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KENNEDY SPACE CENTER SPACE SHUTTLE STATUS REPORT FRIDAY, MAY 31, 1996 (12:42 PM EDT) KSC Public Affairs Contact: Bruce Buckingham (fax 407-867-2692) E-mail: Bruce.Buckingham-1@kmail.ksc.nasa.gov MISSION: STS-78 -- LIFE AND MICROGRAVITY SPACELAB (LMS) VEHICLE: Columbia/OV-102 LOCATION: Pad 39B TARGET LAUNCH DATE/TIME: June 20 at about 10:49 a.m. (EDT) LAUNCH WINDOW: 2 hours, 30 minutes TARGET KSC LANDING DATE/TIME: July 7 at about 8:39 a.m. MISSION DURATION: 15 days, 22 hours (+1 day) CREW SIZE: 7 ORBITAL ALTITUDE and INCLINATION: 173 statute miles/39 degrees NOTE: Launch pad validations continue today as does the main engine flight readiness test. The Launch Readiness Review for Columbia's mission is scheduled for Monday. Next week, the crew of mission STS-78 will arrive at KSC for the Terminal Countdown Demonstration Test. The TCDT is a countdown rehearsal for the crew and launch team at KSC. It is conducted at KSC prior to each flight. The STS-78 crew are: Commander Tom Henricks; Pilot Kevin Kregel; Mission Specialists Susan Helms, Richard Linnehan and Charles Brady; and Payload Specialists Jean-Jacques Favier and Robert Brent Thirsk. KEY STS-78 OPERATIONAL MILESTONES (dates are target only): Main engine flight readiness test (today-Saturday) Helium signature test (Monday-Tuesday) Crew arrival for Terminal Countdown Demonstration Test (9:30 a.m. Monday) Launch Readiness Review (Monday) Terminal Countdown Demonstration Test (June 4-5) Flight Readiness Review (June 6) MISSION: STS-79 -- 4th MIR DOCKING & SPACEHAB DM VEHICLE: Atlantis/OV-104 LOCATION: Orbiter Processing Facility bay 1 TARGET LAUNCH DATE: July 31 at about 11:42 p.m. (EDT) LAUNCH WINDOW: 7-10 minutes TARGET KSC LANDING DATE: August 9 at about 8:17 p.m. MISSION DURATION: 8 days, 20 hours, 35 minutes CREW SIZE: 6 ORBITAL ALTITUDE and INCLINATION: 196-245 statute miles/51.6 degrees NOTE: Closed-bay work continues today following the replacement of six thruster on Atlantis' reaction control system. The Space Shuttle main engines will be installed this weekend. KEY STS-79 OPERATIONAL MILESTONES (dates are target only): Install Space Shuttle main engines (Sunday) Install Spacehab tunnel adapter (June 4) PREPARATIONS FOR ORBITER MAINTENANCE DOWN PERIOD VEHICLE: Endeavour/OV-105 LOCATION: Orbiter Processing Facility bay 3 NOTE: Post-mission servicing continues in the Orbiter Processing Facility. In the OPF, work includes preparations to open the payload bay doors tonight. Next week, workers will remove the Spacehab payload and tunnel adapter. The tunnel adapter will be delivered to OPF bay 1 and installed into the orbiter Atlantis. Over the next 60 days, Endeavour will be prepared for its first Orbiter Maintenance Down Period (OMDP) which involves sending the orbiter to Palmdale, CA, for about eight months of major modifications and structural inspections. Endeavour's next mission will be the first International Space Station assembly Space Shuttle flight, scheduled for launch from KSC in late 1997. KEY PRE-OMDP OPERATIONAL MILESTONES (dates are target only): Open payload bay doors (Friday) Remove Spacehab payload (June 3) Remove tunnel adapter (June 4)-- end -- For automatic e-mail subscriptions to this daily Shuttle status report or KSC originated press releases, send an Internet electronic mail message to: domo@news.ksc.nasa.gov. In the body of the message (not the subject line) type the words "subscribe shuttle-status", or "subscribe ksc-press-release" (do not use quotation marks). The system will reply with a confirmation via e-mail of each subscription. To remove your name from the list at any time, send an e-mail address to domo@news.ksc.nasa.gov. In the body of the message (not the subject line), type (no quotes) "unsubscribe shuttle-status", or "unsubscribe ksc-press-release."