Tag: ET
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STS-134: Endeavour set for February 28 rollover – ET-122 borescope checks
Endeavour is set to depart from her Orbiter Processing Facility (OPF-2) on February 28, as milestones begin to align for her April 19 (No Earlier Than) launch to the International Space Station (ISS). With her External Tank (ET-122) and Solid Rocket Boosters (SRBs) mated, borescope inspections of ET-122’s stringers have been completed. STS-134 Latest: Endeavour’s…
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STS-133 launch remains on track as Bowen replaces the injured Kopra
Discovery’s final mission to the International Space Station (ISS) remains on track for February 24, despite a late change to the crew. With Mission Specialist – and lead spacewalker – Tim Kopra injured in a biking accident, managers have decided to assign Steve Bowen as part of the crew as his replacement, with Kopra’s MS2…
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STS-133: Discovery aiming for Feb 1 rollout – Crewmember Kopra injured
Shuttle Discovery is aiming to roll back out to Pad 39A on February 1, following what will be the completion of numerous “radius block” modifications to the circumferance of her External Tank (ET-137). NASA managers are also evaluating impacts to crew training – and potentially the launch date – following the injury sustained by STS-133’s…
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ET-137 deep into repairs and modifications – ATV-2 likely to aid launch date
Kennedy Space Center (KSC) and Michoud Assembly Facility (MAF) technicians and engineers are working hard to replace, repair and modify numerous stringers on Discovery’s External Tank (ET-137), as NASA managers negotiate with their European partners on the upcoming ATV-2 mission, with an aim to allow Discovery to track a February 24 No Earlier Than (NET)…
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STS-133: PRCB recommends 103 ET-137 stringer mods – Launch date slipping
Thursday’s Program Requirements Control Board (PRCB) meeting overviewed the status of Discovery’s External Tank (ET-137), with recommendations made to install radius blocks on over 100 stringers. A new launch date will be entered as a Change Request (CR) next week, based on negotiations with the ISS on the ability to achieve either a February 24…
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ET-137 stringers to be modified – LO2 flange foam liberation assessed
NASA managers have made a key decision to modify 34 stringers on the LO2 flange area of the tank – following the observation of several cracks around its circumference. The radius block modification is designed to mitigate potential foam liberations from the flange, an incident that has never been seen before via flight history. STS-133 Latest: The…
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STS-133: Managers to decide on ET-137 stringer modifications next week
Following a Space Shuttle Program (SSP) meeting on Thursday, a decision on carrying out modifications to STS-133’s External Tank (ET-137) won’t be made until next week, as engineers inside the Vehicle Assembly Building (VAB) carry out repairs to a number of additional cracks, found during Non Destructive Evaluation (NDE) scans of the intertank flanges. ET-137…
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STS-133: Discovery aiming for January 13 rollout for February launch target
With Discovery now back inside the Vehicle Assembly Building (VAB), a preliminary timeline has listed January 13 as a preliminary target to return to Pad 39A in order to make the opening of the next available launch window, which opens on February 3. NASA managers will meet on December 30 to discuss the forward plan…
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STS-133: Discovery arrives back inside VAB – GUCP investigation results
Discovery’s return to the Vehicle Assembly Building (VAB) – in order to gain extra data on the health of the stringers on areas of her tank (ET-137) which can’t be scanned out at the Pad – was completed early on Wednesday. Efforts to return Discovery to the VAB comes just days after a successful Tanking…
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Discovery/ET-137 Tanking Test complete – Flight Rationale data drive
Engineers have gathering detailed data on the thermal and stress environments of the External Tank’s intertank stringers at the LOX flange and LH2 flange areas, NASA managers completed fueling Discovery’s External Tank with nearly 535,000 gallons of liquid hydrogen and liquid oxygen, with a smooth Tanking Test is culminating in a GLS (Ground Launch Sequencer)…