With Space Shuttle Atlantis officially set for an opening launch attempt on May 11, confirmed after today’s Agency Flight Readiness Review (FRR), NASA managers are continuing their review of a host of ’special topics’ for the mission’s rescue flight, STS-400, which is enjoying a smooth processing flow on Launch Pad 39B.
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As engineers create their repair plan for what is now observed to be two cracks in Atlantis’ left radiator panel, borescope inspections have been called (see update in article) on both Atlantis and Endeavour, after a broken stud was found on Discovery’s Forward Reaction Control System (FRCS) F5R thruster. Meanwhile shuttle managers have created a contingency [...]
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A crack has been observed on Atlantis’ damaged port radiator, and will undergo a repair – following further evaluations at the pad. The crack is in the area that was accidentally impacted by a socket that fell off the end of a wrench during processing last week, with the subsequent dent initially cleared to fly as is, [...]
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With Space Shuttle Atlantis and her crew now less than two weeks away from launch on the highly anticipated fifth and final servicing mission to the Hubble Space Telescope, NASA managers are continuing their review of all critical elements of the mission ahead of the now planned May 11 launch date.
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Even though shuttle managers are preparing for two missions in the space of a month, efforts on the downstream flights are at various stages of processing and planning, all the way through to STS-135 – which is currently the LON (Launch On Need) placeholder for what is currently the last shuttle mission – STS-134 – [...]
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Following a meeting of the Noon Board at the Johnson Space Center (JSC), managers have decided to issue a Change Request (CR) and advance the STS-125 launch date by one day to May 11. The Agency Flight Readiness Review (FRR) will set the official launch date next Thursday.
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Citing schedule concerns and technical challenges, Constellation manager Jeff Hanley has outlined a series of proposed solutions to avoid further slips in the Ares/Orion schedule. Mr Hanley proposes deleting the Ares I-Y test flight, making Ares I’s first stage disposable, switching from Orion 4 to Orion 3 as the Full Operational Capability (FOC) date, along [...]
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Managers are close to approving a switch to an advanced May 11 launch date for STS-125, as engineers evaluate damage to Atlantis’ left radiator panel, following an impact from a torque wrench socket. Meanwhile, it has been decided to defer the modification of a doubler plate to the downstream Flow Control Valve (FCV) lines, until after [...]
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China has launched the YG-6 YaoGan Weixing-6 remote sensing satellite via a CZ-2C (Chang Zheng-2C) launch vehicle. Launch occurred at 02:55 UTC from the Taiyuan Satellite launch Center.
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The dual processing flows for Atlantis and Endeavour are proceeding to plan, with the main engineering focus on the ET camera flash system, which is undergoing troubleshooting on Atlantis. Managers have also completed the review of the SSP (Space Shuttle Program) Flight Readiness Review (FRR), with evaluations taking place on advancing the launch date by [...]
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A study by the Aerospace Corporation, conducted at the request of NASA to disprove the viability of an option to switch Orion to an alternative Evolved Expendable Launch Vehicle (EELV), has found both the Atlas V Heavy and Delta IV Heavy are capable of launching Orion on both ISS and Lunar missions. Meanwhile, former NASA [...]
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Sea Launch were in action early this morning, with the launch of SICRAL 1A – an Italian military communications satellite. Liftoff was at the opening of a 57-minute window, at 1:16am PDT (08:16 GMT), from the Odyssey Launch Platform out in the Pacific Ocean.
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With Atlantis and Endeavour now in their dual processing flows for the STS-125 mission to the Hubble Space Telescope, NASA managers have updated plans for shuttle Atlantis’ next mission – STS-129 – via the Launch Site Flow Review (LSFR).
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Shuttle Endeavour has completed her rollout to 39B, where she will be put through a part flow as the STS-400 LON (Launch On Need) support for Atlantis’ STS-125 mission. During this flow, engineers will test the alignment procedures with the Ground Umbilical Carrier Plate (GUCP) – following the leak during STS-119’s opening launch attempt.
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Canada’s Special Purpose Dexterous Manipulator (SPDM) robot “Dextre” has reported himself as fit for duty, as the clock ticks down to his debut tasks on the International Space Station (ISS). Meanwhile, preparations are building up for the arrival of the first Japanese HTV (H-II Transfer Vehicle) – which may involve spare robotic work station hardware being [...]
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With less than one month to go before the launch of Space Shuttle Atlantis’ flagship mission to service the Hubble Space Telescope (HST), NASA managers are busy reviewing final statistics and analyses of the threat posed to Atlantis by Micro-Meteoroid Orbiting Debris (MMOD). With the MOD FRR (Mission Operations Directorate Flight Readiness Review) complete, the [...]
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BeiDou-2 (COMPASS-G2) – China’s second geostationary navigation satellite – has launched from the Xichang satellite Launch Center, in Sichuan Province, via a CZ-3C Chang Zheng-3C (CZ3C-2) launch vehicle. Lift-off was at 16:16 UTC.
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The usual ballet of reviews to ensure safe flight has moved through another key stage, following the full review of STS-119’s IFAs (In Flight Anomalies). With the next two missions heading to different orbital destinations, part of the IFA review will go towards STS-125’s upcoming Flight Readiness Review (FRR), and the ISS related section forwarded [...]
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NASA managers have begun evaluations into whether STS-133 will consist of a five or six person crew, for the mission that is scheduled as the last flight to carry a Multi-Purpose Logistics Module (MPLM) to the International Space Station (ISS), pending shuttle extension possibilities.
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As part of the dual flow for STS-125, Endeavour has rolled over from her Orbiter Processing Facility (OPF-2) to the Vehicle Assembly Building (VAB), where she will be mated with External Tank ET-131 over the Easter weekend. Endeavour is tasked with supporting Atlantis as the LON (Launch On Need) shuttle, ahead of her primary STS-127 [...]
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