Discovery's Countdown Set to Begin Sunday
Original post date: Friday, March 06, 2009
2:34pm CST
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About Image: The STS-119 crew members pose for a crew portrait. From the right (front row) are NASA astronauts Lee Archambault, commander, and Tony Antonelli, pilot. From the left (back row) are NASA astronauts Joseph Acaba, John Phillips, Steve Swanson, Richard Arnold and Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency astronaut Koichi Wakata, all mission specialists.
Image credit: NASA
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With Discovery set for liftoff on March 11 at 9:20 p.m. EDT, the countdown clock will begin at the T-43 hour mark at 7 p.m. on Sunday. Earlier the same day, Discovery's astronauts are scheduled to fly from their home base in Houston, arriving mid-afternoon in Florida.Original post date: Friday, March 06, 2009
2:34pm CST
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About Image: The STS-119 crew members pose for a crew portrait. From the right (front row) are NASA astronauts Lee Archambault, commander, and Tony Antonelli, pilot. From the left (back row) are NASA astronauts Joseph Acaba, John Phillips, Steve Swanson, Richard Arnold and Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency astronaut Koichi Wakata, all mission specialists.Image credit: NASA
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Discovery's launch date was announced following Friday's Flight Readiness Review. During the meeting, top NASA and contractor managers assessed the risks associated with the mission and determined the shuttle's equipment, support systems and procedures are ready for flight.
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At post-readiness review news conference on Friday, Bill Gerstenmaier, associate administrator for Space Operations, said that they completed a very thorough review. "The team came through, worked hard and was efficient. It's time now to step back and think of everything else we need to watch before launch on the 11th. There's no better team than this one and I thank them for putting the right analysis together."
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On the resolution of the shuttle's flow control valve issue, John Shannon, Space Shuttle Program manager said, "This is one of those problems requiring a lot of work. It was a little premature before today. The signs were there that we were safe, but the teams went off and came up with definitive data to prove it."
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Mike Leinbach, Space Shuttle launch director, said that from a processing standpoint, the shuttle is in good shape. "It feels good to be here with a firm launch date. I saw a lot of people after the meeting and the mood is really upbeat," he added.
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Info from NASA.gov website
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