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KENNEDY SPACE CENTER SPACE SHUTTLE STATUS REPORT
THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 28, 1995 (11:17 AM EDT)


MISSION: STS-73 -- U.S. MICROGRAVITY LABORATORY-2

VEHICLE: Columbia/OV-102
LOCATION: Pad 39B
TARGET LAUNCH DATE/TIME: Oct. 5 at 9:40 a.m. EDT (no earlier than)
LAUNCH WINDOW: 2 hours, 30 minutes
TARGET KSC LANDING DATE/TIME: Oct. 21 at 7:35 a.m.
MISSION DURATION: 15 days, 21 hours, 55 minutes
ORBITAL ALTITUDE and INCLINATION: 172 statute miles/39 degrees

NOTE: Launch of Columbia was postponed at 4 a.m. today when the main
fuel valve on main engine no. 1 began to leak. Engineers monitoring
temperature sensors downstream of the valve witnessed lower than
allowable readings and called for tanking operations to stop.
(Tanking began at about 2:08 a.m. today.)

	Managers have determined the faulty valve must be replaced. 
Launch has been rescheduled for no earlier than Thursday, Oct. 5. The
2 1/2 hour window opens at 9:40 a.m.

	Prior to picking-up the countdown early next week, work to be
completed includes: complete draining of the external tank and
off-load the cryogenic reactants in Columbia’s onboard storage tanks;
access the aft engine compartment and remove and replace the main
fuel valve on engine no.1; conduct a helium signature test and flight
readiness test of the main engine.

	If all work goes according to plan, the countdown will begin
on Monday and launch will be set for next Thursday.

	The mid-deck experiments aboard Columbia will be removed
today and operations to service the spacelab experiments in the
orbiter’s payload bay will start tomorrow.

	STS-73 Pilot Kent Rominger, Mission Specialists Michael
Lopez-Alegria and Catherine Coleman, and Payload Specialist Fred
Leslie are planning to remain at KSC through the weekend. The other
crew members, Commander Ken Bowersox, Mission Specialist Kathryn
Thornton and Payload Specialist Albert Sacco, will return to JSC
later today.


DISCOVERY/OV-103 -- Pre-Orbiter Maintenance Down Period

NOTE: Discovery, riding on top of the 747 Shuttle Carrier Aircraft,
arrived at Salt Lake City International Airport yesterday at about 5
p.m. EDT where it remained overnight. Today,  Discovery will depart
Salt Lake City at about 12 noon EDT for Palmdale, Calif., where it
will spend nine months undergoing about 100 modifications including
the addition of an external airlock for missions to the international
Space Station. For additional details, please refer to KSC Release
No. 94-95.


MISSION: STS-74 -- 2nd MIR DOCKING (Docking Module)

VEHICLE: Atlantis/OV-104
LOCATION: Orbiter Processing Facility bay 2
TARGET LAUNCH DATE/TIME: Nov. 1 at 11:51 a.m. EST
LAUNCH WINDOW: 6 minutes
TARGET MIR DOCKING DATE: Nov. 4
TARGET KSC LANDING DATE/TIME: Nov. 9 at 9 a.m.
MISSION DURATION: 7 days, 21 hours
CREW SIZE: 5
ORBITAL ALTITUDE and INCLINATION: 196-245 statute miles/51.6 degrees

KEY OPERATIONAL MILESTONES (dates are target only):
* Roll to Vehicle Assembly Building (Oct. 2)
* Move to Pad 39A (Oct. 9)
* Terminal Countdown Demonstration Test (Oct. 12-13)
* Flight Readiness Review (Oct. 19)


MISSION: STS-72 -- SFU-Retrieval & OAST-Flyer

VEHICLE: Endeavour/OV-105
LOCATION: Orbiter Processing Facility bay 3
TARGET LAUNCH DATE/TIME: Jan. 11 at 5:04 a.m. EST
LAUNCH WINDOW: 38 minutes
TARGET KSC LANDING DATE/TIME: Jan. 20 at 3:14 a.m.
MISSION DURATION: 8 days, 22 hours, 11 minutes
CREW SIZE: 6
ORBITAL ALTITUDE and INCLINATION: 184 statute miles/28.45 degrees

NOTE: Post-mission servicing of Endeavour continues in OPF bay 3.
Hypergolic reactant deservicing will begin on Saturday.