STS-127 mission to ISS

[Rick]

Endeavour 'in really good shape to fly'

NASA has declared space shuttle Endeavour "in really good shape to fly" for tomorrow's slated blast-off on the STS-127 mission to the International Space Station - the 23rd ISS construction mission.

More: http://www.theregister.co.uk/2009/06/12/endavour_update/


NASA scrubs Endeavour launch

NASA early this morning scrubbed the planned launch of space shuttle Endeavour due to "a leak associated with the gaseous hydrogen venting system outside the external fuel tank".

More: http://www.theregister.co.uk/2009/06/13/endeavour_launch_delayed/

[Rick]

NASA is bumping its robotic mission to the moon in favor of a rescheduled Endeavour launch on Wednesday.

The US space agency said today the human-staffed excursion to the International Space Station will take priority June 17 over the launch of NASA's unmanned Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) and Lunar Crater Observation and Sensing Satellite (LCROSS).

More: http://www.theregister.co.uk/2009/06/15/nasa_reschedules_sts_127/

[Rick]

Endeavour 'in good shape' for Wednesday lift-off

NASA is tempting fate by describing space shuttle Endeavour as "in good shape" for lift-off tomorrow on its STS-127 mission to the International Space Station, having used pretty well the same words before a gaseous hydrogen leak caused the original launch to be scrubbed on Saturday.

More: http://www.theregister.co.uk/2009/06/16/endeavour_update/

Endeavour launch scrubbed again

NASA has scrubbed today's planned launch of space shuttle Endeavour - the second such knock-back due to a gaseous hydrogen leak and despite assurances yesterday that the vehicle was "in good shape" to go.

More: http://www.theregister.co.uk/2009/06/17/endeavour_launch_scrubbed/

[Rick]

A successful fueling test conducted today on space shuttle Endeavour's troublesome plumbing has cleared the way for another launch attempt July 11.

Endeavour's mission to the ISS was scrubbed twice last month due to safety concerns over a leak found in the shuttle's hydrogen vent line that connects to the shuttle's massive external fuel tank.

More: http://www.theregister.co.uk/2009/07/01/nasa_tests_endeavour_for_leaks/

[Rick]

Endeavour set for Saturday launch

Space shuttle Endeavour is in "excellent shape" to launch tomorrow on its delayed STS-127 mission to the International Space Station.

More: http://www.theregister.co.uk/2009/07/10/endeavour_launch/

Lightning strike grounds Endeavour

NASA has postponed today's planned launch of space shuttle Endeavour following "lightning strikes in the Launch Complex 39A area" of the Kennedy Space Center.

More: http://www.theregister.co.uk/2009/07/11/endeavour_launch_update/

Endeavour launch scrubbed for fourth time

NASA today scrubbed the launch of space shuttle Endeavour for the fourth time, citing inclement weather at Kennedy Space Center.

More: http://www.theregister.co.uk/2009/07/12/endeavour_launch/

Endeavour launch postponed again

The launch of the US space shuttle Endeavour has been postponed for a fourth time, because of thunder storms in the area.

The decision was made only minutes before the shuttle was due to lift off from Cape Canaveral in Florida.

An earlier launch was called off after Nasa investigated lightning strikes around the launch pad, while two were scrapped in June over hydrogen leaks.

More: http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/sci/tech/8146743.stm

[Rick]

...and today's launch has just been scrubbed, too. Lightning, thunder clouds, etc.

Seems they're going to try again on Wednesday.

[Mike]

Gordon Bennett. Is NASA being run by British Rail?

[mickw]

Will it get iff the bleedin ground before it's retired, or even before Orion 

[Rick]

Space shuttle Endeavour's blastoff was scrubbed once again on Monday, following a month of delays and four previous failed launch attempts.

The shuttle's latest terra firma detainment was called just ten minutes before blastoff due to poor weather. Although a lighting storm several miles south of Kennedy Space Center cleared before the evening attempt, another blossomed to the north provoking a lightning warning at the launch pad.

More: http://www.theregister.co.uk/2009/07/13/sts_127_fifth_launch_attempt_scrubbed/

Bad weather foils shuttle launch

The US space agency Nasa has postponed the launch of the space shuttle Endeavour for a fifth time because of bad weather.

The launch from Cape Canaveral in Florida had been scheduled for 1851 local time (2251 GMT).

If the shuttle is unable to launch by Wednesday it will have to wait until the end of the month to make way for a Russian cargo ship.

More: http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/sci/tech/8148977.stm

[Rick]

Endeavour was launched Wednesday evening, just after 23:00 BST. STS-127 is in orbit.

Endeavour heads for ISS on sixth try

Space shuttle Endeavour has finally blasted off on its mission to the International Space Station. Good riddance!

The belated liftoff of mission STS-127 from Kennedy Space Center is NASA's sixth attempt to get Endeavour off the ground. Two cancellations in June were due to a leak in the shuttle's hydrogen gas venting system, and three others launches were snuffed because of troublesome Floridian weather.

More: http://www.theregister.co.uk/2009/07/15/sts_127_launch/

[Rick]

The US space agency Nasa has successfully launched the space shuttle Endeavour - at the sixth attempt.

Earlier launches at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida were called off because of bad weather and fuel leaks.

The crew will spend 11 days on the International Space Station, finishing work on a Japanese research laboratory.

If the shuttle had not taken off by Thursday, it would have had to have waited until the end of the month to make way for a Russian cargo ship.

More: http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/sci/tech/8153091.stm

[mickw]

Endeavour Astronauts Inspect Shuttle Heat Shield -

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - Astronauts aboard the space shuttle Endeavour will scan their orbiter's heat shield on Thursday to search for any damage from debris that fell from the spacecraft's external tank during its launch into orbit.

A camera mounted on Endeavour's fuel tank recorded eight or nine pieces of debris - either ice or foam - that appeared to fall free during the shuttle's late Wednesday launch, though mission managers do not yet know if they caused any harm. Endeavour lifted off from NASA's Kennedy Space Center here on a mission to the International Space Station, triumphing after a string of delays caused by weather and a gas leak.

More:   http://www.space.com/missionlaunches/090716-sts127-heat-shield-inspection.html

[Rick]

The crew of space shuttle Endeavour has begun preparing to dock with the International Space Station (ISS).

Before docking, scheduled for 1755 GMT, the shuttle will perform a backflip, allowing the ISS team to photograph and inspect Endeavour's heat shield.

When the two crews join together, there will be a record 13 astronauts on the orbiting outpost.

More: http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/sci/tech/8155953.stm

[Rick]

Astronauts have carried out the first of five spacewalks to be performed by the crew of the shuttle Endeavour at the International Space Station (ISS).

American astronauts Tim Kopra and Dave Wolf spent nearly six hours outside the ISS, attaching a large platform - the final piece of Japan's space lab, Kibo.

More: http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/sci/tech/8157625.stm

[Rick]

Minor CO₂ issue cuts short ISS spacewalk

Mission specialists Chris Cassidy and Dave Wolf cut short the third STS-127 International Space Station spacewalk, due to "higher than normal carbon dioxide levels" in the former's spacesuit.

The minor alert, prompted by a "potential problem ... with the carbon dioxide scrubbing device", meant the pair had to return to the ISS half an hour earlier than planned, after five-hours and 59 minutes working outside the orbiting outpost.

The two "removed multilayer insulation from the Kibo module and readied the Japanese Exposed Section payloads for their transfer to the Exposed Facility", but completed just two of six planned battery replacements on the Port 6 (P6) solar array.

More: http://www.theregister.co.uk/2009/07/23/third_iss_spacewalk/

Endeavour crew prep for final spacewalk

Spacewalkers Chris Cassidy and Tom Marshburn will today head outside the International Space Station for the fifth and final spacewalk of mission STS-127.

The pair are tasked with wrapping some insulation around the the Special Purpose Dexterous Manipulator, aka DEXTRE, and splitting power supply channels to two of the station's quartet of Control Moment Gyroscopes, which "provide non-propulsive attitude control for the station".

According to NASA, the pair of gyros are "fed from the same power channel, and this activity will prevent a failure on one channel from disabling both of the gyros".

More: http://www.theregister.co.uk/2009/07/27/final_endeavour_spacewalk/

[Rick]

Endeavour crew wrap final ISS spacewalk

NASA astronauts Chris Cassidy and Tom Marshburn yesterday completed the fifth and final spacewalk of space shuttle Endeavour's STS-127 mission to the International Space Station.

Chris Cassidy and Tom Marshburn exit the Quest airlock to begin the fifth and final spacewalk. During the a four hour, 54 minute excursion, the pair polished work on the Exposed Section of Japan's Kibo lab, installing a pair of cameras which will "provide views to help with rendezvous and berthing of the H-II Transfer Vehicle (HTV) scheduled to make its first deliveries to the station in September".

More: http://www.theregister.co.uk/2009/07/28/final_endeavour_spacewalk/

Endeavour glides back to Kennedy

Space shuttle Endeavour landed today at Kennedy Space Center at 14:48 GMT, marking the end of its STS-127 mission to the International Space Station.

Endeavour landing at Kennedy this afternoon. During five spacewalks, crew members installed the final Exposed Facilty component of Japan's Kibo laboratory and replaced some of the orbiting outpost's batteries.

More: http://www.theregister.co.uk/2009/07/31/endeavour_landing/