spacetoday.net: Second STS-122 EVA a success

Posted: Thu, Feb 14, 2008, 6:43 AM ET (1143 GMT)
STS-122: EVA #2 (NASA)

Two astronauts, including a German who had reportedly fallen ill earlier in the mission, carried out a successful spacewalk on Wednesday, replacing a nitrogen tank outside the International Space Station. Rex Walheim and Hans Schlegel spent 6 hours and 45 minutes outside the station, starting at 9:27 am EST (1427 GMT), spending most of their time replacing a nitrogen tank used to pressurize the station's ammonia cooling system. Schlegel participated in the EVA after being replaced for the mission's first spacewalk, apparently because of an unspecified illness. Also on Wednesday, mission managers decided to add another day to the shuttle's mission to give the crew more time to complete the activation of the new Columbus module on the ISS. Atlantis is now scheduled to return to Earth on the morning of February 20.