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Breaking News in the Project Management World
Sunday, September 21, 2008
Space Shuttle Atlantis set for final Hubble Telescope Repair Mission in October - Endeavor stands by for possible Rescue Mission
For the first time since July 2001, two space shuttles are on launch pads at the same time at NASA's Kennedy Space Center. Space shuttle Endeavour is now also at the launch pad. Endeavor completed a 4.2-mile journey to Launch Pad 39B on Friday, Sept. 19, at 6:59 a.m. EDT. Just a short distance away on pad 39A, technicians continue to prepare space shuttle Atlantis for its targeted October 10 launch on mission STS-125 to service the Hubble Space Telescope.
Endeavour will be on standby in the unlikely event that a rescue mission for the Atlantis's crew would be necessary. Endeavour will be designated STS-400 if it is needed for a rescue flight. Endeavour will remain on Launch Pad 39B while Atlantis is in space. Once the shuttle is cleared for its return to Earth, Endeavour will move to Pad 39A for its next flight.
Space shuttle Atlantis’ upcoming 11-day mission is the final shuttle flight to NASA’s Hubble Space Telescope (pictured at right). Five spacewalks are planned to install new instruments and thermal blankets, repair two existing instruments, refurbish subsystems and replace gyroscopes and batteries.
The result will be six working, complementary science instruments with capabilities beyond what is now available, and an extended operational lifespan through at least 2013. The seven-member crew will enhance the observatory and ensure cutting-edge science. It puts in place advanced technology that improves the discovery power of Hubble by 10 to 70 times.
(Photo: Atlantis on Pad 39A at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida in foreground; Endeavor on Pad 39B in background, Saturday, 20 September 2008; photo courtesy of NASA)
STS-125 will be the 124th space shuttle flight, the fifth serving flight to the telescope, the 30th flight for Atlantis and the fourth flight in 2008. The weight of the payload is the heaviest ever carried aboard the shuttle on a Hubble servicing mission
After Endeavour (shown in photo at right on 19 September) is cleared from its duty as a rescue vehicle, workers will move it to pad 39A in preparation for liftoff on mission STS-126 to the International Space Station in November 2008.
Created in 1958, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) is America’s focal point for research, development and exploration of outer space. In 2005, the US President and Congress committed the United States to exploring the solar system and beyond: completing assembly of the International Space Station, flying the new Crew Exploration Vehicle no later than 2014, returning astronauts to the moon by the end of the next decade, and sending human missions to Mars and beyond. For over 50 years, NASA has been leading the world in the development and usage of advanced program and project management. Additional information about NASA can be found at www.nasa.gov.
Endeavour will be on standby in the unlikely event that a rescue mission for the Atlantis's crew would be necessary. Endeavour will be designated STS-400 if it is needed for a rescue flight. Endeavour will remain on Launch Pad 39B while Atlantis is in space. Once the shuttle is cleared for its return to Earth, Endeavour will move to Pad 39A for its next flight.
The result will be six working, complementary science instruments with capabilities beyond what is now available, and an extended operational lifespan through at least 2013. The seven-member crew will enhance the observatory and ensure cutting-edge science. It puts in place advanced technology that improves the discovery power of Hubble by 10 to 70 times.
(Photo: Atlantis on Pad 39A at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida in foreground; Endeavor on Pad 39B in background, Saturday, 20 September 2008; photo courtesy of NASA)
STS-125 will be the 124th space shuttle flight, the fifth serving flight to the telescope, the 30th flight for Atlantis and the fourth flight in 2008. The weight of the payload is the heaviest ever carried aboard the shuttle on a Hubble servicing mission
After Endeavour (shown in photo at right on 19 September) is cleared from its duty as a rescue vehicle, workers will move it to pad 39A in preparation for liftoff on mission STS-126 to the International Space Station in November 2008.
Created in 1958, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) is America’s focal point for research, development and exploration of outer space. In 2005, the US President and Congress committed the United States to exploring the solar system and beyond: completing assembly of the International Space Station, flying the new Crew Exploration Vehicle no later than 2014, returning astronauts to the moon by the end of the next decade, and sending human missions to Mars and beyond. For over 50 years, NASA has been leading the world in the development and usage of advanced program and project management. Additional information about NASA can be found at www.nasa.gov.
