Atlantis, Foale Say Goodbye to Mir
After dropping off a new computer and a new American crew member, the astronauts aboard space shuttle Atlantis hugged their Mir comrades goodbye Thursday.
Astronaut David Wolf, who will spend four months aboard the Russian space station, replaced Michael Foale, who will return to Earth on Sunday after a tumultuous 4 1/2 months aboard Mir.
“I’m looking forward to . . . learning how to walk again,” Foale said, “and live in my house with my wife and my children, get to know my wife again, date her again, maybe marry her again.”
The shuttle crew was scheduled to undock today. The Russians have asked that, as the astronauts depart, they watch while Mir cosmonauts pump air into the station’s ruptured lab in hopes of pushing debris out the holes. If the plan is approved, the astronauts will look for particles and report where the leak is located.
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