Space Shuttle Status Report 25 Jan 2001

MISSION: STS-98 – 7th ISS Flight (5A) – U.S. Laboratory

VEHICLE: Atlantis/OV-104
LOCATION: Vehicle Assembly Building high bay 3
TARGET KSC LAUNCH DATE/TIME: Feb. 7, 2001 at 6:11p.m. EST
TARGET KSC LANDING DATE/TIME: Feb. 18, 2001 at about 1:39 p.m. EST
LAUNCH WINDOW: less than 5 minutes
MISSION DURATION: 10 days, 19 hours
CREW: Cockrell, Polansky, Curbeam, Jones, Ivins
ORBITAL ALTITUDE and INCLINATION: 177 nautical miles/51.6 degrees

Shuttle Processing Note: Shuttle managers today announced Feb. 7 as the
target launch date for Space Shuttle Atlantis on mission STS-98. The
new
date accommodates scheduled launch activities on the Eastern Range and
better supports a desire to rendezvous with the orbiting International
Space
Station on flight day 3.

In Vehicle Assembly Building high bay 3, final preparations are under
way to
roll Atlantis out to Launch Pad 39A tomorrow at 7 a.m. Today,
technicians
are conducting standard pre-rollout inspections and are removing access
platforms from around the Shuttle vehicle. Atlantis should be hard
down at
the pad by midday tomorrow. Launch pad validations will commence
immediately after arrival, verifying all Shuttle and Mobile Launcher
Platform electrical, pneumatic and mechanical interfaces.

Managers also announced a target launch date of no earlier than June 8
for
Atlantis’ next flight on mission STS-104. This shift accommodates an
on
orbit sun angle condition between May 18 and June 7. This so called
beta
angel cut-out is an undesirable thermal condition for Shuttle/ISS
docking
operations.

MISSION: STS-102 – 8th ISS Flight (5A.1) – Leonardo MPLM

VEHICLE: Discovery/OV-103
LOCATION: Orbiter Processing Facility (OPF) bay 1
TARGET KSC LAUNCH DATE/TIME: Mar. 8, 2001 at about 7 a.m. EST
TARGET KSC LANDING DATE/TIME: Mar. 20, 2001 at about 1 a.m.
LAUNCH WINDOW: less than 5 minutes
MISSION DURATION: 11 days
CREW: Wetherbee, Kelly, Thomas, Richards; (up) Voss, Helms, Usachev;
(down)
Shepherd, Gidzenko, Krikalev
ORBITAL ALTITUDE and INCLINATION: 177 nautical miles/51.6 degrees

Shuttle Processing Note: Shuttle managers today announced March 8 as
Discovery’s new target launch date. This move gives managers time to
review
data from the STS-98 flight between Atlantis’ landing and the STS-102
launch
of Discovery.

In the OPF, technicians are closing out Discovery’s forward, midbody
and aft
compartments in preparation to roll to the VAB next Thursday. Workers
plan
to close the payload bay doors today and begin orbiter weight and
center of
gravity tests next week.

MISSION: STS-100 – 9th ISS Flight (6A) -Raffaello MPLM, SSRMS

VEHICLE: Endeavour/OV-105
LOCATION: Orbiter Processing Facility bay 2
TARGET KSC LAUNCH DATE/TIME: Apr. 19, 2001 at 2:04 p.m. EDT
TARGET KSC LANDING DATE/TIME: Apr. 30, 2001 at 9:56 a.m.
MISSION DURATION: 11 days
CREW: Rominger, Ashby, Hadfield, Parazynski, Phillips, Guidoni,
Lonchakov
ORBITAL ALTITUDE and INCLINATION: 177 nautical miles/51.6 degrees

Shuttle Processing Note: Endeavour’s left hand orbital maneuvering
system
pod has been removed to undergo processing at KSC’s Hypergol
Maintenance
Facility. Two gaseous nitrogen tanks that support the power reactant
storage
and distribution system are being installed today. Window No. 1 is
being
replaced and the forward reaction control system is undergoing standard
checks.