KSC STS-102 Status Report L-1 (7 March 2001)

The launch countdown continues on schedule this morning leading toward a
liftoff of Space Shuttle Discovery at 6:42 a.m. on Thursday morning. The
weather forecast remains unchanged with a 30% chance of not meeting the
launch weather criteria due to cold temperatures. The current forecast
however is acceptable for launch with a predicted temperature of 44 degrees,
winds NW 8-12 knots, humidity of 82%, a visibility of 7 to 10 miles and a
few clouds between 2,000 and 3,500 feet.

Due to the high seas, the solid rocket booster retrieval ships are now
scheduled to depart from Port Canaveral today at 12 Noon with an arrival in
the SRB recovery area at 1 p.m. on Thursday. There will be aerial
surveillance of the boosters until the ships arrive.

The gantry-like rotating structure is scheduled to be retracted from around
the Space Shuttle Discovery today at 10:30 a.m. in preparation for launch.
Also today the orbiter’s inertial measurement units are being activated, the
communication’s systems turned on, and the switches in the cockpit are being
configured for launch. Loading of the Space Shuttle external tank with the
half million gallons of liquid hydrogen and liquid oxygen is nominally
scheduled to start at 9:47 p.m. tonight.

The astronauts today are receiving a briefing on the status of the
countdown, the Space Shuttle Discovery, the multipurpose logistics module
Leonardo, and the weather forecast. There are also reviewing their flight
plans together.

On Thursday they will have a light snack at 1:45 a.m., then a weather
briefing followed by suit up. Departure for Pad 39-B will occur at 2:55
a.m. and they’ll begin board Discovery just before 3 o’clock in the morning.
The orbiter crew access hatch will be closed for launch at 4:40 a.m.