Astronauts at the International Space Station have finished installing a Canadian robotic device to help with future maintenance and construction at the orbiting facility.

Following an overnight recovery operation, Jules Verne ATV's propulsion system has successfully been restored to full robustness. The spacecraft has since performed the first orbital manoeuvres necessary to set up phasing with the International Space Station.

The U.S. space agency NASA is counting down toward a nighttime launch of the space shuttle Endeavour on a 16-day mission to the International Space Station.

The rotating service structure has been rolled away from space shuttle Endeavour in a major milestone leading up to launch. The liftoff of Endeavour on the STS-123 mission, carrying the Dextre robot built by the Canadian Space Agency remains on schedule for 2:28 a.m. EDT Tuesday, March 11.

Dextre robot is an essential tool for maintaining and servicing the space station. With its dual-arm design providing added flexibility, Dextre robot will remove and replace smaller components on the Station’s exterior, where precise handling is required. It will be equipped with lights, video equipment, a tool platform and four tool holders.

The U.S. Space Shuttle Atlantis is back on earth after delivering a new laboratory to the International Space Station. VOA's Michael Bowman has details from Washington.

The U.S. space agency says it is preparing to bring the Space Shuttle Atlantis home Wednesday, before the U.S. military launches a missile intended to destroy a falling spy satellite.

Shuttle astronauts installed part of cooling system on International Space Station.

The crews of the International Space Station and space shuttle Atlantis celebrated the opening of the station's new European-built science laboratory Tuesday.

With the Columbus mission well under way, the space station programme has assigned crews for the next flight opportunities. Belgian ESA astronaut Frank De Winne joins Expedition 19 and will spend six months on the ISS in 2009. In May 2009, he will fly together with Russian cosmonaut Yuri Lonchakov and Canadian Space Agency astronaut Robert Thirsk on a Russian Soyuz spacecraft to the ISS.

Atlantis finally blasted off Thursday afternoon carrying Europe’s Clumbus lab to the International Space Station. The cost of the laboratory is evaluated at $2 billion. The launch finally became possible after two months of technical delays.

NASA officials say expected rain showers may delay Thursday's launch of the space shuttle Atlantis whose mission is to deliver a new science lab to the International Space Station. In Miami, VOA's Brian Wagner reports.