Astros Pack Up Junk for Ride Home

Astronauts to take a day off Monday after grueling spacewalk missions

Space shuttle Discovery is about to become a galactic moving van.

Astronauts on board the international space station are almost done filling an Italian-built cylinder with nearly a ton of trash, surplus gear and completed science experiments to take back to Earth on Discovery, The Associated Press reported.

On Monday, the cylinder will be loaded on board the shuttle, which will return to Kennedy Space Center on Thursday. 

"All in all, it's been a very successful mission," astronaut Danny Olivas said of his three spacewalks to replace the space station's ammonia coolant system and perform other maintenance tasks. "Everybody here is in good spirits, and we are ready to finish up here and come home."

Get More: AP

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