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

• Space

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

• Public Eye

NASA's Space Shuttle Processing Status Report: S06-001

J.D. Harrington Headquarters, Washington (202) 358-5241 Jessica Rye Kennedy Space Center, Fla. Phone: (321) 867-2468	Jan. 6, 2006
STATUS REPORT: S06-001

NASA's space shuttle fleet is housed and processed at the Kennedy Space Center, Fla.

Mission: STS-121 - 18th ISS Flight (ULF1.1) - Multi-Purpose Logistics Module
Vehicle: Discovery (OV-103)
Location: Orbiter Processing Facility Bay 3
Launch Date: NET May 2006; Launch Pad: 39B
Crew: Lindsey, Kelly, Sellers, Fossum, Nowak, Wilson and Reiter
Inclination/Orbit Altitude: 51.6 degrees/122 nautical miles

On Tuesday, the vehicle was powered up so technicians could open the payload bay doors and deploy the Ku-band antenna, putting the vehicle back into a processing configuration. Crew module leak checks were successfully performed.

Fuel cell No. 2 was removed and replaced on Thursday. The fuel cells are located under the forward portion of the payload bay. They make power for the orbiter by mixing hydrogen and oxygen to produce electricity. The fuel cells also create potable water for the crew.

Technicians continue to remove and replace gap fillers at a rate of about 100 per day. New installation procedures ensure the gap fillers stay in place and pose no hazard during re-entry to the atmosphere.

Mission: STS-115 - 19th ISS Flight (12A) - P3/P4 Solar Arrays
Vehicle: Atlantis (OV-104)
Location: Orbiter Processing Facility Bay 1 Launch Date: TBD Launch Pad: 39B
Crew: Jett, Ferguson, Tanner, Burbank, MacLean and Stefanyshyn-Piper
Inclination/Orbit Altitude: 51.6 degrees/122 nautical miles

Atlantis' payload bay doors were opened and the Ku-band antenna was deployed this week.

On Tuesday, the shipping lid for the remote manipulator system was removed and preparations continue for installation.

Endeavour (OV-105)

Technicians began processing Endeavour in Orbiter Processing Facility Bay 2. The vehicle was powered up Wednesday to support the opening of the payload bay doors. Body flap installation is complete. Work continues on the thermal protection system blanket for the reinforced carbon-carbon nose cap.

Endeavour is in a scheduled two-week, power down period to make modifications on the "station to shuttle power transfer system." The new system will allow the vehicle to stay docked to the International Space Station longer than on previous missions.