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KENNEDY SPACE CENTER SPACE SHUTTLE STATUS REPORT
FRIDAY, OCTOBER 4, 1996 (4:00 PM)

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

MISSION: STS-80 -- WAKE SHIELD FACILITY-3 and ORFEUS-SPAS-2 (image)

VEHICLE: Columbia/OV-102
LOCATION: Orbiter Processing Facility bay 1
TARGET LAUNCH DATE/TIME: Nov. 8 at 2:47 p.m. (EST)
LAUNCH WINDOW: 2 hours, 30 minutes
TARGET KSC LANDING DATE/TIME: Nov. 24 at 7:31 a.m.
MISSION DURATION: 16 days
CREW: Cockrell, Rominger, Jernigan, Jones, Musgrave
ORBITAL ALTITUDE and INCLINATION: 219 statute miles/28.45 degrees

NOTE: Shuttle managers today decided to delay the rollout of Columbia
to the Vehicle Assembly Building to allow time for the replacement of
orbiter windows no. 3 and no. 4, the two forward-most windows. The
windows will be replaced while engineers complete an analysis of the
possible effects of hazing and pitting on windows that have been in
place for a high number of flights.

	One of the windows being replaced has flown eight times and
the other seven times. The new engineering analysis, although still
in a preliminary stage, may find that windows that have seen a
substantial amount of hazing from flying many times, could tend to
fracture more easily. To be conservative with the management of
Columbia's flight and allow time for the engineering study to progress,
managers opted to replace the two window panes with new panes that have
not flown before. The concern is with only the outermost pane, called
the thermal pane, which is 0.625-inch thick. Two other window panes,
a center pane that is 1.3-inches thick and an inner pane that is
0.625-inch thick, are not a concern. Any possible actions regarding
other windows on other orbiters are still under evaluation, and a final
decision on them likely will not be made until the engineering study has
reached a final conclusion.

	The work to replace the windows will be performed in the OPF
and is expected to add about eight days to Columbia's OPF schedule.
Managers are evaluating the contingency time in the overall STS-80
schedule and expect to decide on a possible new target launch date
next week.

KEY STS-80 OPERATIONAL MILESTONES (dates are target only):
Roll Columbia to Vehicle Assembly Building and mate with external tank(TBD)
Deliver payload to Pad 39B (TBD)
Rollout to Pad 39B (TBD)
Terminal Countdown Demonstration Test (TBD)

MISSION: STS-81 -- 5th MIR DOCKING & SPACEHAB DM (image)

VEHICLE: Atlantis/OV-104
LOCATION: Orbiter Processing Facility Bay 3
TARGET KSC LAUNCH DATE/TIME: Jan. 12, 1997 at about 4:17 a.m. (EST)
LAUNCH WINDOW: 7-10 minutes
TARGET KSC LANDING DATE/TIME: Jan. 21, 1997 at about 8:40 a.m.
MISSION DURATION: 9 days (+1)
CREW: Baker, Jett, Grunsfeld, Ivins, Wisoff, Linenger (up) Blaha (down)
ORBITAL ALTITUDE and INCLINATION: 184 statute miles/51.6 degrees

NOTE: Work today includes preparations for deservicing the auxiliary
power units. The controller for auxiliary power unit (APU) no. 2 has
been removed and sent to the vendor for analysis. The APU itself will
be removed early next week and sent to the vendor. The other two APUs
will be removed later in the week. Solid rocket booster (SRB) stacking
operations continue in the VAB.

KEY STS-81 OPERATIONAL MILESTONES (dates are target only):
Remove Space Shuttle main engines (Oct. 24)
Install Space Shuttle main engines (Nov. 5)


MISSION: STS-82 -- HUBBLE SPACE TELESCOPE SERVICING MISSION-2
VEHICLE: Discovery/OV-103
LOCATION:  Orbiter Processing Facility Bay 2
TARGET LAUNCH DATE/TIME: Feb. 13, 1997 at 2:59 a.m.
LAUNCH WINDOW: 61 minutes
TARGET KSC LANDING DATE/TIME: Feb. 23, 1997 at 1:35 a.m.
MISSION DURATION: 9 days, 22 hours
CREW: Bowersox, Horowitz, Lee, Hawley, Harbaugh, Smith, Tanner
ORBITAL ALTITUDE and INCLINATION: 360 statute miles/28.45 degrees

NOTE: Midbody close-outs and water coolant loop servicing continue
today. Interface verification tests for the forward reaction control
system are also under way today.

KEY OPERATIONAL MILESTONES (dates are target only):
Install Space Shuttle main engines (Oct. 14)
Install left-hand orbital maneuvering system pod (Oct. 21)

NOTE: Yesterday, in KSC's Hypergol Maintenance Facility (HMF), one of
the orbital maneuvering system pods scheduled for use on Columbia on
Mission STS-83 was inadvertently deluged with water from a facility
fire protection system. At this time, no determination has been made
about damage to the pod and it is not anticipated that mission
STS-83, set for launch in March 1997, will be delayed. No injuries
were reported but an investigation board has been formed to determine
the circumstances which led to the release of the water and the
extent of the damage it caused to the pod.


SPECIAL NOTE: An investigation of the wrench found inside the solid rocket
booster (SRB) used on Atlantis' mission STS-79 has been completed.
The Anomaly Resolution Team formed immediately after the 7/16-inch
combination wrench was found in the right-hand SRB's forward skirt
determined that one of the possible sources for this wrench was USBI
Co. assembly operations. The condition of the wrench and data
available on the wrench did not allow a more specific determination.

	As a result, USBI is proceeding with enhancements to their
tool-control system and hardware inspections to preclude possible
recurrence of this problem in the future.

	Flight hardware already transferred for the next two flights
is being reinspected using enhanced procedures. Tool-control
enhancements include such things as unique tool markings, shadow
boxing tool boxes, and increased inventory checks. Inspection
improvements include additional lighting, graphics to emphasize and
assist with difficult to inspect areas, and further augmentation of
boroscopes where use of mirrors is difficult.

	The 1.77-ounce wrench did not cause any damage to components
in the booster structure. Analysis also confirmed that the wrench
could not have caused any damage to the critical components contained
in the structure.

--end--
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