[9] After spending 15 days, 20 hours, 30 minutes, and 30 seconds docked to the station, during which the crew performed four spacewalks, and transferred cargo, the orbiter undocked on 28 November 2008.

[15][16] STS-126 was scheduled to be a sixteen-day mission with four spacewalks (EVA), largely dedicated to servicing and repair of the Solar Alpha Rotary Joints (SARJ).

[5] The shuttle also carried irradiated turkey, candied yams, stuffing and dessert for a special Thanksgiving meal at the station, as well as an Official Flight Kit with mementos for those who supported the astronauts and helped them complete their mission successfully.

[29][30] Students and faculty at the University of North Dakota built the Agricultural Camera (AgCam), that was to be delivered and installed on the International Space Station.

[29] The students will operate the camera from their campus and work with NASA engineers and station astronauts to take visible and infrared light images of growing crops, grasslands, forests and wetlands in the Great Plains and Rocky Mountains regions.

[40][43] During the Mission Status briefing, lead Flight Director Mike Sarafin said that after having the crew focus the camera on the left OMS pod, it did not appear that there was any damage, but the image analysis team would take a closer look at the area.

[46][47] During the mission status briefing, LeRoy E. Cain stated that the image analysis team was still evaluating the ascent imagery, but that the vehicle looked very clean, and the only event that was seen on launch, the area under the left OMS pod, appeared to have been ice.

[47] Following the wake-up call, the two crews began the procedures to move the Leonardo MPLM out of the orbiter's payload bay to install it on the Earth-facing port of the Harmony module.

[51] Camping out consists of spending the night in the Quest joint airlock at lower air pressure (70.33 kPa (10.2 psi)) to lessen the time needed to acclimate to the environment in the spacesuits.

[51] During the Mission Management Team briefing, Cain confirmed that the orbiter's wing leading edge had been cleared, and that no focused inspection would be required.

[48] During the Mission Status briefing, ISS Deputy Program Manager Kirk Shireman noted the upcoming ten-year anniversary of the International Space Station.

[58] Mission Control managers instructed Piper to clean up the grease using a dry wipe, and while she was doing the cleanup, one of the crew lock bags floated away.

[62] It was not the first time that equipment had gotten away from spacewalkers, items lost in the past include tools, nuts and bolts, glue guns, cameras, cloths, and even a robotic arm.

[63] During the Mission Status briefing, lead ISS Flight Director Ginger Kerrick noted that there was no way to know what caused the bag to come loose.

[60] Kerrick noted that the team would be taking extra precautions to avoid any further problems with the grease guns, by attaching them to the outside of the bags instead of inside to prevent the plungers from being inadvertently activated.

[64] During the Mission Status briefing, Lead ISS Flight Director Ginger Kerrick noted that all the racks were now on station, and about 25% of the cargo transfers had been completed, which was slightly ahead of schedule.

[19] Two crew equipment carts were relocated in preparation for the arrival of the final set of solar arrays, the station's robotic arm was lubricated, and the work on the starboard SARJ continued.

[70] Magnus continued with the installation of the Total Organic Carbon Analyzer (TOCA), while engineers on the ground worked through troubleshooting of the Urine Processor Assembly (UPA).

[71] At 17:10 UTC, Ferguson and Boe used the shuttle's engines to reboost the station's altitude, raising it by about 1.9 km (1.2 mi) to prepare for the next Progress arrival.

During the Mission Status briefing, lead ISS Flight Director Ginger Kerrick noted that a sample was taken from the Water Processor Assembly that contained 10% urine and 90% condensate, and would be returned to the ground with the shuttle.

[77] Kerrick noted that if activation of the system continued on schedule, a sample from the potable water dispenser would be taken on flight day eleven (24 November 2008).

The ground crew continued to troubleshoot the Urine Processor Assembly, looking at whether there is a sensor touching part of the system's centrifuge as it rotates, which might be causing it to slow down.

[77] The two crews continued transfer operations, and Finke and Pettit worked together to reconfigure the Urine Processing Assembly (UPA) to try to dampen any vibration that may be contributing to the unit's shutting down prematurely.

[78][79] Managers on the ground would make a decision on 24 November 2008 on whether to extend Endeavour's mission by one docked day, to help with the troubleshooting of the Water Recovery System (WRS).

[81] The starboard Solar Alpha Rotary Joint was automatically tracking the Sun for the first time in more than a year during a three-hour, two-orbit test that was initiated at 10:55 UTC.

[81] During the Mission Status briefing, International Space Station Program Manager Mike Suffredini noted that the water recycling system appeared to be functioning normally after the modifications performed by the crew on orbit.

Stefanyshyn-Piper packed up equipment and supplies used for the four spacewalks and moved them to Endeavour for return, while Magnus continued work on the station's new regenerative life support system.

[95][96] Due to a less than favorable forecast for Kennedy Space Center on 30 November 2008 that was not expected to improve by 1 December 2008, mission managers decided to call up Edwards Air Force Base for the first day of landing opportunities.

While working through the deorbit timeline, Entry Flight Director Bryan Lunney, after reviewing the weather, waved off the first KSC landing opportunity due to excessive crosswinds on the runway.

Endeavour was returned to Florida on top of one of NASA's Shuttle Carrier Aircraft, arriving back at the Kennedy Space Center on 12 December 2008 after a three-day cross-country trip.