Space Shuttle Crew Set To Return To Earth Wednesday
Space shuttle Atlantis and its six-member crew are expected to return to Earth on Wednesday, May 26, after a 12-day mission. NASA managers will evaluate weather conditions at the agency’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida before permitting Atlantis to land.
Wednesday landing opportunities at Kennedy are at 8:48 a.m. and 10:22 a.m. EDT. If Atlantis is unable to land Wednesday, additional opportunities are available at Kennedy on Thursday at 9:13 a.m. and
10:48 a.m. There are opportunities Friday at Kennedy and backup landing site Edwards Air Force Base, Calif. For recorded updates about landing, call 321-867-2525.
Approximately two hours after Atlantis lands, NASA officials will hold a media briefing to discuss the mission. The participants will be:
– Bill Gerstenmaier, associate administrator for Space Operations
– Mike Moses, space shuttle launch integration manager
– Mike Leinbach, space shuttle launch director
After touchdown, the astronauts will undergo routine physical examinations and meet with their families. The crew will participate in a post-landing news conference approximately four and a half hours after landing. The news events will be broadcast live on NASA Television and streamed on the agency’s website.
The Kennedy news center will open for landing activities from 4:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. Wednesday. The STS-132 media badges are in effect through landing. The media accreditation building on State Road 3
will open at 4 a.m. Wednesday. The last bus will depart from the news center for the Shuttle Landing Facility one hour before landing.
If the shuttle landing is diverted to Edwards, news media should call the public affairs office at NASA’s Dryden Flight Research Center at 661-276-3449 for access. Dryden has limited facilities available for
previously accredited journalists.
The NASA News Twitter feed is updated throughout the shuttle mission and landing. To follow, visit:
http://www.twitter.com/nasa
For NASA TV downlink information, schedules and links to streaming
video, visit: http://www.nasa.gov/ntv
For the latest information about the STS-132 mission and
accomplishments, visit: http://www.nasa.gov/shuttle
For more information about the space station and its crew, visit:
http://www.nasa.gov/station
