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KENNEDY SPACE CENTER SPACE SHUTTLE STATUS REPORT
WEDNESDAY, MARCH 27, 1996 (10:45 AM EST)

KSC Public Affairs Contact: Bruce Buckingham (fax 407-867-2692)
E-mail: Bruce.Buckingham-1@kmail.ksc.nasa.gov


MISSION: STS-76 -- 3rd MIR DOCKING & SPACEHAB
Flight Day 6

VEHICLE: Atlantis/OV-104
LOCATION: orbit
OFFICIAL LAUNCH DATE/TIME: March 22 at 3:13:04 a.m. EST
MISSION DURATION: 9 days, 3 hours, 47 minutes
MIR UNDOCKING: March 28 at about 8:05 p.m.
TARGET KSC LANDING DATE/TIME: March 31 at 7 a.m. EST
CREW SIZE: 6 up -- 5 down
ORBITAL ALTITUDE and INCLINATION: 184 statute miles/51.6 degrees
All times are EST

NOTE:  The crew of mission STS-76 are: Commander Kevin Chilton; Pilot 
Richard Searfoss; and Mission Specialists Linda Godwin, Rich Clifford, 
Ronald Sega and Shannon Lucid (now of the Mir 21 crew).

     Mission STS-76 status reports are issued daily by the Johnson Space 
Center.


MISSION: STS-77 -- SPACEHAB-4 & SPARTAN 207

VEHICLE: Endeavour/OV-105
LOCATION: Orbiter Processing Facility Bay 3
TARGET LAUNCH DATE/TIME: May 16 at 6:32 a.m.
LAUNCH WINDOW: 2 hours, 30 minutes
TARGET KSC LANDING DATE/TIME: May 26 at 7:09 a.m.
MISSION DURATION: 10 days
CREW SIZE: 6
ORBITAL ALTITUDE and INCLINATION: 176 statute miles/39 degrees

NOTE: The crew equipment interface test was successful yesterday in the 
Orbiter Processing Facility. Final payload close-outs are now in work and 
the payload bay doors will be closed on Friday. A landing gear function test 
was successfully completed yesterday.

KEY STS-77 OPERATIONAL MILESTONES (dates are target only):
* Close payload bay doors (Friday)
* Roll vehicle to Vehicle Assembly Building (April 10)


MISSION: STS-78 -- LIFE AND MICROGRAVITY SCIENCE (LMS)

VEHICLE: Columbia/OV-102
LOCATION: Orbiter Processing Facility bay 2
TARGET LAUNCH DATE/TIME: June 20 at about 10:49 a.m.
LAUNCH WINDOW: 2 hours, 30 minutes
TARGET KSC LANDING DATE/TIME: July 6 at about 8:46 a.m.
MISSION DURATION: 15 days, 22 hours
CREW SIZE: 7
ORBITAL ALTITUDE and INCLINATION: 173 statute miles/39 degrees


NOTE: The drag chute is scheduled to be installed today. The orbital 
maneuvering system functional check is scheduled to begin today and continue 
through all of next week. This series of tests will determine the 
operational capability of the OMS pods and determine what, if any, 
additional work will be required prior to the next mission.

KEY STS-78 OPERATIONAL MILESTONES (dates are target only):
* Begin checkout of orbital maneuvering system pods (today)
* Install Space Shuttle main engines (April 15)


NOTE on DISCOVERY: The orbiter Discovery, currently undergoing a series of 
modifications and thorough inspections in Palmdale, Calif., is scheduled to 
be delivered back to KSC on or about June 28. The Orbital Maintenance Down 
Period (OMDP) is a routinely scheduled operation that periodically removes 
the orbiters from flight operations. Once Discovery is ferried back to KSC, 
operations will begin to prepare it for its next flight in February 1997, 
Mission STS-82, the second Hubble Space Telescope servicing mission.