It was a Beautiful Day for the crew of the space shuttle Endeavour as they woke up for their first full day in orbit.

The crew, which set off for space yesterday morning at 8:56 am EDT, woke up at 11:56 p.m. EDT Monday. Endeavour's crew is embarking on a 16-day mission, which will see them deliver the Alpha Magnetic Spectrometer (AMS) and spare parts including two S-band communications antennas, a high-pressure gas tank, and additional spare parts for Dextre to the International Space Station.

The crew woke up on the first day to Beautiful Day by the band U2. The song was chosen by Commander Mark Kelly. The veteran of the group, Kelly is on his fourth spaceflight. His wife, congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords, was nearly shot down by a would be assassin earlier this year. Giffords is making a recovery and was able to attend to the launch yesterday; calling it good stuff.

For the first day, the crew is performing the standard scan of the space shuttle's thermal protection system using the Orbiter Boom Sensor System attached to the end of Endeavour's robotic arm. Meanwhile, mission specialists Mike Fincke and Drew Feustel are working on preparing the spacesuits onboard the shuttle that will be transferred to the International Space Station for use during the mission's four spacewalks.

The crew plans on catching up and docking at the International Space Station on Wednesday. It will spend nearly the entire mission at the ISS, with plans to undock on Day 13.

Follow Gabriel Perna on Twitter at @GabrielSPerna

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