• Forum
• SITREP
• Military
• WMD
• Intelligence
• Homeland Security

• Space

• Introduction
• Systems
• Facilities
• Agencies
• Countries
• Hot Documents
• News
• Reports
• Policy
• Budget
• Congress
• Links

• Public Eye

SPACE SHUTTLE TO UPGRADE HUBBLE SPACE TELESCOPE

NEW ORLEANS, LA., February 28th, 2002 -- Space Shuttle Columbia is set for liftoff from Kennedy Space Center at 5:48 a.m. (CST) Thursday, February 28, on a servicing mission to the Hubble Space Telescope.

Built by Lockheed Martin and launched into space in 1990, Hubble is the crown jewel of NASA’s space observatories, having provided thousands of spectacular views of planets, stars, galaxies and black holes. STS-109, the first shuttle mission of the year, will be the fourth servicing flight to Hubble.

On this trip, the seven astronaut crew will install an advanced camera that will have ten times more discovery power and twice as much viewing field as the camera it replaces.

Powering the shuttle into space will be the Lockheed Martin-constructed Super Lightweight Tank that carries the liquid propellants used in the orbiter’s three main engines. The tank is built at the NASA Michoud Assembly Facility in New Orleans.

Opportunities to view the Space Shuttle in orbit can be located at: http://spaceflight.nasa.gov/realdata/index.html

NASA Television will carry the launch “live” on GE-2, Transponder 9C at 85 degrees west longitude, vertical polarization, with a frequency of 3880 Mhz, and audio of 6.8 Mhz. The launch will also be broadcast live on WLAE-TV, Channel 32 in New Orleans.

Harry Wadsworth, 504-257-0094 or harry.wadsworth@maf.nasa.gov