Tagged with kennedy space center
CAPE CANAVERAL, FLORIDA (BNO NEWS) — The Space Shuttle Atlantis on Friday afternoon lifted off from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida on its final mission to the International Space Station (ISS). The mission will deliver cargo, critical spare parts and a Russian laboratory to the station.
With a crew of six on board, the space shuttle lifted off at 2.20 p.m. Eastern time on its 32nd and final flight. More than 40,000 people had gathered at the launch site to catch one of the few remaining space shuttle flights.
The Russian-built Mini Research Module-1 is inside the shuttle’s cargo bay. Also known as Rassvet (dawn in Russian), it will provide additional storage space and a new docking port for Russian Soyuz and Progress spacecraft. The laboratory will be attached to the bottom port of the station’s Zarya module.
The STS-132 crew consists of Commander Ken Ham, who is joined by Pilot Tony Antonelli and Mission Specialists Garrett Reisman, Michael Good, Steve Bowen, and Piers Sellers, all veteran space fliers. Good and Sellers rode Atlantis into orbit on their first space missions in 2009 and 2002, respectively.
The shuttle crew is scheduled to dock to the station at 10:27 a.m. EDT on Sunday. The mission’s three spacewalks will focus on
storing spare components outside the station, including six batteries, a communications antenna and parts for the Canadian Dextre robotic arm.
After completing the 12-day STS-132 mission, the shuttle’s first landing opportunity at Kennedy is scheduled for 8:44 a.m. on Wednesday, May 26. STS-132 is the 132nd shuttle flight, the 32nd flight for Atlantis and the 34th shuttle mission dedicated to station assembly and maintenance.
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CAPE CANAVERAL, FLORIDA (BNO NEWS) – NASA announced that space shuttle Discovery and seven astronauts landed safely Tuesday at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida.
The 15-day journey of more than 6.2 million miles, fortified the International Space Station, delivering science racks, new crew sleeping quarters, equipment and supplies. In addition, the STS-131 mission crew were able to install a new ammonia storage tank for the station’s cooling system, replace a gyroscope for the station’s navigation system and remove a Japanese experiment from outside the Kibo laboratory for examination on Earth during three spacewalks.
Alan Poindexter commanded the flight and was joined by Pilot Jim Dutton and Mission Specialists Rick Mastracchio, Dottie Metcalf-Lindenburger, Stephanie Wilson, Clay Anderson, and Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency astronaut Naoko Yamazaki. Lindenburger is the last of three teachers selected as mission specialists in the 2004 Educator-Astronaut class to fly on the shuttle.
“We had a lot of adversity but we overcame it all with some great team work,” said Mission Specialist Anderson, who participated in the mission’s three spacewalks and previously spent five months at the space station. “I’ve had two homecomings this flight. I got to go home to the International Space Station and now I get to come home to KSC (Kennedy Space Center). To all of you who helped get us up and bring us back, thank you so very much. God bless America.”
The STS-131 crew members officially concluded their successful mission to the International Space Station when the shuttle touched ground at 9:08 a.m. EDT.
A welcome ceremony for the astronauts will be held Wednesday, April 21, in Houston. The public is invited to attend the 4 p.m. CDT event at Ellington Field’s NASA Hangar 990.
(Copyright 2010 by BNO News B.V. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without explicit prior permission from BNO News B.V. Contact sales@bnonews.com for more information about subscriptions.)
CAPE CANAVERAL, FLORIDA (BNO NEWS) — Space shuttle Discovery and its seven-member crew are expected to return to Earth on Monday, April 19, after a 14-day mission, NASA said on Saturday.
NASA managers will evaluate weather conditions at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida before permitting Discovery to land.
Monday landing opportunities at Kennedy are at 8:51 a.m. and 10:26 a.m. EDT.
If Discovery is unable to land Monday, additional opportunities are available at Kennedy on Tuesday at approximately 7:33 a.m. and 9:08 a.m., and at backup landing site Edwards Air Force Base, Calif., at approximately 9 a.m., 10:36 a.m. and 12:11 p.m.
After touchdown, the astronauts will undergo routine physical examinations and meet with their families.
(Copyright 2010 by BNO News B.V. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without explicit prior permission from BNO News B.V. Contact sales@bnonews.com for more information about subscriptions.)
CAPE CANAVERAL, FLORIDA (BNO NEWS) – NASA announced Friday that space shuttle Discovery is scheduled to launch in April.
Discovery’s 13-day flight to the International Space Station is set, as launch is expected at 6:21 a.m. EDT on April 5 from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida, making its 38th mission and its 33rd shuttle flight. It will be delivering science and supplies to the station, as it is carrying the multi-purpose logistics module Leonardo and a pressurized “moving van” that will be temporarily attached to the station.
The module is filled with supplies, a new crew sleeping quarters and science racks will be transferred to the station’s laboratories. The flight will also include three spacewalks to switch out a gyroscope on the station’s truss, or backbone, install a spare ammonia storage tank and return a used one, and retrieve a Japanese experiment from the station’s exterior.
Commander Alan Poindexter will be guiding the shuttle, and he will be accompanied by Pilot Jim Dutton, Mission Specialists Rick Mastracchio, Dottie Metcalf-Lindenburger, Stephanie Wilson, Clay Anderson and Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency Astronaut Naoko Yamazaki.
After senior NASA and contractor managers met and assessed the risks associated with the mission at Kennedy, they determined that the shuttle’s equipment, support systems and procedures are ready.
The mission is the second of five shuttle missions planned for 2010, with the last flight already scheduled for September.
(Copyright 2010 by BNO News B.V. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without explicit prior permission from BNO News B.V. Contact sales@bnonews.com for more information about subscriptions.)
WASHINGTON, D.C. (BNO NEWS) – NASA announced on Monday its founding partnership of Launch, an initiative to identify, showcase and support innovative approaches to sustainability challenges through a series of forums.
The first forum will be centered on water sustainability: “Launch: Water,” which will be taking place at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida from March 16-18.
U.S. Agency for International Development, the U.S. State Department and Nike are additional founding partners that will bring together 10 entrepreneurs from around the world. They will be presenting water scarcity solution plans as 40 council members, representing business, policy, engineering, science, communications and sustainability sectors will be present during the two-and-a-half day forum.
“NASA is perfectly positioned to host a conversation with experts about potential solutions to the world’s most perplexing sustainability problems,” said NASA’s Deputy Administrator Lori Garver, the host of the forum. “NASA offers a culture of problem-solving, deep technical expertise on sustainable systems such as the International Space Station, and a unique capacity to capture and analyze data about our home planet.”
The global initiative Launch plans to organize further events that will discuss issues such as water, air, food, energy, mobility and sustainable cities.
WASHINGTON D.C. (BNO NEWS) – National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) announced on Wednesday that two companies have been the winners of the 2009 George M. Low Award, the highest honor for quality and performance.
United Space Alliance and Applied Geo Technologies received their awards at the NASA’s seventh annual Project Management Challenge in Galveston, Texas on Wednesday.
United Space Alliance (USA), of Houston, Texas, received the award in the large business service category. USA provides various services to the Kennedy Space Center, the Marshal Space Flight Center and the Johnson Space Center. Engineering and technical services, mission planning, astronaut’s training and execution of missions are some of the tasks this company contributes the NASA with.
Applied Geo Technologies (AGT) is based in Choctaw, Mississippi and received the award in the small business category. It provides aerospace and defense services, instrumentation repairing and calibration, and geographic analysis.
George M. Low award was established in 1985 as NASA’s Excellence Award for Quality and Productivity.
WASHINGTON, D.C. (BNO NEWS) — NASA is investigating the discovery of cocaine at a restricted facility near the space shuttle, a spokeswoman said.
A NASA spokeswoman confirmed the discovery of cocaine at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida.
Further details were not immediately available.
