Endeavour Docked at the International Space Station - 2002-06-08

The American spacecraft Endeavour docked alongside the International Space Station with its new crew and equipment. During their nine-day stay at the space station, astronauts will conduct a series of scientific and medical experiments and continue the development of the space station. During one of their three spacewalks, the astronauts will replace a joint of the Canadian-built robotic arm. The Endeavour spacecraft launched last Wednesday with seven crew members from the Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Florida. The seven astronauts aboard Endeavour are from Costa Rica, France, Russia, and the United States. One of them is a physicist from Costa Rica named Franklin Chang-Diaz, who will set the record for the seventh spaceflight. He has over 1200 hours of spaceflight experience. Two American astronauts and a Russian astronaut will replace a three-member crew that has been at the space station since last December. The 12-day mission of the Endeavour spacecraft is the fourteenth round trip of American spacecraft to the International Space Station. The spacecraft is scheduled to leave the International Space Station for a return to Earth on June 15.