Launching Windows of Opportunity for NASA
After the last article or two written on the postponement of so many missions by NASA in the 2013 and 2015 ranges, one feels rather stupid for writing this one—referring to the fact that NASA wants to move up its launch dates for the next two shuttle missions in order to ensure the second can be sent up before a window of opportunity closes in late November—all very much like a yo-yo effect.
A couple of missions cannot be moved around much for varied reasons–other than a few days–such as the October 8th launching of the Hubble Space Telescope servicing mission and the supply run to the International Space Station. The supply run will run interference with the big U.S 2008 presidential election, “Whether we get three days or two days, anything obviously would help at the front end of that window,” NASA spokesman Kyle Herring said. Of course, launching during the holidays is also a no-no, meaning that the November 24th date could be the very last day that a 2008 launched station mission by NASA could happen.
NASA will, or plan to, phase out its remaining shuttles by 2010, anticipating up to 4,000 employees losing their jobs at Kennedy Space Center in Florida, an agency not looking back while transitioning its “new era of spaceflight” with its Constellation program.
The space shuttle fleet’s final 10 missions, as outlined by NASA in July 2008:
• Oct. 8, 2008 — Atlantis (STS-125) heads to the Hubble Space Telescope to perform service operations.
• Nov. 10, 2008 — Endeavour (STS-126/ULF-2) will supply the space station and service the rotary joints that support the station’s solar arrays.
• Feb. 12, 2009 — Discovery (STS-119/15A) will kick off a five-flight 2009 by delivering the final pair of U.S. solar arrays to the space station.
• May 15, 2009 — Endeavour (STS-127/2JA) will set sail with the final permanent components for the Japanese Kibo Laboratory on the space station.
• July 30, 2009 — Atlantis (STS-128/17A) will launch carrying science and storage racks to the space station.
• Oct. 15, 2009 — Discovery (STS-129/ULF-3) will place spare components outside the space station.
• Dec. 10, 2009 — Endeavour (STS-130/20A) will close 2009 by delivering the final connecting node, Node 3, and the Cupola, a robotic control station that provides a 360-degree view around the station.
• Feb. 11, 2010 — Atlantis (STS-131/19A) begins the first flight in 2010, carrying a Multi-Purpose Logistics Module filled with science racks for the laboratories of the station.
• April 8, 2010 — Discovery (STS-132/ULF-4) will carry an integrated cargo carrier to deliver maintenance and assembly hardware, including spare parts for space station systems.
• May 31, 2010 — Endeavour (STS-133/ULF-5) will carry critical spare components that will be placed on the outside of the station.
This entry was posted on Sunday, July 20th, 2008 at 2:29 pm and is filed under Mars News, Space Agency News. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.
