http://spaceflightnow.com/shuttle/sts115/status.html
1215 GMT (8:15 a.m. EDT) ON THE PAD! Atlantis has arrived at pad 39B for its liftoff in a few weeks to resume construction of the space station test flight. In the next few hours and days, the methodical process of hooking up the crew module assess and hydrogen vent arms extending from the launch tower, as well as electrical, propellant, communications and other lines between the ground systems and mobile launch platform will begin. A hot-fire test for Atlantis' auxiliary power unit system is scheduled. The APUs provide the hydraulic pressure needed to move the ship's wing flaps and main engine nozzles and deploy the landing gear. Then gantry-like Rotating Service Structure will be moved around Atlantis. That will allow the payload bay doors to be opened and the mission cargo to be loaded aboard the shuttle later in the week. 1135 GMT (7:35 a.m. EDT) The vehicle is arriving on the flat surface of the pad. A precision laser guidance system helps align the mobile launch platform over the pad pedestals. The crawler-transporter will lower the platform onto the pedestals to complete the rollout. 1105 GMT (7:05 a.m. EDT) Atlantis is beginning the slow creep up the ramp of pad 39B as rollout passes the six-hour mark. The rollout crew has activated the crawler-transporter's jacking and leveling system. The crawler uses hydraulic lifts to keep the shuttle level during the ascent up the pad's ramp by jacking up the front-end of the mobile launch platform. 1020 GMT (6:20 a.m. EDT) The Apollo-era crawler has been making good time on the road to the pad. Atlantis is nearing pad 39B as dawn begins to break. The rollout officially commenced with first motion at 1:05 a.m. The crawler-transporter is powered by 16 traction motors that feed from two 2,750 horsepower diesel engines. Two 1,065 horsepower diesel engines are used for jacking, steering, lighting and ventilating. The transporter consumes 126 gallons of diesel fuel in each mile it travels from the VAB to pad. The vehicle has a fuel capacity of 5,000 gallons. 0535 GMT (1:35 a.m. EDT) Space shuttle Atlantis' trip to the launch pad has begun this morning. The ship just emerged from the 52-story Vehicle Assembly Building for the four-mile, eight-hour journey to the seaside pad. TUESDAY, AUGUST 1, 2006 After a two-day delay because of stormy weather, space shuttle Atlantis is now scheduled to make the slow move from the Vehicle Assembly Building to launch pad 39B beginning at 2 a.m. EDT Wednesday. The weather looks much improved this evening. Gregory S. Williams [EMAIL PROTECTED] Reply with a "Thank you" if you liked this post. _____________________________ MEDIANEWS mailing list [email protected] To unsubscribe send an email to: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
