14 DAY TRIAL // Every single engineer and every single piece of equipment is ready for space shuttle Atlantis' launch today, NASA officials have announced. The lift-off will take place at 2.01 pm EDT (1801 GMT) from launch Pad 39A at the Kennedy Space Center, in Florida. Agency workers have also rolled back the protective shroud enveloping the spacecraft, in order to be able to install the latest experiments onboard, and to have it completely operational for its designated launch time. The STS-125 mission will be the last to service the aging Hubble Space Telescope, and will rely on shuttle Endeavor for contingency support.
Officials at the American space agency have deemed it safe for the space shuttle Atlantis to lift off one day earlier than the previously planned May 12th launch date. The move was prompted by concerns that the mission could adversely affect the schedule that NASA had devised for the launch pads at the KSC for the upcoming months. For the STS-125 mission, which will last for 11 days, the KSC needed to make both its pads available, one for Atlantis, and the other one for Endeavor. The second spacecraft will stand by to provide help, if Atlantis needs it, by launching in orbit as well.
Making up Atlantis' crew are Commander Scott D. Altman, who will be in charge of the operations, Pilot Gregory C. Johnson, who will have to guide the spacecraft on the treacherous approach to the orbiting telescope, and also Mission Specialists Michael T. Good, K. Megan McArthur, John M. Grunsfeld, Michael J. Massimino, and Andrew J. Feustel.
While Atlantis will be in orbit, it will carry a larger-than-usual amount of food and other survival gear. This special concern is caused by the elevated risk of impact between the craft and very fast-flying space debris, which were generated by a February collision between two satellites in Earth's orbit. If needed, Endeavor will launch the STS-400 mission, which is basically a rescue operation for the astronauts on the first shuttle. The two spacecraft would dock to each other in orbit, and the astronauts in Atlantis would transfer to Endeavor, which would then bring them safely back home.
There are about 12 hours remaining until the shuttle is scheduled for launch, and, understandably, everyone at the agency is extremely tense, especially given the fact that the mission has been postponed several times since last fall. However, everything is set for this launch, and, unless some minor glitches are found in the delivery system or the shuttle, Atlantis will lift off as scheduled, even one day earlier than originally planned.