Updates from Orbit

NASA is nearing a decision on whether to send astronauts underneath the shuttle Endeavour to patch the spacecraft's heat-shielding tiles before attempting reentry. Meanwhile, in an unusual incident, a spacewalk on Wednesday was cut short after one astronaut noticed a small puncture in his glove. The damage only affected the top two layers of the five-layer glove, but Rick Mastracchio was told to cut his six-hour EVA short. He and colleague Clay Anderson were able by that point to finish their major tasks on the ISS, so there was no significant effect on the mission.