 We are about to lose signal through the tracking data relay satellite system, so we'll be losing these downlinked television pictures. This is Mission Control Houston, this television coming from the Spacehab double module in Atlantis' cargo bay. Comments on that change we just read up. The pictorial later on in the deorbit prep on page B3-24 already correctly shows the power system switches off. And also INCO says that he does not think you'll actually get the SPEC-62 message, so if you don't get it, don't worry about it. Affirmative? Spacehab pocket lanus for RMD. Go ahead. Go ahead. We copy. Floating into the field of view now in this live television picture from the Spacehab double module in the cargo bay of Atlantis to join Apton Walls is Mission Specialist Shannon Lucid on the eve of her return to Earth after six months in orbit aboard the Mir space station. Again, her colleague John Blaha, veteran U.S. astronaut, is aboard the Mir at this hour with Mir 22 commander Valeri Corzun and flight engineer Alexander Caleri beginning his scientific research over the course of the next four months. Blaha will be returned to Earth in January aboard Atlantis on the STS-81 mission, which will carry astronaut Jerry Leninger to the Mir as the fourth U.S. astronaut to conduct research on the Russian space station. Good morning. Shannon, I want to talk to you first if everybody does in mind. First of all, you guys are, we're mid-deck now, right? So you're pretty much cramped in. All kind of wedged into the portion of the flight deck where we flew the rendezvous from. Shannon, let's talk about your time aboard Mir. I know it's difficult to prepare for six months in space, but was it what you expected from your training before you went up? Well, yes. I think everything was pretty much as I expected, except I think I had a better time than I really... I mean, I expected to have a good time, but I think it was even better than I expected. Well, I'll be happy right now. Now, how sad are you about leaving space? I mean, obviously the anticipation must be great before you go. Is it time now or are you ready? I do feel just a little bit sad because I've had a great time. I've had great friends, two different crews when I was on Mir, and everything just worked out just really well. And yeah, I feel a little sad, but all adventures have to come to an end and you have to go home sometime and I'm ready to go home. He says compatibility and good humor are two of the characteristics which come through in all of your interviews, Shannon, especially over the last six months. So for long duration missions and eventually flights to Mars, how important will it be to assure good compatibility among all the members of the crew? My flight, such a great flight, was the fact that all the crew members got along real well. I could not have asked for a more compatible group of people to work with, and I think that is of the very primary importance. I mean, that is the prime, the most important thing. Everything else falls underneath that. But if you have people that you can work with, that you can get along with together, and that you laugh a lot with together, things just tend to work out pretty well. Shannon, is there anything about women that may make them psychologically or physiologically more adept at being astronauts, especially over long periods of time? I think it just depends on the individual. I don't think it has anything to do with whether you're male or female. It's just some individuals would enjoy the experience and some individuals enjoy other things. I mean, that's what makes human beings so wonderful is that we all like different things. Can I ask about our partners in space and the International Space Station, the Russians? There seems to have been a real problem and a continuing problem with them, not so much as far as their technology is concerned, but certainly as far as cash flow is concerned for them. Are they going to be an OK partner for us to be able to go forward with, or is this going to present a problem for us? I'll start with what you said first. I think they build marvelous hardware, and most of what we saw over aboard the Mir station is just elegantly simple and robust, and if you think about the fact that their station's been in orbit now for over 10 years, it's really remarkable. I think we were all impressed with the volume that you have available to do work over there and just how magnificent a facility it is. And we're going to move off using the Mir as kind of our prototype space station, sharing it with the Russians and using our shuttles to go back and forth, and then we're going to build the International Space Station, and the Russians are contributing launches and they're contributing modules. I think their finances are their business, but I think when it comes time to produce, that they'll produce and they'll produce quality hardware. Shannon, for you, being up that much longer, has it made a really large change in you? I can tell. I haven't changed. I'm the same person I've always been. I guess you could ask these guys, so they thought I was changed, I was different. I think I'm the same person, but a lot of times a person's not the best judge of themselves, but no, I don't think I've changed any. All right, we're really quickly running out of time before we go. Shannon, tell me what you expect physically as you come back to earth and gravity, because I know you've flown a number of times before, but there is a distinct difference in this flight, and we have very little time. There's a lot of muscles we haven't used for six months, and so it's just going to take a little time to get back used to using them, and I just think I'll be tired for a little bit, but I'll rapidly be my normal self. Okay, we copy page 1-45, step 45 report condition of isolation plate to MCC. That's firm. Sequence look good. Good config, minute to the ZOE. We'll pick you up at one minute after the hour.