KENNEDY SPACE CENTER SPACE SHUTTLE STATUS REPORT
      THURSDAY, JUNE 3, 1999 (1:35 PM EDT)
      MISSION: STS-96 -- 2nd U.S. INTERNATIONAL SPACE STATION FLIGHT - SPACEHAB DOUBLE MODULE
      Flight Day 8

      STS-96 photos

      • VEHICLE: Discovery/OV-103
      • LOCATION: On orbit
      • OFFICIAL KSC LAUNCH DATE/TIME: May 27, 1999 at 6:50 a.m. EDT
      • TARGET KSC LANDING DATE/TIME: June 6, 1999 at 2:02 a.m. EDT
      • LAUNCH WINDOW: 10 minutes
      • ISS DOCKING DATE: May 29, 1999 at 12:24 a.m. EDT
      • ISS UNDOCKING DATE: June 3, 1999 at 6:34 p.m. EDT
      • MISSION DURATION: 9 days, 20 hours and 40 minutes
      • CREW: Rominger, Husband, Ochoa, Jernigan, Barry, Payette, Tokarev
      • ADDITIONAL PAYLOADS: ICC, STARSHINE, SVF AND IVHM
      • ORBITAL ALTITUDE and INCLINATION: 173 nautical miles/51.6 degrees

      NOTE: Shuttle Discovery is in its final day of docked operations with the International Space Station. Equipment transfer activities concluded early this morning and efforts to boost the space station's orbital position were successfully completed at about 6 a.m. Discovery's systems continue to perform very well as the flight crew prepares to undock from the ISS later today.

      Solid rocket booster inspections and segment disassembly are in work. Removal of the solid rocket motor nozzles is ongoing and nozzle shipment to Utah is slated for Monday.

      The preliminary weather forecast for Discovery's KSC landing on Sunday calls for scattered clouds at 3,000 feet and 10,000 feet and broken at 20,000 feet; visibility at 7 miles; winds east north east at 8 knots peaking to 14 knots; temperature at 75 degrees F; humidity at 91 percent and the possibility of showers within 30 nautical miles of the runway. Forecasters will monitor the development of a surface low over the Bahamas and its impact on landing day weather conditions.

      MISSION: STS-93 -- Chandra X-ray Observatory (formerly AXAF)

      STS-93 images

      • VEHICLE: Columbia/OV-102
      • LOCATION: Vehicle Assembly Building high bay 1
      • TARGET KSC LAUNCH DATE/TIME: July 22, 1999 at 12:28 a.m. EDT (under review)
      • TARGET KSC LANDING DATE/TIME: July 26, 1999 at 11:35 p.m. EDT (under review)
      • LAUNCH WINDOW: 46 minutes
      • MISSION DURATION: 4 days, 23 hours
      • CREW: Collins, Ashby, Hawley, Coleman, Tognini
      • ORBITAL ALTITUDE and INCLINATION: 153 nautical miles/28.45 degrees

      NOTE: Columbia arrived in the VAB yesterday and soft mate of the orbiter to the external tank was completed last night. Electrical and mechanical connections are in work today and the Shuttle Interface Test begins Friday at midnight.

      Electrical and mechanical testing of the mated Chandra X-ray Observatory and Inertial Upper Stage is scheduled this week. The spacecraft remains on schedule for transfer to Launch Pad 39B on June 21.

      STS-93 SCHEDULED OPERATIONAL MILESTONES (dates are target only):

      • Columbia rolls out to Pad 39B (June 7 at about 2 a.m.)
      • Chandra payload transferred to Pad 39B (June 21)
      MISSION: STS-99 -- SHUTTLE RADAR TOPOGRAPHY MISSION (SRTM)

      • VEHICLE: Endeavour/OV-105
      • LOCATION: OPF bay 2
      • TARGET KSC LAUNCH DATE/TIME: Sept. 16, 1999 at 8:47 a.m. EDT
      • TARGET KSC LANDING DATE/TIME: Sept. 27, 1999 at 12:52 p.m. EDT
      • LAUNCH WINDOW: 2 hours and 30 minutes
      • MISSION DURATION: 11 days, 4 hours and 5 minutes
      • CREW: Kregel, Gorie, Kavandi, Voss, Mohri, Thiele
      • ORBITAL ALTITUDE and INCLINATION: 126 nautical miles/57 degrees

      NOTE: Auxiliary power unit exhaust duct leak checks are complete. Testing of Endeavour's radar altimeter has also concluded. Modifications to the main engine dome heat shields continue. Wireless video installation efforts proceed on schedule. Modifications to the freon coolant loop No. 2 isolation valve are in work. Power reactant storage and distribution system are in progress. Installation of Endeavour's right hand orbital maneuvering system pod begins early tomorrow and Shuttle main engine installation begins Monday.

      MISSION: STS-101 -- 3rd INTERNATIONAL SPACE STATION FLIGHT - SPACEHAB DOUBLE MODULE/ICC

      • VEHICLE: Atlantis/OV-104
      • LOCATION: OPF bay 3
      • TARGET KSC LAUNCH DATE/TIME: December 2, 1999
      • TARGET KSC LANDING DATE/TIME: December 13, 1999
      • LAUNCH WINDOW: 5-10 minutes
      • MISSION DURATION: 10 days and 19 hours
      • CREW: Halsell, Horowitz, Weber, Lu, Williams, Malenchenko, Morukov
      • ORBITAL ALTITUDE and INCLINATION: 173 nautical miles/51.6 degrees

      NOTE: Atlantis' wireless video modifications continue. Mass spectrometer leak checks on the orbiter's fuel cell power plant continue. Ammonia system leak and functional testing is scheduled this week.

      --end--

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      Author: Joel Wells / NASA Public Affairs
      Curator: Kay Grinter (kay.grinter-1@ksc.nasa.gov) / Information Dynamics, Inc.
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