Astronauts attach crate of 'goodies' to space station

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. -- Astronauts hitched a giant shipping crate full of home improvement "goodies" to the international space station Monday, an important step toward boosting the population in orbit.

It was the first major job for the crews of the linked space station and space shuttle Endeavour, and highlighted their first full day together.

"We're here to work," the space station's skipper, Mike Fincke, called down. "This is the can-do crew."

More than 14,000 pounds of gear was stuffed into the 21-foot container that flew up on Endeavour and was moved onto the space station. It held an extra toilet, refrigerator and kitchenette, exercise machine, sleeping compartments and a new recycling system for purifying urine into clean drinking water.

Fincke called it "the goodies ... things needed for an extreme home makeover."

NASA cannot increase the number of space station residents from three to six next year until all the equipment -- most notably the water recycling system -- has been installed and tested. Additional equipment will be launched in February.

Until now, the space station has been a one-kitchen, one-bath, three-bedroom house. That third bedroom is actually a makeshift nook in the U.S. lab. The orbiting outpost is on the verge of becoming a two-kitchen, two-bath, five-bedroom home and will have six full bedrooms in a few more months.

Astronaut Sandra Magnus -- the newest space station resident -- spent Monday getting used to her new home. She flew up on Endeavour and promptly traded places with Gregory Chamitoff, who's headed home after a six-month mission. Magnus will spend 3 1/2 months on board.

In addition to being moving day for the 10 space travelers, Monday involved gearing up for the first of four planned spacewalks.

Today, two of the shuttle crew will venture outside and begin the most complicated cleaning and lubrication job ever attempted in orbit. One of two joints that turn the space station's solar panels toward the sun has been jammed for more than a year. It's clogged with metal grit from grinding parts. They'll also add some grease to the joint that's working correctly to prevent any future hang-ups. The work will occupy four spacewalks.

Mission Control informed the shuttle astronauts that nothing of concern had been noted so far in the review of photos from Friday night's launch and Sunday's rendezvous with the space station, as well as data collected from the wing and nose cap inspections. NASA wants to make sure Endeavour is free of any serious damage before giving it the green light for returning home

Endeavour and its crew of seven will remain at the space station until at least Thanksgiving.