shuttle missions), Pilot Douglas Hurley, and Mission Specialists Christopher Cassidy, Thomas Marshburn, and David Wolf (veteran of 4 Shuttle missions, a spacewalk, and an extended stay aboard MIR, the Russian space station). Astronauts completed assembly of Kibo - the multi-part Japanese Experiment Module ( JEM) by attaching an outdoor terrace or porch filled with Japanese experiment packages designed to be exposed to the vacuum of space. The main goal of this ambitious mission was to deliver the final permanent components of the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency's (JAXA) contribution to the station program. Julie Payette was front and centre operating Canada's robotics to assist her crewmembers as they conducted five grueling spacewalks to complete the installation of these components during their two week stay on the Station. Endeavour hauled a cargo bay full of vital ISS components, Japanese and Canadian scientific experiments and fresh supplies. Endeavour and her crew of seven, including veteran Canadian astronaut Julie Payette, launched on July 15, 2009 and were undertaking a 16-day mission that included days of demanding construction work on the largest and most complex space project in the history. The cosmic stage was set for a new era in Canadian space exploration and scientific research aboard the International Space Station ( ISS) when Space Shuttle Endeavour launched on flight STS-127.
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