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MISSION:
STS-109
-- HST
Servicing Mission 3B |
| Vehicle |
Columbia/OV-102 |
| KSC Launch
Date/Time |
March 1, 2002 at
6:22:02.080 a.m. EST |
| Target KSC Landing
Date/Time |
March 12, 2002 at
4:35 a.m. EST |
| Mission Duration |
11 days |
| Crew |
Altman, Carey,
Grunsfeld, Currie, Newman, Linnehan, Massimino |
| Orbital Insertion
Altitude/ Inclination |
308
nautical miles/28.5 degrees |
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Note (previous
notes) |
| Following
a flawless final countdown, Shuttle Columbia lifted off at
6:22:02.080 a.m. EST today on the STS-109 mission to service
the Hubble Space Telescope. Columbia, returning to space
after an extensive 2 1/2 year modification period, arced
through a scattered cloud layer minutes before dawn on the
start of an 11-day mission that includes five spacewalks after
Hubble is retrieved in the orbiter payload bay.
Quick-look data indicate the Shuttle engines performed
normally during the eight minutes of powered flight.
In the Solid Rocket Booster
recovery area some 140 miles east of Cape Canaveral, retrieval
ships Liberty Star and Freedom Star are on station, assessing
the status of the two spent booster casings in three to four
foot seas. The ships are scheduled to return to their
berths at Cape Canaveral tomorrow morning.
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