Space Shuttle Endeavour undocked from the International Space Station (ISS) on Sunday to begin its return trip to Earth, according to NASA TV.
"Physical separation, Houston," shuttle pilot Charlie Hobaugh told Mission Control.
Undocking took place according to schedule at 7:56 a.m. EDT (1156 GMT) as the shuttle and ISS passed 214 miles (about 344 km) over the South Pacific.
"Have a good trip back to Earth, say hello at home to everyone for us," ISS Expedition 15 commander Fyodor Yurchikhin told the departing astronauts as he rang the station's traditional ship's bell.
Undocking was moved up a day in preparation for a possible landing on Tuesday. The earlier landing is being considered in the event Hurricane Dean, which is plowing towards the Gulf of Mexico, threatens the Houston area in Texas. It could allow an opportunity for the shuttle to land before Mission Control, Houston, would be shut down in preparation for a storm.
"We feel like it would not have been responsible for us to go past an opportunity to, in this case, land a day early," said LeRoy Cain, NASA's STS-118 mission management team chairman, in a Saturday briefing.
Originally slated to return to Earth Wednesday, Endeavour is now set to land Tuesday at 12:29 p.m. EDT (1629 GMT), Cain said.
Mission managers are continuing to monitor the situation and assess their options.
Due to the early undocking, Endeavour's STS-118 crew will not do a fly-around of the station.
Commanded by veteran shuttle flyer Scott Kelly, the STS-118 crew hauled a total of 4,270 pounds (about 1,936 kg) of cargo to the ISS alongside a new external spare parts platform and a new starboard girder for the orbital laboratory's backbone-like main truss.
In addition to continuing space station construction, Endeavour's crew also included the first flight of teacher-turned-astronaut Barbara Morgan, who first joined NASA as the backup to Teacher in Space Christa McAuliffe before the 1986 Challenger accident. Morgan rejoined NASA in 1998 as a mission specialist and educator astronaut.
A former Idaho schoolteacher, Morgan delivered cinnamon basil seeds and a pair of plant growth chambers to the ISS as part of her education mission. She also spoke to students via video links and ham radio, answering questions with her crewmates to describe life in space.
Source: Xinhua
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