14 DAY TRIAL // Yesterday, March 29, the crew that will fly space shuttle Endeavor on its final mission arrived at the Kennedy Space Center (KSC), in Florida, to begin their final training for the upcoming flight.
Unlike other shuttle missions, which saw seven astronauts taking off for the International Space Station (ISS), the last few flights carried only six crew members, and the STS-134 mission is no exception.
Now that the crew is finally in Florida, NASA mission managers are free to begin launch dress rehearsals. At this point, Endeavor is scheduled to launch at April 19, at 7:48 pm EDT (2348 GMT).
The six astronauts landed on a runway at the Cape Canaveral facility between 5:07 pm and 5:24 pm EDT (2107 and 2147 GMT), each of them in his own T-38 jet. They flew in from the Johnson Space Center (JSC), in Houston, Texas, the facility where NASA instructs its astronauts.
“We like coming in to see the space shuttle. It's always exciting, especially when you're three weeks away from launch,” said on the tarmac STS-134 mission commander and veteran NASA astronaut Mark Kelly.
During their stay at the KSC, the astronauts will undergo a series of training drills, that will involve Kelly and STS-134 pilot Greg H. Johnson flying modified Gulfstream III jet aircraft.
These airplanes are heavily modified, and NASA designated them as shuttle training aircraft. They behave as space shuttles do on their final approach towards the KSC. When shuttles enter the atmosphere, their flight isn't powered, they simply glide.
Mission specialists for the new flight include NASA astronauts Michael Fincke, Andrew J. Feustel and Gregory Chamitoff, as well as Roberto Vittori, an astronaut with the European Space Agency (ESA).
The main payload Endeavor will carry to orbit is the Alpha Magnetic Spectrometer (AMS), a $1.5 billion dollar experiment that is the most sensitive and complex piece of equipment flown to the ISS.
Its job will be to clear mysteries related to dark matter and dark energy, and to analyze the particles that experts believe may be involved in creating dark matter. The AMS will be attached to the exterior of the orbital facility, Space reports.
This is the last flight for Endeavor, and also the second-last of the space shuttle program. Atlantis will carry out STS-135 in June, and then all three shuttles will be officially retired, and the program closed.
The spacecraft will then be divided between museums in the United States. Some 29 organizations have already submitted proposals to NASA, requesting they be granted to honor of displaying one of the three shuttles.