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  BY JUSTIN RAY Follow the flight of space shuttle Atlantis to resume orbital construction of the International Space Station with delivery of the next solar array truss.
FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 8, 2006 Read our story.
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1531 GMT (11:31 a.m. EDT) Read our full story.
1530 GMT (11:30 a.m. EDT) Meanwhile, NASA is planning a post-scrub news conference no sooner than 12 p.m.
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1440 GMT (10:40 a.m. EDT) Pilot Chris Ferguson is configuring the displays inside Atlantis' cockpit for launch while commander Brent Jett enables the abort steering instrumentation. And Mission Control in Houston is loading Atlantis' onboard computers with the proper guidance parameters based on the projected launch time.
1435 GMT (10:35 a.m. EDT) Atlantis' onboard computers are now transitioning to the Major Mode-101 program, the primary ascent software. Also, engineers are dumping the Primary Avionics Software System (PASS) onboard computers. The data that is dumped from each of PASS computers is compared to verify that the proper software is loaded aboard for launch.
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1425 GMT (10:25 a.m. EDT) During this built-in hold, all computer programs in Firing Room 4 of the Complex 39 Launch Control Center will be verified to ensure that the proper programs are available for the countdown; the landing convoy status will be verified and the landing sites will be checked to support an abort landing during launch today; the Inertial Measurement Unit preflight alignment will be verified completed; and preparations are made to transition the orbiter onboard computers to Major Mode 101 upon coming out of the hold. This configures the computer memory to a terminal countdown configuration.
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1407 GMT (10:07 a.m. EDT) The shuttle's two Master Events Controllers are being tested. They relay the commands from the shuttle's computers to ignite, and then separate the boosters and external tank during launch.
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1301 GMT (9:01 a.m. EDT) The 45-year-old is a commander in the Coast Guard with more than 3,500 flight hours, primarily in helicopters, and has flown over over 300 search and rescue missions. His space career includes the STS-106 space station assembly mission in 2000. On STS-115, Burbank will perform the second spacewalk with Steve MacLean. Read his biography here. And a video interview with Burbank is available here. During the interview, he explained his jobs on the mission. "I'm the mission specialist 2, so for ascent and entry my job is to be the flight engineer on the flight deck. I kind of sit between the commander and the pilot and help with trajectory monitoring and systems monitoring, things like that. For the on-orbit phases, I've also got some responsibilities with the shuttle systems, to kind of back up Brent and Chris with their duties. I've also got the responsibility of being the prime shuttle robotic arm operator. We'll use it to pick up the P3/P4 payload and hand it off to the station arm for installation on the International Space Station. I've also got some other miscellaneous duties, as we all do. One of those is also managing the on board network of our laptop computers that basically support our missions with various software applications. "I'm going to do a spacewalk as well. So we've got a series of three of them for the mission, and for the second spacewalk, or EVA, Steve MacLean and I will go out and help with some of the activation activities for the P3/P4 truss."
1248 GMT (8:48 a.m. EDT) MacLean, 51, was born in Ottawa, Ontario. Selected as one of the first six Canadian astronauts in 1983, he flew as a payload specialist aboard shuttle Columbia in 1992. His role on STS-115 includes conducting the mission's second spacewalk along with Dan Burbank and becoming the first Canadian to operate the space station's Canadarm2 robotic arm. Read MacLean's biography here. And a video interview with MacLean is available here. MacLean was asked about the dangers of spaceflight and why it's worth taking the risk "This is a very difficult question to answer. You cannot do this question in a sound bite; that's impossible. I think any one of us, me, for sure, if I thought I was going to die on such a mission, I would not go. The big privilege of being at NASA is the people that you work with. And when I go to the Cape, or when I go to Stennis [Space Center] and we're meeting the guys that actually do the work, it's a phenomenal experience. Just seeing these guys, the dedication that they have, how good they are, how smart they are, it's this that gives you a tremendous amount of confidence in the vehicle. There have been issues with the vehicle; there will be issues with the vehicle. But the people that work close to this vehicle are some of the most impressive people that I have met. And for me that's a privilege. Now, if you ask a politician about risk and, and his answer is valid, he will say, it's very important that we maintain leadership in space. Each country I've been in -- and this is true for Canada -- you will get that comment, that leadership in space is something that's important. I think leadership brings excellence, and excellence is something we can all be proud of. "This is not an easy answer. In Canada, sometimes things are discussed on the short term, like bureaucratic responses -- what would be the cost/benefit ratio of flying in space. And if you put your blinkers on and then when they ask over the next two years, what is the real value for us to fly in space, as with any answer trying to get it out of a bureaucrat, it's difficult to get a good answer because you've constrained what he's able to do. But in Canada, that's an easy answer because our investment ratio is four-to-one: for every dollar we invest, invested in Canadarm, we got four dollars back. If you look beyond just the direct impact into the diffusion of the technology, it's 10 dollars. A bureaucrat would say, that's worth the risk. "Now, if you kind of open up your blinkers, and open up your blinders and look long term it's a little easier to answer. Like, why are we involved in this in the long term; and, you know, we'll get a little bit more philosophical here but things like survivability, sustainability in the environment, there are answers to those issues in spaceflight. I can't guarantee that we will get all the answers, but by working in space, by living in space by observing space from the Earth so that we better understand it, we as a species have a better chance to survive. If you look at Venus, it's too hot; if you look at Mars, it's too cold. The Earth is just right; we've got to keep it that way. By working in space, we'll understand that a little bit better. There are energy sources out in space on the head of a pin that would power the Earth for hundreds of thousands of years, and they're energy sources that we don't fully understand. "Now, that is, you know, an esoteric part of the answer but, by working in space and learning from space, maybe we'll understand that. And then a by-product of that is our environment. By living in space we're going to become more efficient. I could predict, perhaps, that our rivers will be cleaner; our air will be not polluted because we work in space. I can't guarantee that, but if we don't work in space, you can guarantee that it will take a lot longer to clean up our air and clean up our rivers. And so if you look at it that way, even an environmentalist, a respected environmentalist, is going to agree that it's worth the risk. Even an evangelistic environmentalist will probably agree that it's worth the risk, if you couch it like that. The problem is you can't promise it. "I wouldn't underestimate the personal adventure, either. It has nothing to do with risk, really, but the personal adventure is amazing, to feel yourself floating in space, to look at the Earth from space, and to think about how you feel when you see that. To see the solar system dust cross the, the Milky Way or to feel suspended in this milk bath of light that you know that comes from another time; these are phenomenal feelings. Now they have nothing to do with risk that you know you can't justify it that way. "But, come back to STS-115: We are building space station; we are building an, a laboratory that may do some phenomenal things if we handle ourselves properly, if we actually execute what the original plans were, it may do some wonderful things. And so for me, when I think about the risk that I'm taking, because it is a personal question that you have to answer, I, what I hope is that kids -- and this is just a thought -- what I hope is that children, before they understand that the world really is in quite a mess, see the space station, because once we're finished with the assembly of space station -- after our mission it's half complete; optically it will be a lot easier to see from the Earth, and you will be able to see it go over -- that those kids are inspired by what we've tried to do, by what all the countries -- I guess it's [16] countries in the world -- tried to do in peaceful cooperation, and that children inspired by that and end up showing leadership with respect to continuing that kind of idea. If that kind of thing happens, then for me it's worth the risk."
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1229 GMT (8:29 a.m. EDT) Piper, a Navy commander, was born in St. Paul, Minnesota. The 43-year-old is a space rookie. She will be performing the first and third spacewalks of Atlantis' mission along with Joe Tanner. Read her biography here. And a video interview with Piper is available here. So what led Piper to become an astronaut? "I kind of think that I've always had a fascination with flying. That was one of the things that led me to apply for the astronaut program. I should say that when I was growing up my mother came from Germany, and every couple of years she and my father would send one or two of us, usually two of us, to Germany. I remember when I was 4 years old going and flying in an airplane and I thought that that was the neatest thing. And then the next time I went over was about five years later, and then it was just my brother and I. And I thought, you know, flying was neat. So I've always had this bug in the back of me that says I really want to fly, I really want to fly. "I took an ROTC scholarship to help pay for college -- I was going in the Navy -- and I decided I was going to try to fly for the Navy. After I graduated, I stayed at MIT an extra year and got my master's degree, and decided that, or it was decided for me that, because I didn't pass the eye exam, I wasn't going to become a pilot. So I was looking at something else to do, and so I went and became a Navy diver. And, had a great time fixing ships underwater and doing salvage work. "Then when I learned about NASA and building the space station and I saw how they were doing the construction and they were training underwater, I thought that looks to me more like diving than it does flying, and so I think I can do that in space. I think I had a lot to offer, to help build the space station. That's how I applied to the program, and I consider myself very, very fortunate that I was accepted and that now I get my dream of not only flying, because I get to fly in space, but also being able to help build the space station."
1227 GMT (8:27 a.m. EDT) Ferguson is a spaceflight rookie. The 45-year-old Navy captain was born in Philadelphia. He has three childen, and when not preparing to fly in space he plays drums in the astronaut band Max Q. Read his biography here. And a video interview with Ferguson is available here. Learning of his selection to be the STS-115 mission pilot was an interesting moment for Ferguson. "My Commander, Brent Jett, fantastic guy. I've learned more than anything from him, probably. The day before I had been told that I'd been put on this flight, we had a simulator together. We strive for perfections when we do our ascent and entry simulators, but you know, invariably we make a mistake from time to time, and in this particular simulator I think I made a small mistake; very, very small. The next day Brent stopped by my office and he said, 'Hey, Charlie Precourt wants to talk to us about the sim yesterday.' Charlie was the Chief of the Astronaut Office, and you never got called into his office for anything but the wrong reason. So at first I was a little flustered and then Brent couldn't conceal his smile. I think I kind of knew from that moment that this didn't really have anything to do with the simulator. So, that's my story."
1218 GMT (8:18 a.m. EDT) This will be Tanner's fourth trip to space. The Illinois native is 56 years old. His flight history includes the STS-66 atmospheric science mission in 1994, the second Hubble Space Telescope servicing in 1997 and the 2000 space station construction flight, STS-97, that launched the first solar array truss. His experience from that mission has proved valuable in planning STS-115. He will conduct the first and third spacewalks along with Heidemarie Stefanyshyn-Piper. Read his biography here. And a video interview with Tanner is available here. He discusses the resumption of space station construction beginning with Atlantis' mission. "Well, I think it's very significant that, that we're able to proceed. We've gone through a very difficult period in the last 3 1Ž2 years. We had to fix a few things, and I think we had to develop tools that gave us some repair capability and some backup capability. We needed to understand some things that we weren't maybe paying enough attention to before. So the fact that, that we've done that work and feel pretty good about it and we can get back to the business of building a space station. "We all thought that we would be core complete if not further by this time on the calendar, and, and everybody's champing at the bit to get this construction going again. You've got a house that's only partially built, and there's so much more capability sitting on the ground that needs to go up -- not just the trusses but for habitable volumes. The Japanese module is a beautiful science platform; it's magnificent. I've had a chance to work with those engineers and seen the module, and it's really magnificent. The European module, Columbus, is going to be fantastic. Node 2 is sitting at the Cape ready to go, and it needs to be launched. "So I think it's a great shot in the arm for everybody in the partnership to say, OK, let's get going again, and let's finish this job that we started."
1216 GMT (8:16 a.m. EDT) Jett, 48, calls Ft. Lauderdale, Florida, his hometown. This Navy captain has flown in space on three earlier missions, including serving as the pilot on STS-72 in 1996 to retrieve a Japanese science satellite, pilot on the STS-81 mission to the Russian space station Mir a year later, and commander of STS-97 in 2000 that delivered the first set of U.S. solar arrays to the International Space Station. Read his biography here. And a video interview with Jett is available here. In the interview, Jett talks about his philosophy on space exploration. "Any time you take off on an exploration, typically you take steps in a gradual nature. You know, space station has given us the ability to establish a permanent presence fairly close to home but still, in low Earth orbit, in a weightless environment in a vacuum. That's a good first step. When you explore the solar system, you're going to need to establish permanent presence, or at least temporary presence, on the moon, perhaps on Mars. So I think the way we're going about it seems fairly logical. You could almost draw an analogy between the Apollo missions and some of the early explorers who came from Europe to North America. Initially they sort of went, touched base, came home. But really it was establishing the permanent presence, over in North America, that proved to be a huge challenge. So I think we'll see, as we try to establish a presence on the moon and then move on and establish a presence on Mars, that it's going to be extremely challenging. We'll learn a lot from our presence in low Earth orbit, to make that successful. "The other piece of that whole question is, why are we going? Well, I probably fall in the camp that says it's just our nature. It's human nature to want to explore and, and I hope that the United States leads that effort, among the entire world. We're going to prove that we can meet our obligations and build an International Space Station, and that will be important to leading an effort to explore the solar system. It's not just the U.S. but other nations as well."
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1105 GMT (7:05 a.m. EDT) Read our full story.
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1035 GMT (6:35 a.m. EDT) The team is on the lookout for any abnormal ice or frost build-up on the vehicle and integrity of the external tank foam insulation. The team uses a portable infrared scanner that gathers temperature measurements on the surface area of the shuttle and can spot leaks. The scanner will be used to obtain temperature data on the external tank, solid rocket boosters, space shuttle orbiter, main engines and launch pad structures. The scanner can also spot leaks of the cryogenic propellants, and due to its ability to detect distinct temperature differences, can spot any dangerous hydrogen fuel that is burning. The team member also is responsible for photo documentation. The team wears the highly visible day-glow orange coveralls that are anti-static and flame resistant. Each member also has a self-contained emergency breathing unit that holds about 10 minutes of air. No significant problems or concerns have been reported by the inspection team so far.
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1003 GMT (6:03 a.m. EDT) In a few minutes, commander Brent Jett, pilot Chris Ferguson and flight engineer Dan Burbank will receive a briefing on the weather forecast for KSC and abort landing sites in California, New Mexico, Spain and France. Then they will join their crewmates in the suit-up to don the launch and entry spacesuits in preparation for heading to pad 39B.
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0950 GMT (5:50 a.m. EDT) But given the cryogenic nature of the oxidizer and propellant, the supplies naturally boil away. So the tanks are continuously topped off until the final minutes of the countdown in a procedure called "stable replenishment." With the hazardous tanking operation completed, the Orbiter Closeout Crew and Final Inspection Team will be heading to the pad to perform their jobs. The closeout crew will ready Atlantis' crew module for the astronauts' ingress in a couple of hours; and the inspection team will give the entire vehicle a check for any ice formation following fueling. In addition, a red crew is going out to the pad to adjust a recirculation pump power supply.
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0915 GMT (5:15 a.m. EDT) Read our full story.
0653 GMT (2:53 a.m. EDT) The tanking operation commenced with the chilldown thermal conditioning process at 2:49 a.m. This will be followed by the slow-fill mode and then the fast-fill mode. The cryogenics are pumped from storage spheres at the pad, through feed lines to the mobile launcher platform, into Atlantis' aft compartment and finally into the external fuel tank. There are two tanks inside the shuttle's external fuel tank. The liquid oxygen tank occupies the top third of the bullet-shaped tank. It will be filled with 143,000 gallons of liquid oxygen chilled to minus 298 degrees Fahrenheit. The liquid hydrogen tank is contained in the bottom two-thirds of the external tank. It holds 385,000 gallons of liquid hydrogen chilled to minus 423 degrees Fahrenheit.
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0610 GMT (2:10 a.m. EDT) There are "no showstopper issues at this time," a NASA spokesman says, and the weather outlook remains unchanged at a 70 percent chance of favorable conditions for launch.
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0345 GMT (11:45 p.m. EDT Thurs.) Managers will convene the pre-fueling meeting at midnight to finish reviewing the final analysis reports on the orbiter fuel cells, discuss countdown status and receive a weather briefing. The meeting will conclude with a "go" or "no go" decision on fueling. Atlantis' six astronauts are asleep in crew quarters. Their wakeup call for launch morning activities is 12:42 a.m.
THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 7, 2006 Read our full story.
2201 GMT (6:01 p.m. EDT) We'll post a complete story following the news conference.
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1630 GMT (12:30 p.m. EDT) The weather outlook for Friday is posted here.
WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 6, 2006 Read our full story.
2122 GMT (5:22 p.m. EDT) The news briefing is coming up shortly.
1900 GMT (3:00 p.m. EDT) Read our full story.
1355 GMT (9:55 a.m. EDT) "Teams are evaluating data on what might have caused a voltage spike in the fuel cell's coolant pump that cools the fuel cell system," NASA said in a statement. A mission management team meeting is scheduled for 1 p.m. EDT. A news conference with shuttle officials will follow that meeting to announce the plan going forward. NASA is keeping open the option of launching tomorrow.
0858 GMT (4:58 a.m. EDT) Engineers are continuing to troubleshoot the issue in hopes of getting Atlantis off the ground Thursday or Friday, the end of the current launch window. NASA's Mission Management Team plans to meet later today to discuss repair options. Read our full story.
0802 GMT (4:02 a.m. EDT) The concern involves a voltage shift noted during activation of fuel cell No. 1. Atlantis has three fuel cells -- located beneath the payload bay -- that use liquid hydrogen and liquid oxygen reactants to generate the electricity needed to power the shuttle's systems during flight and create drinking water for the astronauts as a byproduct. NASA won't allow a shuttle to launch unless all three fuel cell devices are working properly. Backup launch opportunities are available Thursday and Friday. If Atlantis doesn't fly by then, the shuttle must wait until after the Russian Soyuz flight to the space station proceeds later this month. That would delay Atlantis until at least the end of September, and possibly longer, depending on NASA's decision whether to keep daylight launch conditions a requirement for this mission. The next daytime launch slot for Atlantis is late October.
0648 GMT (2:48 a.m. EDT) Read our full story.
0250 GMT (10:50 p.m. EDT Tues.) See the image gallery here.
0235 GMT (10:35 p.m. EDT Tues.) See the image here.
TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 5, 2006 Tonight's work includes activating Atlantis' three electricity-generating fuel cells about 8:45 p.m., clearing the blast danger area of all non-essential personnel and switching the orbiter's purge air to gaseous nitrogen around 9:20 p.m. The next hold begins at 12:33 a.m. when clocks reach the T-minus 6 hour point. That hold will last two hours in duration, during which time the control room team verifies no violations of launch commit criteria prior to external tank fueling and the mission management team meets starting at 1:45 a.m. to review status. If there are no problems and the weather outlook still appears favorable, fueling of shuttle Atlantis for launch will commence as early as 2:30 a.m. Wednesday's launch window opens at 12:23:51 p.m. and extends to 12:33:52 p.m. EDT. The target liftoff time is the optimum moment in that window at 12:28:51 p.m. EDT.
2130 GMT (5:30 p.m. EDT) The mobile structure provides the primary access and weather protection for Atlantis during its stay on the launch pad. The RSS was used for installing the solar array truss payload into the shuttle and feeding the reactants into the ship's three electricity-generating fuel cells, too. Measuring 102 feet long, 50 feet wide and 130 feet high, the structure swings 120 degrees via hinges from the fixed launch pad tower. Launch pad teams will spend the next several hours performing final work to prepare for pumping a half-million gallons of supercold rocket fuel into the external tank and to secure the complex for liftoff. The pad will be cleared of all personnel before beginning to load Atlantis' fuel tank with liquid hydrogen and liquid oxygen cryogenic propellants starting about 2:30 a.m. Meanwhile, Atlantis' astronauts are heading to bed. They'll be awakened at 1:30 a.m. to begin launch morning activities. Departure from the crew quarters for the ride to the pad is scheduled for 8:38 a.m. Liftoff remains set to occur a few seconds before 12:29 p.m. EDT.
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1730 GMT (1:30 p.m. EDT) Read our full story.
1445 GMT (10:45 a.m. EDT) Countdown clocks have entered the planned hold at T-minus 11 hours. This pause lasts 13.5 hours, through 7:30 p.m. tonight. Final preparations of the shuttle's three main engines for fueling and launch were performed overnight, as well as filling the launch pad's sound suppression system water tank. Closeouts of the tail service masts on the mobile launcher platform that feed power, data and fuel lines to the shuttle and orbiter star tracker functional checks were underway this morning. Other tasks today include activating Atlantis' inertial measurement units in the guidance system, turning on the ship's communications systems, stowing the final pieces of the astronauts' equipment in the crew module and retracting the rotating service structure from around the shuttle. That rollback of the gantry is targeted for 3 p.m. EDT, but the time can and will be adjusted based upon afternoon thunderstorms.
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MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 4, 2006 Read our full story.
1600 GMT (12:00 p.m. EDT) Read our full story.
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SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 3, 2006 Read our full story.
1300 GMT (9:00 a.m. EDT) Clocks in Firing Room 4 of the Complex 39 Launch Control Center starting ticking from the T-minus 43 hour mark at 8 a.m. EDT this morning. The countdown includes more than 33 hours of planned, built-in hold time leading to the targeted liftoff at 12:29 p.m. EDT Wednesday. Today's activities at launch pad 39B involve buttoning up shuttle compartments and ground equipment, checking out backup flight systems, reviewing software from the ship's mass memory units and displays, and loading Atlantis' main computers with the backup flight system software. Later tonight, the shuttle's navigational systems will be activated and tested starting about 9 p.m. The countdown will enter the first in a series of planned hold points at T-minus 27 hours beginning at midnight. The hold will last four hours. The launch pad will be cleared of all non-essential personnel during the hold for a test of the shuttle's pyrotechnic initiator controllers. Once the clocks resume counting at 4 a.m., filling of Atlantis' fuel cell storage tanks with liquid hydrogen and liquid oxygen reactants will commence. The three fuel cells -- located beneath the payload bay -- generate the electricity needed to power the shuttle's systems during flight and create drinking water for the astronauts as a byproduct. Meanwhile, the early weather forecast for Wednesday predicts an 80 percent chance of favorable conditions at launch time. The two worries to be monitored will be cumulus clouds within 10 miles of the pad and showers within 20 miles of the Kennedy Space Center runway where Atlantis could make an emergency landing during launch. See the full forecast here.
SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 2, 2006 Read our full story.
FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 1, 2006 Enter the photo gallery here.
THURSDAY, AUGUST 31, 2006 The peak wind experienced at launch pad 39B from Ernesto was 44 mph, and the total rainfall accumulation was 4.16 inches. The space center was reopened this morning. The Atlantis crew -- commander Brent Jett, pilot Chris Ferguson, flight engineer Dan Burbank, Joe Tanner, Steve MacLean and Heide Stefanyshyn-Piper -- will return to the Cape on Saturday morning. The flew back to Houston earlier this week for some additional mission simulations while launch was delayed for Ernesto. The countdown is scheduled to begin Sunday at 8 a.m. EDT. As it now stands, NASA will have three days to get Atlantis off the ground: Sept. 6, 7 and 8. If not, the flight will be delayed to late October or, if NASA relaxes a daylight launch requirement, at some point after the Sept. 29 landing of a Russian Soyuz spacecraft carrying the international space station's outgoing crew.
WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 30, 2006 Read our full story.
TUESDAY, AUGUST 29, 2006 Atlantis left the pad at 10:04 a.m. and rolled for almost five hours toward the Vehicle Assembly Building to escape the approaching tropical storm Ernesto. But at 2:45 p.m. and a mile east of the VAB, the transporter went into reverse to haul the shuttle back to the pad after NASA officials concluded the threat posed by the storm was no longer great enough to chase Atlantis indoors.
2230 GMT (6:30 p.m. EDT) Read our full story.
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1720 GMT (1:20 p.m. EDT) The crawlerway running from the Vehicle Assembly Building to the launch pads is 130 feet wide -- almost as broad as an eight-lane highway. Two 40-foot-wide lanes are separated by a 50-foot-wide median strip. The average depth is seven feet.
1650 GMT (12:50 p.m. EDT) Missing this launch window would push Atlantis to the end of October, if NASA keeps the daylight ascent requirement in place.
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1610 GMT (12:10 p.m. EDT) "It does not make any sense to fool with Mother Nature," Hale is telling reporters at news telecon right now. "It was the prudent thing to go back to the barn." Atlantis is making good progress on the road off the launch pad under sunny skies.
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1431 GMT (10:31 a.m. EDT) In a statement the space agency said: "NASA and the Russian Federal Space Agency continue to discuss the timing of Atlantis' mission and the Soyuz spacecraft, which will send the next crew to the station in September. Factors to be considered are the lighting constraints for the shuttle launch and Soyuz landing and the timing for docking and undocking the spacecraft with the station. NASA is also investigating additional launch windows later in the fall." The shuttle's crew, Commander Brent Jett, Pilot Chris Ferguson, and mission specialists Joe Tanner, Dan Burbank, Heide Stefanyshyn-Piper and Canadian astronaut Steve MacLean, will return to Houston to await a new launch date.
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1412 GMT (10:12 a.m. EDT) It is the fifth time in the 25-year history of the space shuttle program that threatening tropical weather has forced a rollback. Previous weather-related moves include:
1341 GMT (9:41 a.m. EDT) The trip back to the Vehicle Assembly Building, which is expected to take about 10 hours, will begin shortly. The crawler-transporter will hydraulically lift the shuttle's mobile launch platform off the launch pad pedestals in the next few minutes to complete preparations for the move.
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1041 GMT (6:41 a.m. EDT) This will be the fifth time in program history that a shuttle has been moved off the launch pad to seek shelter from tropical weather.
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0940 GMT (5:40 a.m. EDT) Work to ready for the Atlantis rollback have continued overnight. However, no final decision has been made on actually moving the shuttle to the Vehicle Assembly Building.
0255 GMT (10:55 p.m. EDT)
MONDAY, AUGUST 28, 2006 Read our full story.
2040 GMT (4:40 p.m. EDT) Ernesto is located over Cuba and moving northwest near 13 mph. The National Hurricane Center says this general motion is expected to continue for the next 24 hours, and the tropical storm should emerge into the Atlantic north of Cuba tonight. The storm has sustained winds of 40 mph. Some strengthening is forecast once Ernesto moves over the warm Florida Straits. However, the system may not regenerate into a hurricane after all.
1700 GMT (1:00 p.m. EDT) For NASA, which is poised to resume space station assembly after a three-and-a-half year hiatus, rollback is a last-resort option that would end any chance of getting Atlantis off the ground before the launch window closes Sept. 7. If that scenario plays out, launch could slip to late October when a brief two-day lighted window is available. An October launch, in turn, almost certainly would force NASA to delay a planned December flight by the shuttle Discovery to January at the earliest in a ripple effect with consequences for downstream flights. Read our full story.
1545 GMT (11:45 a.m. EDT)
1500 GMT (11:00 a.m. EDT) The 11 a.m. advisory from the National Hurricane Center indicates Ernesto is down to 40 mph sustained winds as it interacts with Cuba. But it is expected to regain hurricane strength after emerging over water before striking Florida. The projected track, which continues the trend of shifting eastward, is available here.
1420 GMT (10:20 a.m. EDT) The pad will be reopened to workers after this hazardous operation is finished, allowing the rest of rollback preparations to continue in earnest. Disconnection of ordnance will occur this afternoon. NASA had been targeting the 4-mile rollback of Atlantis to begin around 2 p.m. on Tuesday. But given the weather outlook, Leinbach has told the teams to look at ways to do some work in parallel so that the timeline could be compressed. That would allow the shuttle to begin the 6-to-8-hour trip back to the Vehicle Assembly Building around 8 or 10 a.m. EDT. Hurricane force winds are expected at Kennedy Space Center by late afternoon or early evening on Wednesday.
1305 GMT (9:05 a.m. EDT)
1205 GMT (8:05 a.m. EDT) NASA managers early today ordered engineers to begin preparations for rolling shuttle Atlantis off the launch pad and back to the protection of the Vehicle Assembly Building, eliminating any chance of launching the shuttle Tuesday. While its movement over land will decrease Ernesto's strength, the current track likely will bring tropical storm-force winds to Florida's space coast by Wednesday morning and possible category one hurricane-force winds by Wednesday night. Read our full story.
1158 GMT (7:58 a.m. EDT) The tropical storm is currently located near the southeastern coast of Cuba packing 45 mph winds. The official forecast takes Ernesto across Cuba and then over the warm waters of the Florida Straits where it can strengthen into a hurricane before making landfall late Tuesday or early Wednesday in South Florida. NASA is planning a news conference from Kennedy Space Center in an hour to talk about the shuttle rollback preparations. The agency decided to start those preps this morning, which could lead to Atlantis moving off the launch pad tomorrow. But managers will be reviewing the situation at points along the timeline and have the option, obviously, of leaving the shuttle on the pad if the storm somehow changes.
1048 GMT (6:48 a.m. EDT)
0300 GMT (11:00 p.m. EDT Sun.)
0130 GMT (9:30 p.m. EDT Sun.) Read our full story.
0020 GMT (8:20 p.m. EDT Sun.) The most recent forecast track for Ernesto, which has weakened to tropical storm status with 50 mph winds, is posted here. Meanwhile, LeRoy Cain, the launch integration manager, reports that space shuttle Atlantis has been fully cleared of any lingering concerns from Friday's lightning strike that hit pad 39B. Additional testing of the solid rocket booster pyrotechnics is no longer required based on data collected from other systems on the shuttle.
0000 GMT (8:00 p.m. EDT Sun.)
SUNDAY, AUGUST 27, 2006 Read our full story.
1847 GMT (2:47 p.m. EDT) Another management team meeting is planned for 6 p.m. EDT tonight.
1840 GMT (2:40 p.m. EDT) Meanwhile, teams analyzing the shuttle from Friday's launch pad lightning strike have now cleared the orbiter and external tank systems from concern. The orbiter power bus issue discussed yesterday has been resolved. The solid rocket boosters and associated pyrotechnics still need to be confirmed healthy, however. So NASA space operations chief Bill Gerstenmaier says two agendas are competing against each other at Kennedy Space Center today. While the lightning testing work continues to verify Atlantis is ready for launch as early as Tuesday, preparations for a possible rollback are being made, including attaching the fuel cell servicing umbilical to Atlantis for draining the liquid oxygen and liquid hydrogen reactants and moving the crawler-transporter that would haul the shuttle to the VAB.
1753 GMT (1:53 p.m. EDT)
1555 GMT (11:55 a.m. EDT) "This delay is as a result of the lightning strike at the pad on Friday and the need for additional time for further analysis of the shuttle and ground systems. No damage to the vehicle or pad has been found at this time, but more time for analysis requires an additional launch delay," says a NASA statement released a short time ago. A news conference with NASA space operations chief Bill Gerstenmaier is scheduled for 2 p.m. EDT today.
1500 GMT (11:00 a.m. EDT)
1420 GMT (10:20 a.m. EDT) Read our full story.
1222 GMT (8:22 a.m. EDT) Also in the mix is Hurricane Ernesto, which has become the Atlantic's first hurricane of 2006. The latest forecast track by the National Hurricane Center now takes the storm into Florida later this week. See the track here.
0600 GMT (2:00 a.m. EDT) Read our full story.
SATURDAY, AUGUST 26, 2006 Read our full story.
1923 GMT (3:23 p.m. EDT)
1920 GMT (3:20 p.m. EDT)
1910 GMT (3:10 p.m. EDT) Mission managers opted to delay launch of Atlantis until no earlier than Monday so engineers could continue gathering data about the health of shuttle and ground systems -- from electronics to pyrotecnics -- and ensure all equipment survived the lightning event without damage. Cain said engineers have noted a couple of indications of the strike on one of the shuttle's power bus systems and on the launch pad hydrogen vent arm. But thus far Cain said they don't have enough information yet to know if there are any problems. The mission management team will meet at 10 a.m. Sunday to review the progress of the engineering work.
1835 GMT (2:35 p.m. EDT) Launch is rescheduled for no earlier than Monday at 4:04 p.m. EDT, if engineers can complete the post-lightning strike testing in time.
1815 GMT (2:15 p.m. EDT)
1515 GMT (11:15 a.m. EDT) Read our full story. The latest weather forecast is posted here.
FRIDAY, AUGUST 25, 2006 Read our full story.
1430 GMT (10:30 a.m. EDT) Read our full story.
1400 GMT (10:00 a.m. EDT) Read our full report.
THURSDAY, AUGUST 24, 2006 Read our full story.
WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 2, 2006
1215 GMT (8:15 a.m. EDT) In the next few hours and days, the methodical process of hooking up the crew module assess and hydrogen vent arms extending from the launch tower, as well as electrical, propellant, communications and other lines between the ground systems and mobile launch platform will begin. A hot-fire test for Atlantis' auxiliary power unit system is scheduled. The APUs provide the hydraulic pressure needed to move the ship's wing flaps and main engine nozzles and deploy the landing gear. Then the gantry-like Rotating Service Structure will be moved around Atlantis. That will allow the payload bay doors to be opened and the mission cargo to be loaded aboard the shuttle later in the week.
1135 GMT (7:35 a.m. EDT)
1105 GMT (7:05 a.m. EDT)
1020 GMT (6:20 a.m. EDT) The crawler-transporter is powered by 16 traction motors that feed from two 2,750 horsepower diesel engines. Two 1,065 horsepower diesel engines are used for jacking, steering, lighting and ventilating. The transporter consumes 126 gallons of diesel fuel in each mile it travels from the VAB to pad. The vehicle has a fuel capacity of 5,000 gallons.
0535 GMT (1:35 a.m. EDT)
TUESDAY, AUGUST 1, 2006 The weather looks much improved this evening.
0030 GMT (8:30 p.m. EDT Mon.)
MONDAY, JULY 31, 2006 We're awaiting official word from NASA public affairs about the situation.
SUNDAY, JULY 30, 2006
THURSDAY, JULY 27, 2006 NASA has required the first three shuttle flights after Columbia be launched in daylight to allow cameras good visibility for snapping imagery of the redesigned external fuel tanks. The pictures are critical in determining how the tanks' foam insulation perform during ascent. Engineers recently completed an analysis that showed if the launch occurred August 27 the orbital lighting would be sufficient to photograph the tank in space after its separation from Atlantis. By moving up the launch a day, the liftoff time actually shifted later in the afternoon -- changing from 4:04 p.m. on August 28 to 4:30 p.m. on August 27. There will be just 12 days available to launch Atlantis. The usable portion of the daylight window extends through September 7. A liftoff after that isn't believed possible due to scheduling conflicts with the Russian Soyuz mission to ferry the next Expedition resident crew to the space station. Assuming Atlantis launches by September 3, the Soyuz with Expedition 14 commander Mike Lopez-Alegria, flight engineer Mikhail Tyurin and Japanese space tourist Daisuke Enomoto would blast off at 1:44 a.m. EDT September 14 from Baikonur Cosmodrome, Kazakhstan. A scenario in which Atlantis' launch is delayed to the final days of the window would result in the Soyuz rescheduling to September 18. Russian officials want the Soyuz off the ground by September 18 to start the change of command aboard the space station. The departing Expedition 13 crew will return to Earth about 10 days after Expedition 14 is launched, and beginning the handover sequence any later than September 18 would put the homeward-bound capsule's landing in darkness. The Russians are using a recovery team with new personnel and want to avoid nighttime landing activities. If Atlantis misses the August-September opportunity for some reason, the next window would come at the end of October. Atlantis has been attached to its fuel tank and boosters inside the Vehicle Assembly Building in preparation for Monday's early morning roll to launch pad 39B. The four-mile trek is set to begin at midnight. The solar array truss the shuttle will launch to the station was delivered to the pad Wednesday as planned.
MONDAY, JULY 24, 2006 A metal "sling" is poised to capture Atlantis later today, lifting the shuttle from the transport hauler that carried it from the hangar during the past hour. A heavy-duty crane will rotate the spacecraft vertically, then begin the methodical process of hoisting the ship high into the rafters, over to the assembly bay and carefully lowering Atlantis into position next to the awaiting fuel tank for attachment. Once the completed shuttle stack is fully mated, the integrated verification test will be conducted to ensure good electrical and mechanical connections between the vehicle elements. Rollout to launch pad 39B is targeted for next Monday. The exact timing depends on the pace at which the VAB work progresses and the weather outlook. The space station solar array truss that Atlantis will launch heads for the pad this Thursday for loading into the rotating service structure's payload changeout room. Once Atlantis gets to the pad next week, the ship's payload bay doors will be opened to receive the 35,000-pound truss structure. The six astronauts are due at Kennedy Space Center on August 7 for the traditional countdown demonstration test. They will board Atlantis on the morning of August 10 for the final three hours of the launch day rehearsal that concludes with a simulated ignition and shutdown of the main engines. NASA leaders will hold the two-day flight readiness review August 15 and 16 to select an official launch date for Atlantis. Officials are hoping liftoff can occur August 27, if ongoing analysis determines lighting will be sufficient to photograph the external tank after separation from the shuttle given the 4:30 p.m. EDT launch time that day. But if engineers find that the lighting will be too dark to get the necessary views to see how the tank's foam insulation performed during ascent, NASA could set August 28 as the launch date. The liftoff time that day, based on the space station's orbit, would be 4:04 p.m. Atlantis' 11-day mission will feature three spacewalks to install and activate the station's second set of power-generating solar wings.
1134 GMT (7:34 a.m. EDT)
1124 GMT (7:24 a.m. EDT)
1010 GMT (6:10 a.m. EDT)
THURSDAY, JULY 20, 2006 Perched atop the 76-wheel Orbiter Transporter System, the shuttle will driven a quarter-mile from its hangar to the VAB around 6 a.m. EDT (1000 GMT). Technicians will hoist Atlantis upright inside the cavernous 52-story building, attach the spaceplane to the external fuel tank and twin solid rocket boosters and then conduct a series of tests. Rollout to launch pad 39B is expected on Monday, July 31, if all goes well. Atlantis will resume construction of the International Space Station with delivery of the outpost's second set of power-generating solar arrays. Liftoff had been targeted for August 28. However, managers are looking at moving up the launch date to Sunday, August 27. The preferred launch time within the day's 10-minute window would 4:30 p.m. EDT (2030 GMT). Veteran commander Brent Jett will lead the STS-115 crew, and rookie astronaut Chris Ferguson will serve as pilot. The four mission specialists are paired up as the spacewalking teams that will activate the new solar arrays. Joe Tanner and Heidemarie Stefanyshyn-Piper are scheduled to perform the first and third spacewalks; Dan Burbank and Canadian Steve MacLean will do the second EVA. This will be the third shuttle flight since the Columbia disaster. The two previous missions were flown by Discovery. Atlantis last launched in October 2002 when it carried the Starboard 1 truss structure to the station.
MONDAY, JULY 17, 2006 With commander Steve Lindsey at the controls, Discovery settled to a tire-smoking, high-speed touchdown at 9:14:43 a.m. A few moments later, pilot Mark Kelly deployed the shuttle's braking parachute, the ship's nose gear dropped to the runway and Discovery rolled to a stop to close out a voyage spanning 5.3 million miles and 202 complete orbits since blastoff July 4. Read our landing story. |
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STS-115 patch The official crew patch for the STS-115 mission of space shuttle Atlantis to resume orbital construction of the International Space Station. Choose your store:U.S. - U.K. - E.U. - Worldwide  |
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VIDEO:
ATLANTIS ARRIVES AT LAUNCH PAD 39B 