Discovery Lands Safely

Discovery landed safely in Florida shortly before noon eastern time this morning, capping a smooth, successful mission to the International Space Station. During the mission, the shuttle crew delivered a large piece of the Japanese Kibo laboratory, the largest, most sophisticated laboratory ever placed in orbit. In addition—and much to the relief of the space station crew—Discovery delivered a new pump for the Russian toilet which had failed shortly before the shuttle's launch.

The next shuttle launch will not be until October, and it will be the only remaining shuttle mission not going to the International Space Station. That mission will be used for repairs and upgrades to the Hubble Space Telescope.

Object Floats Away From Discovery

Early this morning, as space shuttle Discovery was in preparations for returning to Earth, members of the crew noticed an object floating away from the shuttle into space. Most likely, the object broke free from the shuttle during maneuvers to position the orbiter for re-entry. Commander Mark E. Kelly also noticed what he called a "bump" sticking out from the side of the shuttle's tail rudder.

NASA is reviewing photos and video of both anomalies before allowing the shuttle to land, and the crew may re-deploy the robotic arm so that the camera mounted on the arm can get a better look to verify that Discovery is safe for landing.

At this point, it seems likely to me that landing will be delayed by at least a day in order to ensure the safety of the astronauts and the shuttle. In a worst case scenario, the crew will return to the International Space Station and dock while awaiting pickup by the emergency backup shuttle, which has been a part of every mission since the return-to-flight after the Columbia accident.

Discovery On Its Way

Space shuttle Discovery successfully launched on-time yesterday on its way to the International Space Station. The astronauts are already ahead of schedule and are proceeding with a scan of the orbiter's heat-shield, even though they do not have the laser-tipped probe that they have been using on the last several missions (their cargo was too much this time and they had to leave some things out).

Discovery is scheduled to dock with the ISS tomorrow at 1:52pm EDT. Once docked with the station, they will perform a more detailed analysis of the heat shield using a boom arm stored on the space station.

Discovery on Schedule for Launch Tomorrow

According to NASA, all systems are go for tomorrow's launch of space shuttle Discovery to the International Space Station. Discovery will be transporting additional pieces of the Japanese Kibo laboratory module—including the large Japanese Pressurized Module and a robotic arm—as well as a new toilet pump to replace on that has failed (talk about trouble getting a plumber out to your house!). Additionally, Discovery will deliver Greg Chamitoff and return Flight Engineer Garrett Reisman, who has spent the past three months on the space station.

This mission will be the largest payload ever transported to the ISS and includes three spacewalks to install equipment.

With launch scheduled for 5:02pm EDT, NASA expects an 80 percent chance of favorable weather at launch time. And since this launch will be happening at a time when I'll be awake, I expect to watch the streaming webcast of it.

Endeavour Launches Tonight

Space Shuttle Endeavour launches tonight or early tomorrow morning, depending on what time zone you live in. The launch is scheduled for 2:28 AM EDT (1:28 AM here in the Central time zone) which means this will be the first launch in quite a while I have not watched live online.

This is a major mission, the longest duration flight to the ISS so far at 16 days. Over the course of the mission, the Japanese Kibo laboratory module will be added to the space station, along with a newer, improved robotic arm system (with two arms and fine manipulator "hands") from the Canadian Space Agency.

Additionally, Endeavour will be delivering Garrett Reisman for a stay aboard the ISS as part of Expedition 16 and will bring European astronaut Leopold Eyharts home from the space station.

Forecasters are projecting a ninety percent chance of good weather, and no problems have been indicated as of now, nine hours before the launch.

Atlantis Reaches Space

The weather turned out to be benign (at least at Cape Canaveral) and the fuel sensors worked successfully, allowing Atlantis to launch on-time at 2:45 PM EST. The shuttle reached space several minutes later and is on its way to the International Space Station carrying the Columbus science laboratory (Europe's single largest contribution to the station).

Columbus is about 23 feet long and 15 feet wide, allowing it to hold 10 "racks" of experiments, each approximately the size of a phone booth. Five NASA racks will be added to the laboratory once it is in orbit. Each rack provides independent controls for power and cooling, as well as communication links to earthbound controllers and researchers. These links will allow scientists all over Europe to participate in their own experiments in space from several user centers and, in some cases, even from their own work locations.

Shuttle Launch Tomorrow

So you probably know by now, but Atlantis is due to launch tomorrow at 4:31 pm EST (3:31 pm here in the Midwest) carrying the European Columbus laboratory to the International Space Station. The weather looks good, so barring any unforseen complications, the next step in space-borne science should be getting underway pretty soon.

Atlantis to Launch Tonight

Space shuttle Atlantis is scheduled to launch this evening at 7:38 PM EDT, and NASA expects only a 20% chance of inclement weather interfering with the launch.

This launch, delayed three months by damage from a freak hailstorm, will be going to the International Space Station to attach two more pieces of structural framework and a new set of solar panels. The astronauts will also relocate an existing set of solar panels and install a rotary joint allowing the panels to track the sun.