Space Shuttle Processing Status 6 Jan 2003

ORBITER MAJOR MODIFICATION PERIOD VEHICLE: Discovery/OV-103

Shuttle Processing Note: An engineering evaluation continues following the
discovery late last year of a surface crack in a ball associated with a tie
rod assembly inside of a 17-inch liquid oxygen line aboard Discovery. The
crack was found during standard Orbiter Maintenance and Modification (OMM)
inspections. The crack is located on a 2.25-inch diameter metal ball
associated with the Ball Strut Tie Rod Assembly (BSTRA) inside Discovery’s
17-inch liquid oxygen line. Further inspections of similar assemblies in
Discovery’s 17-inch and 12-inch lines have found no cracks. Inspections of
Atlantis and Endeavour also have found no cracks.
Tests using spare BSTRA ball assemblies are under way as part of the
engineering evaluation and are not expected to be completed until later this
week at the earliest. The ongoing evaluation has had no impact on shuttle
launch preparations.

MISSION STS-107 -SPACEHAB/ FREESTAR MICROGRAVITY RESEARCH MISSION

• VEHICLE – Columbia/OV-102
• TARGET LAUNCH DATE: Jan. 16, 2003
• TARGET LAUNCH PERIOD: 10 a.m. – 2 p.m.
• TARGET LANDING DATE: Feb. 1, 2003
• MISSION DURATION: 16 days
• CREW: Husband, McCool, Anderson, Chawla, Brown, Clark, Ramon
• ORBITAL INSERTION ALTITUDE AND INCLINATION: 150 nautical miles/39 degrees

Shuttle Processing Note: S0007 Launch Preparations began today at Pad 39-A
for Shuttle Columbia’s Jan. 16 launch on the Spacehab microgravity research
mission. The astronauts and pad workers successfully completed the Terminal
Countdown Demonstration Test. Today orbiter aft closeouts are in work along
with preparations for the Extravehicular Maneuvering Unit installation,
Module Vertical Access Kit storage operations, Mass Memory Unit flight load
and Orbiter Midbody Umbilical Unit mate and leak checks. Ordnance is
scheduled later this week. No inspections are planned on Columbia related to
the BSTRA ball crack evaluation.

MISSION STS-114 — 17TH ISS FLIGHT (ULF1) – CREW ROTATION/MULTI-PURPOSE
LOGISTICS MODULE

• VEHICLE: Atlantis/OV-104
• TARGET LAUNCH DATE: March 1, 2003
• TARGET LANDING DATE: March 13, 2003
• MISSION DURATION: 12 days
• SHUTTLE CREW: Collins, Kelly, Noguchi, Robinson
• ISS EXPEDITION CREW 7: Malenchenko, Kaleri, Lu
• ORBITAL ALTITUDE AND INCLINATION: 122 nautical miles, 51.6 degrees

Shuttle Processing Note: Atlantis continues to be processed for its March
launch to the International Space Station. Today, heat shield installation
continues in work as does preparations to install the Forward Reaction
Control System. As part of the analysis under way regarding the crack found
in the BSTRA ball on Discovery, technicians completed an inspection of
Atlantis’ lines and found no cracks. With those inspections complete, all
three Space Shuttle Main Engines were installed and leak checks are
complete. The Crew Equipment Interface Test is also complete.

MISSION STS-115 — 18th ISS FLIGHT (12A) – P3/P4 SOLAR ARRAYS

• VEHICLE – Endeavour/OV-105
• TARGET LAUNCH DATE: May 23, 2003
• TARGET LANDING DATE: June 3, 2003
• MISSION DURATION: 10 days
• CREW: Jett, Ferguson, Tanner, Burbank, MacLean, Stefanyshyn-Piper
• ORBITAL INSERTION ALTITUDE AND INCLINATION: 122 nautical miles/51.6 degrees

Shuttle Processing Note: Deservicing and processing continues for the
STS-115 mission to the International Space Station scheduled in May 2003.
Throughout the holidays, work continued with waterproofing operations,
structural inspections of the orbiter’s leading edge and the Forward
Reaction Control System. Removal of the Forward Reaction Control System was
also completed. Checkout on the Orbiter Maneuvering System Pod is in work as
is MEC/PIC verification. Preparations for fuel cell single cell voltage test
are also in work. Inspections of the BSTRAs continue on Endeavour to gather
data to be used in the analysis of a crack found in an assembly on
Discovery. The inspections of Endeavour have found no cracks so far.