Mission Control Status Report 19

                        MISSION CONTROL STATUS
                       STS-49 Status Report #19

5 p.m. Thursday, May 14, 1992 CST

Spacewalking astronauts Kathy Thornton and Tom Akers stepped outside
the orbiter's airlock shortly after 4 p.m. CDT to conduct a series of
tests and evaluations to aid in the verification and planning of
procedures that may be required during the Space Station Freedom era
later this decade.

The two astronautss will finish constructing the ASEM truss that was
partially built Wednesday to support the Intelsat capture and also
will test mass-handling techniques with the Multi Purpose Experiment
Support Structure in the payload bay and over the nose of the orbiter
where Space Station Freedom assembly will take place.

Later today during the spacewalk, Thornton and Akers will test three
of the five crew self rescue systems planned for evaluation on the
mission: the crew propulsive device, the bistem pole and the
inflatable pole.

The spacewalk began at 4:10 p.m., but an alarm on Thornton's suit
required her returning to the airlock for attachment to the service
and cooling umbilical until flight controllers in Mission Control
could evaluate the problem.

Once all were satisfied that the suit was working properly, she was
allowed to disconnect from the umbilical and continue with the tasks
assigned.