WASHINGTON (nasa) – The Space Shuttle Atlantis has undocked from the International Space Station after a week of construction work that included installing the first space rail system.
The rail system will help make future construction work more efficient, even though it has already been hit by computer glitches. It will also transport the station’s robot arm.
During the nearly week-long mission, Atlantis astronauts also mounted a giant girder that will serve as the backbone of future construction and research for the space station.
The shuttle undocked from the orbiting outpost Wednesday and conducted a photographic inspection before its final departure. Atlantis and its seven astronauts are due on Earth Friday.
The three-man crew remaining on the international space station are Russian commander Yury Onufrienko and Americans Dan Bursch and Carl Walz. They are expected to return to earth aboard the next space shuttle flight, scheduled for June.
