This story was updated at 9:10 a.m. EDT.
CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - The space shuttle Endeavour is
"Go" to launch today, NASA said, after ground crews found no signs of
damage from a lightning strike on Friday.
The crews completed all the necessary
check outs of the vehicle's critical systems and cleared the shuttle for
lift off this morning around 9:00 a.m. EDT (1300 GMT). Endeavour is now slated
to blast off this evening at 7:13 p.m. EDT (2313 GMT) from Launch Pad 39A here
at Kennedy Space Center.
The weather outlook for today has improved, with a 70
percent chance of favorable conditions, NASA said.
Endeavour's 15-storey external fuel tank is now due to begin
filling with its liquid oxygen and liquid hydrogen propellant at 9:48 a.m. EDT
(1348 GMT).
Lightning Scare
A violent electrical storm hit near Endeavour's perch atop
Launch Pad 39A here at Kennedy Space Center, with 11
lightning bolts striking down on the pad. Though the shuttle did not take a
direct hit, NASA feared the powerful electric charge in nearby lightning could
have induced a current that may have damaged sensitive electronics aboard the
orbiter.
"They concluded that there are no technical issues
because of the lightning," NASA spokesman Allard Beutel said.
Endeavour's STS-127 mission has already been delayed twice
by a potentially dangerous hydrogen gas leak from the shuttle's external fuel
tank. Mission managers said they think that issue poses no threat after a
repair was successfully tested last week.
The shuttle and its
seven astronauts are slated for a 16-day construction mission to the
International Space Station (ISS). Commander Mark Polansky will lead the crew
in delivering an outdoor porch segment for the Japanese
Kibo laboratory, some spare supplies, as well as a new long-duration
station crewmember - NASA astronaut Tim Kopra - to the orbital outpost. Kopra
is set to start a long-duration mission to the space station as a flight
engineer on the outpost's six-man Expedition 20 crew.
Canadian astronaut Julie Payette and NASA astronauts Doug
Hurley, Chris Cassidy, Tom Marshburn and Dave Wolf are slated to launch along
with Polansky and Kopra on Endeavour. The spaceflyers plan an
ambitious visit to the ISS with five spacewalks and complicated robotic work.
Endeavour's flight will be NASA's third shuttle mission of
the year and the second to the ISS in 2009.
If crews do find damage, or are not able to complete the
thorough checks required in time to start tanking on schedule, NASA may delay
until Monday or later. Endeavour has until July 14 to launch before it must
stand down to allow an unmanned Russian cargo ship to dock at the space
station. If the mission does not get off the ground by then, NASA may negotiate
with Russia for more time, or wait until the shuttle's launch window opens up
again on July 27.
SPACE.com is providing continuous coverage of STS-127
with reporter Clara Moskowitz at Cape Canaveral and senior editor Tariq Malik
in New York. Click here
for mission updates and SPACE.com's live NASA TV video feed. Live launch
coverage begins at 2:00 p.m. EDT (1800 GMT).
advertisement
