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KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - At left, the crawler-transporter rolls away from Launch Pad 39A after delivering Space Shuttle Endeavour, in the background. Rollout of the shuttle began at 8:10 p.m. July 10 and concluded at 3:02 a.m. July 11. To the left of the shuttle is the rotating service structure, which can be rolled around to enclose the vehicle for access during processing. Behind it is the fixed service structure, topped by an 80-foot-tall lightning mast. Extending from it to Endeavour is the orbiter access arm, which provides access into the vehicle. Endeavour is scheduled to launch on mission STS-118 on Aug. 7. During the mission, Endeavour will carry into orbit the S5 truss, SPACEHAB module and external stowage platform 3. The mission is the 22nd flight to the International Space Station and will mark the first flight of Mission Specialist Barbara Morgan, the teacher-turned-astronaut whose association with NASA began more than 20 years ago. STS-118 will be the first flight since 2002 for Endeavour, which has undergone extensive modifications, including the addition of safety upgrades already added to orbiters Discovery and Atlantis. Photo credit: NASA/Ken Thornsley KSC-07pd1850
Lite pre-launch activities and Lite flight - KSC
KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. -- Under blue sky streaked with contrails, Space Shuttle Atlantis, atop the mobile launcher platform, is being rolled back to the Vehicle Assembly Building (at left in the background) from Launch Pad 39A. In the VAB, the shuttle will be examined for hail damage. A severe thunderstorm with golf ball-sized hail caused divots in the giant tank's foam insulation and minor surface damage to about 26 heat shield tiles on the shuttle's left wing. Further evaluation of the tank is necessary to get an accurate accounting of foam damage and determine the type of repair required and the time needed for that work. A new target launch date has not been determined, but teams will focus on preparing Atlantis for liftoff in late April. Photo credit: NASA/Amanda Diller KSC-07pd0560
CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. -- Space shuttle Atlantis is revealed on Launch Pad 39A at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida following the move of the rotating service structure (RSS). The structure provides weather protection and access to the shuttle while it awaits liftoff on the pad. RSS "rollback" marks a major milestone in Atlantis' STS-135 mission countdown. Atlantis and its crew of four; Commander Chris Ferguson, Pilot Doug Hurley and Mission Specialists Sandy Magnus and Rex Walheim, are scheduled to lift off at 11:26 a.m. EDT on July 8 to deliver the Raffaello multi-purpose logistics module packed with supplies and spare parts to the International Space Station. Atlantis also will fly the Robotic Refueling Mission experiment that will investigate the potential for robotically refueling existing satellites in orbit. In addition, Atlantis will return with a failed ammonia pump module to help NASA better understand the failure mechanism and improve pump designs for future systems. STS-135 will be the 33rd flight of Atlantis, the 37th shuttle mission to the space station, and the 135th and final mission of NASA's Space Shuttle Program. For more information visit, www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/shuttle/shuttlemissions/sts135/index.html. Photo credit: NASA/Troy Cryder KSC-2011-5163
KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. -- Space Shuttle Atlantis, secured atop a mobile launch platform, passes by the crawler kraal in Launch Complex 39 on its way to Pad A. This area is used to perform maintenance on the crawler transporter. First motion out of the Vehicle Assembly Building was at 4:43 a.m. EST. Rollout is a milestone for Atlantis' launch to the International Space Station on mission STS-122, targeted for Dec. 6. On this mission, Atlantis will deliver the Columbus module to the International Space Station. The European Space Agency's largest contribution to the station, Columbus is a multifunctional, pressurized laboratory that will be permanently attached to U.S. Node 2, called Harmony. The module is approximately 23 feet long and 15 feet wide, allowing it to hold 10 large racks of experiments. The laboratory will expand the research facilities aboard the station, providing crew members and scientists from around the world the ability to conduct a variety of experiments in the physical, materials and life sciences. Photo credit: NASA/Kim Shiflett KSC-07pd3263
CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. – At the Shuttle Landing Facility at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, the space shuttle Endeavour, mounted atop NASA's Shuttle Carrier Aircraft, or SCA, is ready to roll back from the mate-demate device. The SCA, a modified 747 jetliner, will fly Endeavour to Los Angeles where it will be placed on public display at the California Science Center. This is the final ferry flight scheduled in the Space Shuttle Program era. For more information on the shuttles' transition and retirement, visit http://www.nasa.gov/transition. Photo credit: NASA/ Kim Shiflett KSC-2012-5220
CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. – Space shuttle Atlantis comes to a stop on the top of Launch Pad 39A at NASA's Kennedy Space Center after more than a 6-hour journey from the Vehicle Assembly Building. First motion occurred at 9:19 a.m. EDT and Atlantis was hard down on the pad at 3:52 p.m. At far left is the rotating service structure that will be rotated to enclose the shuttle for launch preparations. The shuttle stack, with solid rocket boosters and external fuel tank attached to Atlantis, rest on the mobile launcher platform. Movement is provided by the crawler-transporter underneath. The Sept. 2 rollout date was postponed due to Tropical Storm Hanna’s shift to a northern track. Atlantis is scheduled to launch on the STS-125 mission to service NASA’s Hubble Space Telescope. Launch is targeted for Oct. 8. Photo credit: NASA/Kim Shiflett KSC-08pd2549
KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. -- Shadows spill across space shuttle Atlantis, still poised on the pad after its launch on mission STS-122 was postponed Thursday. It sits atop the mobile launcher platform. Shuttle program managers decided at 9:56 a.m. to postpone the launch because of an issue with a fuel cut-off sensor system inside the external fuel tank. This is one of several systems that protect the shuttle's main engines by triggering their shut down if fuel runs unexpectedly low. During countdown activities this morning, two sensors failed a routine prelaunch check. There are four engine cut-off, or ECO, sensors inside the liquid hydrogen section of the tank, and Launch Commit Criteria require three of the four sensor systems to be functioning properly. The tank's liquid oxygen and liquid hydrogen was drained from the tank, and preparations will begin for a possible launch attempt Friday. NASA's launch rules have a preplanned procedure that states in the case of ECO sensor system failure, engineers need to drain the tank and verify all the sensors are working as they go dry. Atlantis carries the Columbus Laboratory, the European Space Agency's largest contribution to the construction of the space station. When permanently attached to Node 2, the laboratory will carry out experiments in materials science, fluid physics and biosciences, as well as perform a number of technological applications, in a microgravity environment. Photo credit: NASA/George Shelton KSC-07pd3581
CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. – Viewed from the side of Launch Pad 39A at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, the rotating service structure has been moved into place around space shuttle Endeavour. The RSS provides protected access to the shuttle for changeout and servicing of payloads at the pad. The structure is supported by a rotating bridge that pivots about a vertical axis on the west side of the pad's flame trench. The RSS rotates through 120 degrees (one-third of a circle) on a radius of 160 feet. Support for the outer end of the bridge is provided by two eight-wheel, motor-driven trucks that move along circular twin rails installed flush with the pad surface. The track crosses the flame trench on a permanent bridge. Endeavour is targeted to launch June 13 on its STS-127 mission to the International Space Station. Photo credit: NASA/Tim Jacobs KSC-2009-3357
Related
STS-135 Launch Day. NASA public domain image. Kennedy space center.
STS-135 Launch Day. NASA public domain image. Kennedy space center.
STS-135 Launch Day. NASA public domain image. Kennedy space center.
STS-135 Launch Day. NASA public domain image. Kennedy space center.
STS-135 Launch Day. NASA public domain image. Kennedy space center.
STS-135 Launch Day. NASA public domain image. Kennedy space center.
STS-135 Launch Day. NASA public domain image. Kennedy space center.
STS-135 Launch Day. NASA public domain image. Kennedy space center.
STS-135 Launch Day. NASA public domain image. Kennedy space center.
STS-135 Launch Day. NASA public domain image. Kennedy space center.
Summary
Space shuttle Atlantis is seen on launch pad 39a moments before the STS-135 crew arrives for their launch, Friday, July 8, 2011, at the NASA Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Fla. The launch of Atlantis, STS-135, is the final flight of the shuttle program, a 12-day mission to the International Space Station. Photo Credit: (NASA/Bill Ingalls)
Tags
atlantis
cape canaveral
kennedy space center
launch pad 39 a
sts 135
sts 135 preflight
ov 104
hq
nasa bill ingalls
sts
launch
high resolution
space shuttle
launch pad
spacecraft
rocket launch
space launch complex
nasa
Date
08/07/2011
Location
Source
NASA
Link
Copyright info
Public Domain Dedication (CC0)