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Atlantis arrives at launch pad |
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Written by Derek Kessler on
Saturday, 10 November 2007
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 Less than a week after the Space Shuttle Discovery returned from a complicated construction mission to the International Space Station, Atlantis has rolled out to the launch pad. Atlantis arrived for a December 3rd launch and was mated with its cargo, the ESA's Columbus laboratory module. When the shuttle launches it will continue the construction of the ISS, bringing Columbus to the newly installed Harmony Node.
The ISS will have to be prepped in advance for the arrival of Columbus and Atlantis. The Harmony Node was docked to the station at a temporary berthing. The station's residents will have to complete three spacewalks to move the space shuttle docking port, place the Harmony Node in its place, and reattach the docking port to the end of the new module.
Atlantis will be commanded by veteran astronaut Steve Frick, with Alan Poindexter serving as poilot and mission specialists Leland Melvin, Rex Walheim, Stanley Love, and German Hans Schlegel from the ESA. Also aboard will be ESA astronaut Léopold Eyharts from France, who will replace current ISS Expedition 16 Flight Engineer Daniel Tani. Tani, who just arrived on the ISS with the STS-120 Discovery mission, will return to Earth with the Atlantis crew.
Discuss: TrekUnited Forum
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"Logic is the beginning of wisdom, Valeris, not the end."
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