STS-103 MISSION ARCHIVE - COMPLETE Updated: 12/27/99 Shuttle Discovery and Hubble Servicing Mission 3A By William Harwood CBS News/Kennedy Space Center The following copy originally was posted on the Current Mission space page at http://www.cbs.com/network/news/space/current.html. Comments, suggestions and corrections welcome! TABLE OF CONTENTS STS-103 Mission Preview (11/03/99; updated 11/21/99) NASA managers mull launch dates (08/23/99) More wiring defects found; radar problem assessed (08/31/99) Wiring inspections expanded; no launch before mid October (09/02/99) NASA to launch HST mission Oct. 28; radar mission Nov. 19 (09/09/99) Next shuttle launch delayed to Nov. 19 (09/17/99) NASA sticks with plan to launch Hubble flight next (09/24/99) Engineers assess oxidizer valve corrosion (10/01/99) Launch slips to Dec. 2 (10/07/99) Main engine replacement ordered; launch delayed (11/03/99) Shuttle Discovery set for move to launch pad (11/05/99) Booster wiring problem delays rollout; launch retargeted (11/10/99) Discovery on track for Dec. 6 blastoff (11/12/99) Hubble gyroscope fails; science operations suspended (11/15/99) Engineers assess new wiring issue; launch slip possible (11/21/99) Wiring fix could delay Hubble flight to at least Dec. 9 (11/22/99) Engineers troubleshoot hydraulic system leak (11/23/99) Engineers asked to look at engine computer wiring (11/27/99) No problems found with engine computer wiring (11/29/99) Shuttle launch slips to Dec. 11 (12/01/99; updated 12/02/99) Shuttle on track for Saturday night launch (12/08/99) Hubble flights slips again; possible delay to January (12/08/99) Engineers believe repairs can support Dec. 16 launch (12/09/99 Posting updated rendezvous timeline (12/09/99) Shuttle Discovery on track for Thursday launch attempt (12/13/99) Shuttle Discovery's countdown finally begins (12/14/99) Managers insist no pressure to launch Discovery (12/14/99) Weather forecast improves; astronomers eager for launch (12/15/99) Engineers assess external tank weld concern (12/15/99) External tank weld issue appears resolved (12/15/99) Launch delayed by concern about fuel line welds (O2/16/99) Second launch attempt scrubbed due to bad weather (12/17/99) Third launch attempt called off; NASA mulls final try Sunday (12/18/99) Discovery finally rockets into orbit (12/19/99) Astronauts ready suits, tools for Hubble retrieval (12/20/99) Discovery astronauts retrieve Hubble Space Telescope (12/21/99) Gyroscopes, battery regulators successfully installed (12/22/99) Astronauts install new computer, fine guidance sensor on HST (12/23/99) Hubble repairs completed in third spacewalk (12/24/99) Space telescope deployed from shuttle Discovery (12/25/99) Astronauts say Hubble 'good model' for space servicing (12/26/99) Shuttle Discovery returns to Earth (12/27/99) =================================================================== Mission Preview: 'Quick-response' repair mission challenging (11/03/99; updated 11/21/99) Editor's Note... The following story was written for Ciel et Espace magazine before a fourth gyroscope failed on board the Hubble Space Telescope. It has been updated to reflect the actual gyro situation but not the elimination of a fourth planned spacewalk. By WILLIAM HARWOOD With the Hubble Space Telescope out of action because of gyroscope failures, NASA is mounting a quick-response shuttle repair mission in early December to install six new pointing control gyroscopes, a faster computer, a new fine guidance sensor and other equi p.m.ent to give the observatory a new lease on life. The U.S. space agency originally intended to launch the third in a series of Hubble servicing missions in June 2000. But by February of this year, three of the spinning gyroscopic devices that help lock the telescope on astronomical targets, had failed because of subtle age-related breakdowns. The three remaining gyros were the bare minimum necessary for scientific observations. Justifiably worried that one more failure would put Hubble into electronic hibernation, NASA managers decided in March to break the third Hubble servicing mission into two parts and to launch the first, known as Servicing Mission 3A, on Oct. 14. "Obviously, it's such a unique observatory and the harvest from it has been so fantastic, [project scientists are] reluctant to have it in safe mode," said William Readdy, NASA's shuttle operations manager in Washington. "Understand, we can go get it and service it even if there are no gyros remaining. So it's not a question of the safety of the spacecraft. It's a question of losing science." As it turned out, work to repair shuttle wiring problems pushed Hubble Servicing Mission 3A to early December. In the meantime - on Nov. 13 to be precise - a fourth stabilizing gyroscope finally failed, knocking Hubble out of action until the rescue mission could be launched (see the 11/15/99 entry in the STS-103 Mission Archive for complete details). While NASA managers still will not call Discovery's mission an "emergency" flight, the astronauts clearly recognize the stakes have gone up. "I'm sure if you ask the scientists who are not getting data now, they would say, hey, this is an emergency," said commander Curt Brown. "We as operations folks look at it a little bit differently. We look at the safety of the telescope. The telescope is not in any danger. ... It's there, it's ready for us to go service it. I'm glad we're going up. I wish we'd been up a little sooner, before the gyro failed and therefore we'd lost no science." For his part, spacewalker Michael Foale feels the pressure has dropped off a bit. "I feel better about it now," he said during a launch pad safety review. "Because now we really are going to put the telescope right, get it back into service producing science. Now we're not up against that addage of 'if it isn't broke, don't fix it.' So I think we're in good shape here. We're not going to do anything to change out plan, but the justification is proven to go do this mission." During four spacewalks, or EVAs, aboard the shuttle Discovery, astronauts Foale, Steven Smith, John Grunsfeld and Claude Nicollier, a Swiss flier representing the European Space Agency, will install six new gyroscopes, a new fine guidance sensor, an upgraded flight computer, a new solid-state data recorder, voltage regulators to improve battery performance and a new S-band radio transmitter. They also plan to repair cracked and peeling thermal insulation discovered during the second Hubble servicing mission in February 1997 and to make preparations for Servicing Mission 3B, now scheduled for launch in 2001. During that flight, spacewalking astronauts will install two new solar arrays, the Advanced Camera for Surveys and two high-tech cooling systems that will extend the life of a current instrument, the Near Infrared Camera and Multi-Object Spectrometer - NICMOS - and permit installation of another instrument on a future flight. In addition to resolving the gyroscope issue, breaking the third mission into two parts "has the virtue of taking a mission now scheduled for June of 2000 that was shaping up to be quite a lengthy and complicated mission and breaking it up into simpler, core components," said Hubble program scientist David Leckrone. "This allows us to avoid pressing the envelope." But the stakes are still high. The mission is complex and even though the four spacewalkers, originally assigned to the June 2000 mission, have been training since August 1998, the margin for error is small. "It's not just the astronomical community that loves Hubble," Grunsfeld reflected in an interview. "I think everybody loves it. We regard this as a maintenance mission, but a very high-profile one." Despite the hurry-up nature of the flight, however, lead flight director Linda Ham said the crew is well trained and that she is confident all of the work will be successfully accomplished. "If there aren't any major hiccups, we're going to get everything done and we'll probably have a little extra time on some of the EVAs, if not all," she said in an interview. "In the last few flights where we've had EVAs, they ran long. So things are different in space than they are in [training] on the ground. But Steve Smith and John Grunsfeld have been working this flight for a long time. They've had a lot of experience. All four of them are cross trained for all the events on these four days. They're really proficient." With commander Curt Brown, pilot Scott Kelly and French flight engineer Jean-Francois Clervoy at the controls, Discovery will rocket into a 600-kilometer-high orbit. If all goes well, the astronauts will catch up with the space telescope two days later after a precisely choreographed series of rocket firings. A veteran of two earlier shuttle missions, Clervoy plays a critical role in shuttle mission STS-103. Along with serving as Discovery's flight engineer during launch and re-entry, Clervoy will operate the shuttle's 50-foot-long robot arm to pluck Hubble out of open space and mount it on a turntable-like servicing platform in the cargo bay. He also will use the Canadian-built arm to position the spacewalkers for delicate repair work. That work will begin on the third day of the mission when Smith and Grunsfeld begin the first of four back-to-back six-hour spacewalks. As one might expect, the first item on the agenda is to replace the gyroscopes. The gyros are housed in pairs inside three boxes called rate sensing units, or RSUs, located in an equipment bay toward the aft end of the telescope. "The failure mode here is the breakage of flex wires, the little hair-sized wires that carry current into the motors," Leckrone said of the first three failures. "We think that breakage comes about because those things get embrittled because of oxygen that's trapped in the fluid in which they're suspended. And that oxygen has been there since the things were built." The Hubble gyroscopes are required to perform with very low vibration, or noise. "Consequently, the fluid they put in our gyros is thicker and it tends to hold onto its oxygen," Leckrone said. "It's that oxygen that's causing the embrittlement. That says the failure mode is not runtime related, it's age related." Replacing the gyro packs is not intrinsically difficult. "You climb inside the telescope, you disconnect some connectors, run some bolts out and swap out the gyros," Grunsfeld said. "But ... everything around us is tremendously fragile. You can't move your arm in other than a very pre-planned way when you reach for a connector. So from the ballet aspect, it has to be a highly choreographed activity." Complicating the task, the astronauts must be careful not to brush up against internal insulation, which could flake away and contaminate the optical system. In addition, the duo must avoid any contact with nearby fixed head star trackers that help keep Hubble properly oriented. Smith will be entirely inside the telescope for the RSU replacement, his feet locked in a removable foot restraint. After electrically disconnecting the first box, Smith will hold it in place while Grunsfeld, anchored to the end of the robot arm, reaches inside with a power tool to drive out bolts holding the RSU in place. Smith then will carefully pass the box out to Grunsfeld, connect its replacement and hold it in position while Grunsfeld locks it down with the power tool. The procedure will be repeated for the remaining two RSUs. Ground controllers will immediately begin so-called "aliveness" tests to verify each RSU is properly connected and operational. While that work is going on, Grunsfeld and Smith will move to the back of the telescope and open a valve that will allow any residual nitrogen to vent from the NICMOS cooling system. The NICMOS instrument, designed to operate at 58 degrees Kelvin, currently is out of action because of a thermal short that caused its nitrogen ice coolant to evaporate faster than expected. During Servicing Mission 3B, an innovative gaseous neon cooling system will be installed that will chill the instrument to about 70 degrees Kelvin and allow it to continue operation. Before then, however, engineers want to make sure all the nitrogen is gone. Assuming the gyro aliveness tests go well - a spare RSU will be available if necessary - Smith will install voltage regulator kits, or VIKs, that will keep Hubble's batteries properly conditioned and correct a problem that, in a worst-case scenario, could cause a battery to rupture. At the same time, Grunsfeld will install covers on handrails near fine guidance sensor No. 2, which will be replaced during the second spacewalk the following day. Paint on several handrails on Hubble is believed to be flaking away and the covers will minimize any threat of contamination. The second spacewalk will be carried out by Nicollier and Mir-veteran Foale. The primary objective is to install an upgraded computer and the new fine guidance sensor, one of three that work with the RSUs and other pointing control devices to keep Hubble locked onto guide stars during observations. Hubble's current DF-224 computer is built around an outdated Intel 386 processor. The replacement uses a faster radiation-hardened 486 processor, prompting jokes that Servicing Mission 3A is the most expensive 386-to-486 computer upgrade in history. "Intrinsically it's not a difficult task," Grunsfeld said of the computer replacement. "Except all the connectors are on the side of the box where you can't see them. So Mike has to do that basically without the aid of stereoscopic vision. He'll have one eye as he's reaching around to do that." Just a few inches to Foale's left, Grunsfeld said, is Hubble's data management unit, or DMU, "and huge bundles of delicate cables. So the challenge there is how do you jam yourself as close as you can to that without touching it so you can see the connectors you have to disconnect without damaging the cables. So Claude is going to be free floating by the door, telling [Foale] his clearance." Smith and Grunsfeld will carry out the third spacewalk, installing an optical control electronics package to enhance fine guidance sensor performance, a new solid-state data recorder and a replacement S-band radio transmitter. They also will install new thermal insulation over equipment bays below the focal plane. The OCE and recorder installation are considered routine. But the S-band transmitter was not designed to be replaced in orbit. "We have to work with tiny little bolts," Grunsfeld said. "It's kind of like if you had to repair a watch wearing winter gloves. I'm trying to deal with little screws that are non captive and if you drop one, obviously it'll float away." But after practicing the procedure dozens of times on the ground, Grunsfeld said what appeared to be one of the most complicated jobs in Servicing Mission 3A has evolved into "a very straightforward task. I'm pretty confident that will go just fine." The spacewalkers will close out the third excursion by "putting up some new wallpaper on the telescope. It's actually more like a huge cookie sheet on the lower part of the telescope over the electronics bays to improve the thermal condition of the telescope." The next day, Foale and Nicollier will install large blankets of multi-layer insulation, or MLI, on the front end of the telescope and repair balky latches on an equipment bay door that will be opened during Servicing Mission 3B. "Compared to the other days, it's a lighter workload," Grunsfeld said. "It has a little over an hour, probably, of time built in for optional tasks. That's assuming everything goes perfectly on all the other days." The day after the final spacewalk, Clervoy will grapple the space telescope with Discovery's robot arm and, after the shuttle's maneuvering jets are disabled, unberth it from the cargo bay work platform. He then will release Hubble into open space and Discovery will move away. Two days later, Brown and Kelly will guide the shuttle back to Earth, leaving Hubble behind in space. "For me, this is absolutely a dream flight," Grunsfeld said. "At the California Institute of Technology, I was a senior research fellow on the faculty of the physics and astronomy department. My whole life was writing proposals, getting observing time, going out and observing. I spent a lot of time up on Mount Palomar on the 60-inch telescope. So Hubble will actually be the largest optical telescope I've ever worked on." And he is not the only astronomer on the crew. Foale has a doctorate in astrophysics while Nicollier has a master's degree in the same field. "Astronomers have always been the ones to go out on expeditions," Grunsfeld said. "So it's very natural to me, and also very positive, that here we are going out to do astronomy in space and a major fraction of the crew at one time or another in their lives have done some astronomy." =================================================================== NASA managers mull launch dates (08/23/99) The near-term shuttle launch schedule remains up in the air. NASA originally intended to launch the Shuttle Radar Thematic Mapper - SRTM - mission aboard shuttle Endeavour on Sept. 16. The shuttle Discovery then would be launched Oct. 14 to service the Hubble Space Telescope. But a short circuit during the shuttle Columbia's launch in July has thrown a wrench into the near-term shuttle schedule as engineers carry out time-consuming inspections to make sure Endeavour and Discovery are safe to launch. The work will delay the SRTM mission - flight STS-99 - from Sept. 16 to at least Oct. 10, according to the latest internal NASA manifest. Under that scenario, sources say, the Hubble repair mission would be delayed from Oct. 14 to early November. But NASA managers are assessing a second option that calls for launching Discovery on its original Oct. 14 launch date. Under that scenario, the SRTM mission would slip to around Nov. 21, after the potentially hazardous Leonids meteor shower earlier in the month. It's not yet known which option ultimately will be approved, but a decision is expected next week. In some quarters, the Hubble servicing mission would appear to have the inside track. The multi-billion-dollar space telescope is equipped with six stabilizing gyroscopes, but three have failed, leaving the observatory one failure away from a scientific shutdown. Others argue Hubble, while no longer fully redundant in its critical systems, is otherwise healthy and that the radar mission should go first. As of this writing, sources say, it's a tossup as to which mission will get the nod. =================================================================== More wiring defects found; radar problem assessed (08/31/99) NASA managers continue to study launch dates for the next two shuttle missions, assessing scientific priorities, work to find and fix surprisingly numerous potentially serious wiring defects and worst-case fears about a crimped Freon line in the cooling system of the shuttle Endeavour's radar mapping payload. In addition, precautions taken as Hurricane Dennis moved up the coast delayed normal processing and repair work, which likely will push the first flight, whichever one it is, to some point after Oct. 10. NASA originally planned to launch Endeavour and the Shuttle Thematic Radar Mapper - SRTM - on Sept. 16, followed by launch of the shuttle Discovery Oct. 14 on a mission to service the Hubble Space Telescope. But NASA managers put both flights on hold in the wake of a short circuit during Columbia's launch in July that knocked out two engine control computers. Technicians ultimately traced the short to worn insulation in a wire running from the shuttle's forward avionics bays to the aft engine compartment through a long payload bay cable tray. A similar, less severe, defect was found on a cable on the opposite side of Columbia's cargo bay. Engineers believe the insulation was inadvertently damaged by one or more technicians working on cargo bay access platforms during routine pre-launch processing. Shuttle managers then ordered detailed inspections of Endeavour and Discovery, along with preliminary inspections of Atlantis. As of Monday, 20 potentially serious wiring nicks had been found in Endeavour's payload bay cable trays in which bare wire was exposed or minimal insulation remained. Nine similar nicks have been found so far aboard Discovery, along with one aboard Atlantis and two aboard Columbia. Engineers are repairing worn wiring as they go and implementing sweeping changes to prevent such damage in the future. Wire bundles are being wrapped in flexible tubing to provide an extra layer of protection and work platform procedures are being modified to prevent inadvertent contact during normal processing. Rough metal is being sanded or coated to reduce friction and more thorough inspections will be carried out when each orbiter undergoes periodic maintenance at Palmdale, Calif. In the meantime, the inspections of Endeavour are about 70 percent complete while Discovery's are about half done. More detailed inspections are planned for Atlantis and Columbia. Complicating the picture for Endeavour, a technician reported finding a crimped Freon line in the SRTM cooling system as workers were preparing to remove the payload from the shuttle's cargo bay for the wiring inspections. The technician said he did not see the crimp before he began working in the area and that it was possible he damaged the line by putting pressure on it when he apparently slipped. NASA managers are quietly praising the worker for reporting the incident in the first place. In any case, detailed inspections show the line is not leaking, but engineers are debating whether the line could rupture during the vibration of launch. In that case, SRTM would be unable to operate. If the line has to be replaced, Endeavour's launch likely would slip to November, after the Hubble repair mission aboard Discovery. As of this writing, the launch schedule remains up in the air with at least six launch options under debate. SRTM supporters are waging a spirited campaign to launch first, arguing the mission might be cancelled outright if it isn't off the ground by mid to late November. Depending on who one talks to, that's because A) the radar mapping data will be degraded by winter time northern hemisphere snow cover or B) Defense Department funding for the mission is running out. For their part, Hubble advocates point out the space telescope is one gyroscope failure away from scientific shutdown and that Discovery should be launched on its repair mission as soon as possible. But there are several complicating factors. Both flights lost ground due to Hurricane Dennis and NASA will not launch Endeavour or Discovery between Nov. 4 and Nov. 18 because of possible meteoroid impacts during the upcoming Leonids meteor shower. The threat of future hurricanes must be taken into account, along with the amount of work prime contractor United Space Alliance can carry out with its current workforce. A decision on which flight will go first had been expected by the end of this week. But it now appears shuttle program manager Ron Dittemore will carry out additional assessments next week, after additional wiring inspections. Stay tuned! =================================================================== Wiring inspections expanded; no launches before mid October at the earliest (09/02/99) NASA managers have expanded ongoing inpsections of space shuttle wiring in the wake of a short circuit during a July flight and the subsequent discovery of dozens of wiring defects in shuttle Endeavour and its sistership Discovery. NASA managers meeting today to review the progress of the wiring inspections did not discuss possible launch dates or the sequence of upcoming flights. An agency status report said only "it is anticipated that no mission could technically be ready for launch before mid-October at the earliest." A reliable NASA source said a launch date decision could be deferred another two weeks. At that point, a second set of boosters will be ready for flight and either Endeavour or Discovery could be taken to the launch pad. It now appears neither vehicle can be ready for flight before the latter part of October, which likely would push the second mission to late November, after the Leonids meteor shower. NASA originally planned to launch Endeavour on the Shuttle Radar Topography Mission - SRTM - on Sept. 16, followed by launch of Discovery Oct. 14 on a mission to service the Hubble Space Telescope. But NASA managers put both flights on hold in the wake of a short circuit during Columbia's launch in July that knocked out two engine control computers. Technicians ultimately traced the short to worn insulation in a wire running from the shuttle's forward avionics bays to the aft engine compartment through a long payload bay cable tray. A similar, less severe, defect was found on a cable on the opposite side of Columbia's cargo bay. Since then, dozens of wiring defects have been identified. Here is NASA's latest status report based on a review earlier today: NASA STATUS REPORT: 09/02/99 Shuttle managers today reviewed the progress of electrical wiring inspections and repairs on Endeavour and Discovery. Although the work is progressing well, evaluations of the findings thus far are continuing and managers have expanded the inspections based on those findings, including further inspections of areas below the floor of the payload bay. The time required to complete the work is still being assessed. Managers do not plan to discuss target launch dates for upcoming missions until more of the work has been completed, however it is anticipated that no mission could technically be ready for launch before mid-October at the earliest. Although damage to wiring has been found and repaired in each orbiter, the primary focus of the inspections and repairs is to put measures in place that ensure damage to wiring does not recur. Those measures include installing flexible plastic tubing over some wiring, smoothing and coating rough edges in the proximity of wiring, and installing various other protective shielding where needed. Also, the ground procedures and equipment used when preparing the orbiters for flight are being revised to reduce the potential for technicians to cause inadvertent damage, and plans are being formulated to ensure that electrical wiring is subject to a thorough inspection regularly as part of standard shuttle maintenance. "Our focus is to be absolutely certain that we do our very best to find, fix and prevent any recurrence of this problem," Space Shuttle Program Manager Ron Dittemore said. "We will not discuss potential launch dates for upcoming missions until we are satisfied that we have done everything we need to do to fly safely. That has and will always be our top priority." When completed, the technicians will have inspected roughly 100 miles of electrical wiring in each of the four Shuttle orbiters, comprehensively covering the vast majority of the main electrical wiring from nose to tail of the spacecraft. The areas designated for inspection have been identified by gauging their susceptibility to damage by the amount of work generally performed in those areas in the past; past modifications made to the orbiter in those areas; and the past record of wiring damage reports in those areas. Although numerous locations throughout the orbiters have been identified that require additional preventative measures, the number of places identified in each orbiter where wire has required repair includes: Endeavour.......38 Discovery.......26 Atlantis........full inspections will begin later this month Columbia........other than initial inspections associated with the short experienced during STS-93, full wiring inspections will be performed when Columbia arrives at the Boeing North American shuttle factory in Palmdale, Ca., late this month. The repaired wires include areas such as connectors that require some additional insulation and other improvements. Less than half of those identified above are locations where wire repairs related to nicks and other inadvertent damage were required. The inspections have revealed no wiring problems related to age or wear factors. Payload engineers have determined that the bent freon line associated with the SRTM payload will be repaired with a brace and replacing the line will not be necessary. The bent line was reported earlier this month by a technician working in that area. The freon line is part of a cooling system for some of the SRTM electronics. Orbiter Atlantis is currently being stored inside the Vehicle Assembly Building, awaiting the opening of Orbiter Processing Facility bay 3. Wiring inspections will begin once Atlantis is moved to the OPF. Orbiter Columbia continues to undergo routine post flight-deservicing in Orbiter Processing Facility bay 3. Workers are preparing the orbiter for its upcoming Orbiter Maintenance Down Period (OMDP) in Palmdale, CA. Once at Palmdale, extensive wiring inspections will be conducted. Columbia is scheduled to be mounted atop NASA's modified Boeing 747 on Sept. 22. The ferry flight from KSC is scheduled to begin on Sept. 23 with an overnight stop at Luke Air Force Base in Arizona. Current plans have Columbia arriving in Palmdale on Sept. 24. Because the orbiter can not be flown through precipitation of any kind, ferry flight plans are contingent upon weather conditions in the flight path. =================================================================== NASA to launch Hubble repair mission Oct. 28; radar mission Nov. 19 (09/09/99) Struggling to get the shuttle program back on track after work to repair dozens of wiring defects, NASA managers today agreed to flip-flop the next two shuttle missions, launching a high-profile Hubble Space Telescope repair mission aboard the shuttle Discovery Oct. 28 and an Earth mapping mission aboard Endeavour on Nov. 19. The radar mapping mission will come one week after launch of a critical Russian service module to the international space station and one day after the potentially dangerous Leonids meteor shower Nov. 17-18. The radar mission will be the final shuttle flight of 1999. Shuttle managers said the new launch dates are targets only and subject to change depending on the progress of work to repair wiring defects in both space shuttles. "We've established these planning dates so that those involved in flight preparations can establish the proper order of priority for work on each mission," space shuttle program manager Ron Dittemore said in a NASA status report. "However, we are continuing to review the progress of wiring inspections and repairs on Endeavour and Discovery and, as part of our continuing evaluations of those activities, we may need to revisit the subject and further adjust our target launch dates as those repairs progress," he said. "We will not fly any mission until we are satisfied that we have safely resolved the all wiring problems we have found." A short circuit five seconds after the shuttle Columbia's liftoff July 23 caused two main engine computers to shut down. The veteran shuttle made it safely into orbit using backup computers but after the flight, Dittemore ordered fleet-wide inspections to make sure no other wiring problems lurked unnoticed. Both Endeavour and Discovery were found to have dozens of wiring defects, primarily in areas, like those in Columbia's cargo bay, where workers could have caused inadvertent damage during normal between-flight processing. Endeavour was found to have more such defects than Discovery. Detailed inspections of Columbia and Atlantis are not yet complete. Hubble managers have been waging a vigorous campaign to fly as close to their original launch date as possible because three of Hubble's six stabilizing gyroscopes have failed since the last servicing mission in 1997. The telescope requires three gyroscopes for science operations and another failure would knock the space observatory out of action until a shuttle crew could be launched for repairs. "Hubble is a priceless, irreplaceable resource and it's got a finite life," chief project scientist David Leckrone said earlier this year. "So every month lost is a month lost forever to science." A six-spacewalk repair and overhaul flight, the third in a series of servicing missions, already had been planned for June 2000. But last March, Hubble project managers successfully lobbied to break that mission into two parts, launching the first - servicing mission 3A - in October to install (in order of mission priority) six new gyroscopes; six voltage regulators to prevent worst-case battery over-charging; a new computer; a replacement fine guidance sensor; a new S-band radio transmitter and a solid-state data recorder. The astronauts also will repair cracked and peeling insulation. The flight, aboard the shuttle Discovery, will last 10 days and include four spacewalks. The second part of the overhaul, servicing mission 3B, will be launched in 2001 to install a new camera, two new solar arrays and a pair of high-tech cooling systems that will extend the life of an instrument already on board and pave the way for installation of another down the road. Breaking the third servicing mission into two parts "has the virtue of taking a mission now scheduled for June of 2000 that was shaping up to be quite a lengthy and complicated mission and breaking it up into simpler, core components," said Leckrone. "This allows us to avoid pressing the envelope." Bill Readdy, a veteran shuttle commander who manages the shuttle program at NASA headquarters, said Hubble is not in any danger of being permanently sidelined. A shuttle crew could catch and repair Hubble even if no gyros were operating. The issue is when the fourth gyroscope might fail and how long Hubble might be out of action before repairs could be made. "We can go get it and service it even if there are no gyros remaining," Readdy said earlier this year. "It's not a question of the safety of the spacecraft. It's a question of losing science. ... There isn't any reason to suspect [additional gyros] might fail tomorrow or six months from now. But the probability is that by summer of 2000 one or more of the gyros would have failed. That's what's driving us." Leckrone agreed, saying "if it were just the risk of a couple of months, we'd probably take the chance. But we're risking potentially a year of downtime. If one of these gyros fails this afternoon, then even going up in October we've lost six or seven months of science." Four spacewalkers were assigned to the June 2000 repair mission in August 1998 - Steven Smith, Michael Foale, Claude Nicollier and John Grunsfeld - and they have been training for months. After the October mission was approved, Curt Brown was named commander, Scott Kelly, pilot and ESA astronaut Jean-Francois Clervoy, flight engineer and robot arm operator. "For me, this is absolutely a dream flight," Grunsfeld said in a recent interview. "At Cal Tech, I was a senior research fellow on the faculty of the physics and astronomy department. My whole life was writing proposals, getting observing time, going out and observing. I spent a lot of time up on Mount Palomar on the 60-inch telescope. So Hubble will actually be the largest optical telescope I've ever worked on." Hubble is equipped with three so-called rate sensor units, each one including two gyroscopes. Smith said it would take about half of one six-hour spacewalk - an hour per RSU - to replace all three currently aboard the telescope. The gyroscope issue is subtle. The failures apparently are not caused by how long the devices have been spinning; they are caused by the age of the machines. "We have two that have failed since the last servicing mission," Leckrone said. "We have a third one that has a partial failure and the signature of the failure is such that we're quite confident it won't last much longer. And moreover, we couldn't use that one [for science operations] even if we wanted to because its behavior is quite erratic. As far as the project is concerned, that one's tagged out." Two of the three remaining operational gyros are original equipment, launched with Hubble in 1990. "They're 14 years old from the date they were manufactured," Leckrone said. "The third one, put in during SM-1, is 11 years old. ... The failure mode here is the breakage of flex wires, the little hair-sized wires that carry current into the motors. We think that breakage comes about because those things get embrittled because of oxygen that's trapped in the fluid in which they're suspended. And that oxygen has been there since the things were built." The Hubble gyros are required to perform with very low vibration, or noise. "Consequently, the fluid they put in our gyros is thicker and it tends to hold onto its oxygen," Leckrone said. "It's that oxygen that's causing the embrittlement. That says the failure mode is not runtime related, it's age related." =================================================================== Next shuttle launch delayed to Nov. 19; NASA reconsiders flight sequence (09/17/99) While Hurricane Floyd caused only minor damage at the Kennedy Space Center, work to prepare for the storm has forced NASA to delay the next shuttle flight from Oct. 28 to Nov. 19, officials said today. But shuttle managers are reconsidering which of two missions to launch first. NASA had planned to launch the shuttle Discovery on a 10-day voyage to service the Hubble Space Telescope on Oct. 28, followed by launch of the Endeavour on Nov. 19 on an 11-day flight to map Earth with high-resolution radar. Sandwiched in between is the Russian launch of a critical space station component called the service module on Nov. 12. The NASA launch schedule was defined in part by a requirement to avoid having a manned shuttle in orbit during the potentially dangerous Leonids meteor shower, which peaks around Nov. 17-18. To protect against the possibility of a weather-related landing delays, Discovery had to get off the ground by Nov. 4 at the latest. The next launch opportunity after that was Nov. 19. But shuttle processing was interrupted by Hurricane Floyd and NASA managers said today Discovery could not be readied for launch before the end of the Oct. 28-Nov. 4 launch period. The delay, coupled with concern about the time needed to turn both shuttles around for upcoming space station flights, has prompted shuttle program manager Ron Dittemore to reconsider which mission to launch first. If Discovery and the Hubble mission get the Nov. 19 launch slot, Endeavour theoretically could be ready for takeoff on the radar mapping mission around Dec. 10, sources say. But that's an extremely optimistic schedule and it appears more likely the flight would slip to around Jan. 13. Under that scenario, one of several launch options under debate, a space station servicing mission known as STS-101/2A.2 would take off in February or March, followed by launch of the first full-time station crew on April 6. Discovery would return to space in May for station assembly mission STS-92/3A to carry a truss element into orbit. Endeavour would follow suit on station mission STS-97/41 in June. The current launch debate follows on the heels of a similar discussion earlier this month when NASA managers first decided to launch Discovery ahead of Endeavour (see the Sept. 9 status report immediately below for complete details). The original schedule called for launching Endeavour on Sept. 16 and Discovery on Oct. 14. But both flights were delayed to repair dozens of wiring defects discovered in the wake of a short circuit during the shuttle Columbia's launch July 23. In some quarters, the Hubble mission has priority because three of the space telescope's six gyroscopes have failed, leaving the observatory one failure away from scientific shutdown. But the radar mission has its own dedicated supporters and as of this writing, it's not clear which mission NASA will launch first. The Hubble flight plan and other mission-specific data below continue to reflect an Oct. 28 launch. This page will be updated throughout when a new launch date and time is announced. =================================================================== NASA sticks with plan to launch Hubble flight next (09/24/99) After reviewing the progress of work to repair shuttle wiring defects, program manager Ron Dittemore decided today to stick with plans to launch the shuttle Discovery around Nov. 19 on a mission to service the Hubble Space Telescope. There had been some doubt about whether the Hubble mission, known as STS-103, or a radar mapping flight aboard Endeavour, known as STS-99, would go first. That question was resolved today and the shuttle team now plans to launch the Space Radar Topography Mission around Dec. 6 - three days after NASA's Mars Polar Lander is scheduled to touch down near the martian south pole - if wiring repairs can be completed in time. And that's a big if. The 12-day STS-99 flight cannot launch much later than the first week in December because of Christmas holiday downtime, the possibility of an end-of-mission diversion to Edwards Air Force Base, Calif., and other factors that would impact downstream processing. Reliable sources say a December launch for STS-99 is a long shot and that it's more likely the flight ultimately will slip into January. Both Discovery and Endeavour are needed for space station assembly flights early next year and launch delays this fall already have impacted the downstream schedule. Various launch scenarios are under assessment, but it now appears NASA's next station assembly flight, a logistics and supply mission aboard shuttle Atlantis known as 2A.2, will be delayed again, from January to February. Under this scenario, the station's first full-time three-man crew would take off aboard a Soyuz spacecraft in March or April, followed by launch of Discovery in May on assembly flight 3A, a mission to deliver a large truss element to the orbital complex. Endeavour would return to flight in June, carrying solar arrays to the station on mission 4A, followed by launch of the U.S. laboratory module, Destiny, in July, some two months later than currently planned. The second full-time crew would launch in late September on mission 5A.1. That could cause problems for the Russians because of Soyuz on-orbit lifetime issues. The Russian spacecraft are only rated for 180 days in space, a limit the first crew's Soyuz could exceed under this scenario. Two cosmonauts, Gennady Padalka and Nikolai Budarin, already are in training as a contingency crew that could launch on need in case of problems during the automated docking of the Russian service module in November. There is some talk now of launching Padalka, Budarin and a U.S. astronaut as a so-called "caretaker" crew on a fresh Soyuz next summer to bridge the gap between the first two full-time station crews and to resolve the Soyuz lifetime issue. But those are long-term concerns. In the near term, NASA will have its hands full getting Discovery off the ground in November. While Nov. 19 remains the official target, insiders say Nov. 21 is a more realistic date. =================================================================== Engineers assess oxidizer valve corrosion (10/01/99) Engineers expect to complete wiring inspections and repairs aboard the shuttle Discovery next week. Launch on a mission to service the Hubble Space Telescope remains on track for Nov. 19, but NASA sources say Nov. 21 is a more likely target given the amount of work that must be completed between now and then. That work includes replacement of a slightly corroded propellant valve in Discovery's right-side orbital maneuvering system - OMS - rocket pod. During tests following the pod's installation, one of the oxidizer valves in manifold No. 5 failed to properly cycle open and closed. Subsequent inspections revealed a small amount of corrosion and managers ordered the valve replaced. That work is not expected to delay launch. But NASA managers, surprised by widespread wiring problems after a short circuit in July, also ordered engineers to inspect all the oxidizer and fuel valves in both of Discovery's OMS pods as well as a cluster of rockets in the shuttle's nose. Similar inspections will be carried out for Endeavour, which is tentatively scheduled for launch around Dec. 6 on a radar mapping mission. If additional problems are found, all bets are off. Fleet-wide inspections likely would be ordered, possibly impacting other downstream flights. Shuttle program managers will assess the wiring issue and the results of valve inspections next Thursday. =================================================================== Launch skips to Dec. 2 (10/07/99) NASA managers today decided to delay the shuttle Discovery's launch on a Hubble Space Telescope servicing mission from around Nov. 19 to Dec. 2. A radar mapping mission aboard the shuttle Endeavour, which had been targeted for early December, will slip to Jan. 13. If this schedule holds up, NASA will log just three shuttle flights in 1999, the lowest total in a decade. Of more immediate concern for space enthusiasts, journalists and hard-pressed public affairs officers, NASA's Mars Polar Lander is scheduled to touch down near the red planet's south pole around 4 p.m. on Friday, Dec. 3. That raises the distinct possibility of Mars photo-release news briefings the same days as Hubble servicing spacewalks aboard Discovery. The spacewalks, however, will be carried out in the deep overnight hours Eastern time while Mars-related briefings likely will take place after the astronauts have gone to bed for the day. But viewers of NASA television should be aware that shuttle operations take priority in such conflicts and that Mars coverage may not be available on the usual transponder. Presumably, NASA will arrange for a second transponder to supplement NASA TV shuttle coverage, but details are not yet known. As it now stands - and exact times will change slightly in the days and weeks ahead - Discovery is scheduled for blastoff at 4:32 a.m. on Dec. 2. If all goes well, French astronaut Jean-Francois Clervoy will use the shuttle's robot arm to pluck Hubble out of open space around 5:04 a.m. on Dec. 4, setting the stage for four back-to-back six-hour spacewalks. A detailed flight plan, updated to reflect the new launch date and time, is posted below. But in summary, the first spacewalk, by astronauts Steven Smith and John Grunsfeld, will begin at 11:22 p.m. Dec. 4. Astronauts Michael Foale and Swiss flier Claude Nicollier will continue the work starting at 11:32 p.m. the following evening. Spacewalk No. 3, by Smith and Grunsfeld, will begin at 11:32 p.m. on Dec. 6 with the final outing, by Foale and Nicollier, on tap Dec. 7 at 11:27 p.m. All four spacewalks will end around 5 a.m. if no major problems develop. In any case, Clervoy plans to release Hubble into open space at 1:47 a.m. on Dec. 9 to complete the primary objectives of the mission. Discovery will return to Earth on Dec. 12 with a rare nighttime landing - at 2:15 a.m. - at the Kennedy Space Center. NASA originally planned to close out 1999 with three shuttle launches. Endeavour was to take off Sept. 16 on the Space Radar Topography Mission, or SRTM, followed by Discovery's launch on the Hubble repair flight Oct. 14. A flight by Atlantis to deliver supplies to the international space station originally was planned for Dec. 2. But wiring defects discovered in the wake of a July shuttle mission forced NASA to delay all three flights and to move Discovery ahead of Endeavour. Shuttle managers initially held out hope of launching Discovery around Nov. 19 with Endeavour following suit in early December. In the end, however, work to repair a corroded propellant valve in Discovery's right-side orbital maneuvering system rocket pod, coupled with on-going efforts to complete wiring repairs, forced planners to delay Discovery's launch to Dec. 2 and to push Endeavour's flight to Jan. 13. Atlantis currently is scheduled for takeoff Feb. 10, although that date appears optimistic. "Our number one priority for the space shuttle is to fly safely, and that is why we delayed our launch preparations and have performed comprehensive wiring inspections and repairs," shuttle program manager Ron Dittemore said in a NASA status report. "As a result of our inspections, we've made significant changes in how we protect electrical wiring. We believe those changes, along with changes to the work platforms and procedures we use in the shuttle's payload bay, will prevent similar wire damage from recurring." A detailed overview of Discovery's mission is posted below, along with updated timelines, launch windows and other useful information. As always, additional updates will be posted as warranted. =================================================================== Main engine replacement ordered; launch delayed (11/03/99) NASA managers today ordered engineers to replace one of the shuttle Discovery's three main engines because of concern about a broken drill bit lodged inside the Rocketdyne powerplant. The engine will be removed and replaced at pad 39B, delaying blastoff on a Hubble Space Telescope repair mission from Dec. 2 to around Dec. 5 or 6. The drill bit in question broke off during routine engine maintenance several months ago. Because of its location, engine managers do not believe the half-inch-long bit of debris posed any credible safety threat during engine operation. In fact, two previous shuttle missions flew with similar foreign object debris, or FOD, inside main engines. But shuttle program manager Ron Dittemore today ordered Discovery's lower right engine, 2045-2A, replaced at the launch pad. A reliable source said the work would delay liftoff to around Dec. 6 or 7, although engineers may be able to improve that schedule somewhat. In the meantime, engineers resolved lingering concern about the status of heat shield tiles on Discovery. The concern was that tiles from a certain lot number could debond in flight and fall off. But engineers researching the issue were able to show no tiles from the suspect batch were in place aboard Discovery, clearing the way for rollover to the Vehicle Assembly Building Thursday. An official "drop-dead" date for getting Discovery off the ground this year has not been announced. Dittemore says flying over the Christmas holidays is not an issue, if it comes to that. But NASA will not operate a shuttle mission over the New Year holiday because of Y2K concerns. Given the possibility of landing weather delays and other factors, Discovery must get off the ground by Dec. 14 or the flight will be delayed to next year. Assuming a launch on Dec. 5, Discovery would blast off at 3:07 a.m., two days after NASA's Mars Polar Lander touches down a few hundred miles from the red planet's south pole. Jean-Francois Clervoy, operating Discovery's robot arm, would pluck Hubble out of open space at 4:14 a.m. on Dec. 7, setting the stage for the first of four back-to-back spacewalks starting at 9:57 that evening. On this schedule, Hubble would be redeployed around 12:52 a.m. on Dec. 12 and Discovery would land back at the Kennedy Space Center at 1:14 a.m. on Dec. 15. But all of that assumes a launch on Dec. 5 and a firm target date has not yet been established. This status report will be updated as soon as more information becomes available. In the meantime, the STS-103 flight plan and other mission data below will continue to reflect a Dec. 2 liftoff. =================================================================== Shuttle Discovery set for move to launch pad (11/05/99) The shuttle Discovery has been mated with its external fuel tank and solid-fuel boosters, setting the stage for rollout to pad 39B next Tuesday, Nov. 9. Launch had been set for Dec. 2, but the flight is on hold pending replacement of a suspect main engine (see below for details). As of this morning, it appeared likely liftoff would slip to Dec. 7, but engineers with United Space Alliance, the shuttle prime contractor, now believe they can make Dec. 5. A firm launch target is expected Monday. In the meantime, the STS-103 flight plan and other mission-specific data below have been updated to reflect a presumed liftoff at 3:07 a.m. Dec. 5. This status report will be updated as warranted. =================================================================== Booster wiring problem delays rollout; launch tentatively retargeted for Dec. 5 (11/10/99) Work to repair a damaged range safety self-destruct cable has forced NASA to delay moving the shuttle Discovery from the Vehicle Assembly Building to launch pad 39B. As a result, launch on a Hubble Space Telescope servicing mission is expected to slip to Dec. 6 at 2:37 a.m. =================================================================== Discovery on track for Dec. 6 blastoff (11/12/99) Engineers at the Kennedy Space Center are preparing the shuttle Discovery for rollout to pad 39B Saturday, setting the stage for a launch attempt at 2:37 a.m. Dec. 6. A damaged range safety cable was replaced in the Vehicle Assembly Building and a replacement block 2A main engine - serial number 2049 - was installed in the No. 3 (lower right) position because of concern about a broken drill bit in the original powerplant. An updated mission flight plan has been posted below reflecting the latest times for major mission events and crew interviews. A preliminary television schedule also has been posted, although readers are cautioned that it is not yet an "official" NASA product and a few events may change between now and launch. =================================================================== Hubble gyroscope fails; science operations suspended until shuttle repair mission (11/15/99) One of the Hubble Space Telescope's three remaining gyroscopes failed over the weekend, putting the spacecraft into electronic hibernation and halting science observations until the shuttle Discovery is launched on a four-spacewalk repair mission Dec. 6. All six of Hubble's gyroscopes will be replaced during the flight and if all goes well, Hubble should resume science observations sometime in January. Between now and the repair mission, however, only engineering data will be coming down from the otherwise healthy telescope. "We don't like having a spacecraft sitting there not working, but hopefully it'll only be another three weeks to the servicing mission and we'll be back on line again shortly thereafter," John Campbell, Hubble program manager at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Md., told CBS News early today. NASA originally intended to launch the next Hubble servicing mission in April, the third in a series of periodic orbital house calls to upgrade instruments and make repairs. The plan all along was to replace all six of the telescope's gyroscopes, the devices that allow Hubble to lock onto astronomical targets with the stability needed for long-duration observations. Only three gyros are required for science observations; the others are on board for redundancy. But the gyros, the most sensitive such devices ever built for space operations, can can fall victim to a subtle failure mode after years of operation and earlier this year, NASA managers were alarmed when a third gyro did, in fact, fail. That left Hubble with the bare minimum needed - three - to carry out science observations. In March, NASA managers formally agreed to to split the April repair mission into two parts and to mount a quick-response flight to Hubble in October to replace the gyroscopes, to install a new flight computer, a new guidance sensor and other equipment. Due to shuttle wiring problems and other issues, Servicing Flight 3A, as it came to be known, ultimately slipped to Dec. 6. NASA managers said all along a fourth gyroscope could fail at any moment. And over the weekend, one finally did. "It went offline Saturday morning. We tried to restart it once, but no joy," Cambell said. "We may try it a couple of more times, but it's essentially hopeless. So we're just down now for the duration." When gyro No. 1 failed Saturday, on-board flight control software automatically put Hubble into a form of electronic hibernation called "zero gyro safe mode." A protective door at the top of the telescope was closed and its two solar arrays were moved parallel to the body of the spacecraft. Hubble then was oriented so the arrays are perpendicular to the sun. "The solar arrays are aligned along the long body of the spacecraft," Campbell said. "And what we do is, using coarse sun sensors, keep the sun perpendicular to the body of the spacecraft and hence the solar arrays. So the solar arrays are never moved again. To obtain some stability, the spacecraft spins at one revolution per hour." During passes through Earth's shadow, Campbell said, the spacecraft "kind of drifts a little bit." Once back out in daylight, the sun sensors provide data to recompute the telescope's orientation. Spinning reaction wheels then are used to re-orient Hubble to face the sun again. The observatory remains in good overall health and is continuing to radio back routine engineering data. But science operations have been suspended. Campbell said Hubble is equipped with three less accurate mechanical gyroscopes for use in emergencies. They are part of the so-called retrieval mode gyro assembly, or RMGA. They cannot be used for science observations, but they can be used to stabilize the telescope to facilite capture by the space shuttle's robot arm. "They are only accessible to the hardware safe mode computer and therefore can't be used for science," Campbell said. "What we plan to do is sometime before [the final major shuttle rendezvous rocket firing] we will switch into this hardware safe mode using those gyros and the stability should be OK." The shuttle Discovery's seven-man crew is at the Kennedy Space Center this week participating in a dress-rehearsal countdown and reviewing emergency procedures. They will meet with reporters at launch pad 39B Tuesday. Quotes and observations will be posted here following the event. =================================================================== Engineers assess recent wiring issue, suspect engine leak tests (11/21/99) The shuttle Discovery's planned Dec. 6 launch on a mission to repair the crippled Hubble Space Telescope faces the possibility of a new delay because of work to repair suspect wiring between the orbiter's external fuel tank and twin solid-fuel boosters. Engineers on Friday also were assessing a potential problem with main engine No. 3, installed recently to replace a powerplant known to have a broken drill bit lodged inside. The replacement block 2A engine, serial number 2049, failed a series of leak tests late last week. A manager familiar with the issue said the problem involved a small test port seal in a low pressure liquid oxygen pump and that engineers expected to have the problem corrected by Sunday. Senior NASA managers met all day Friday to review Discovery's ground processing and readiness for flight, but they were unable to set a firm launch date. While Dec. 6 remains the official target, managers will met again Monday to review the progress of work over the weekend. At that time, a new launch date may be set. Shuttle program manager Ron Dittemore has said Discovery must get off the ground by Dec. 14 or the flight will be delayed into early 2000. NASA currently plans to launch the shuttle Endeavour on a radar mapping mission Jan. 13. But with the Hubble Space Telescope now out of action because of gyroscope failures (see the next entry for details), Discovery will fly next under any scenario, according to reliable agency sources. =================================================================== Wiring repairs expected to delay Hubble servicing mission to at least Dec. 9 (11/22/99) Work to repair suspect wiring between the space shuttle Discovery's external tank and boosters will delay launch on a mission to repair the crippled Hubble Space Telescope from Dec. 6 to around Dec. 9, NASA officials said today. A supplemental flight readiness review will be held on Dec. 1 to assess the progress of repairs and to set a firm launch date. Until then, engineers are targeting launch for 1:10 a.m. on Dec. 9. Under that scenario, Discovery's crew would grapple the space telescope around 1:37 a.m. on Dec. 11. The first of four back-to-back spacewalks to install new gyroscopes and other equipment would get underway at 8 p.m. that night. Hubble would be released into open space around 10:18 .m. on Dec. 15 and Discovery would land back at the Kennedy Space Center around 10:30 p.m. on Dec. 18. Shuttle program manager Ron Dittemore said earlier this month Discovery would not be launched past Dec. 14 to avoid any chance, due to landing weather delays or other issues, of having a shuttle in orbit over the New Year holiday. While no one at NASA believes any Y2K problems exist in the shuttle's ground or flight control software, no one wants to take any unnecessary chances, either. But sources said today if worse came to worse Dittemore might, in fact, consider launching Discovery one or two days past Dec. 14 to get Hubble back in operation as soon as possible if the only other choice is delaying until next year. In that case, however, one or two of the four planned Hubble repair spacewalks would be cancelled to get the orbiter back on the ground by Dec. 26 or 27 (including possible landing weather delays) at the latest. All of the high-priority repair items are scheduled for the first two spacewalks; the other work could be deferred to the next scheduled repair mission in 2001 if necessary. But NASA managers are hopeful no such decisions will be required and that Discovery will finally be ready to go around Dec. 9. An updated mission flight plan reflecting a Dec. 9 launch has been posted below. For earlier status reports, details on past launch delays and background on Hubble's technical problems, see the STS-103 Mission Archive. =================================================================== Engineers troubleshoot hydraulic system leak (11/23/99) With unfinished work piling up and little time left to complete it, engineers have discovered yet another problem with the shuttle Discovery, an apparent leak in a hydraulic system quick-disconnect fitting that must be repaired before flight. Work to replace the fitting will not, in and of itself, delay the shuttle's planned launch Dec. 9 on a mission to repair the crippled Hubble Space Telescope. But reliable sources say virtually no contingency time remains in the schedule and any additional problems will almost certainly cause another delay. At the same time, work to repair wiring harnesses between the shuttle's external tank and boosters is not yet complete and more than 50 "open items" in a variety of areas remain to be closed out. Shuttle engineers had hoped to enjoy a four-day Thanksgiving holiday break, but electrical inspections will pick up again early Friday and managers say privately it will take a good measure of luck to make the Dec. 9 launch target. The latest problem involves a leaky quick-disconnect fitting in Auxilliary Power Unit No. 3, one of three such devices that generate the hydraulic power needed to move the shuttle's wing flaps, engine nozzles and other systems during launch and landing. The APUs are powered by toxic hydrazine fuel, which must be drained before the suspect fitting can be repaired. Such work is considered a hazardous operation, which precludes parallel work in the shuttle's aft compartment. As of this writing, engineers hoped to have the system "safed" on Wednesday so the fitting can be replaced and retested early next week. Shuttle program manager Ron Dittemore has said Discovery must get off the ground by Dec. 14 or the flight will be delayed into next year. There are indications, however, that he might consider launching one or two days past that cutoff if the only alternative is a slip to next year. See the next entry for details. =================================================================== Engineers asked to look at engine computer wiring (11/27/99) Shuttle managers have ordered additional wiring inspections to make sure electrical cables running to computers mounted on the shuttle Discovery's three main engines have not become cracked or damaged because of routine ground processing. This work, which was scheduled to begin Nov. 26, is in addition to ongoing efforts to fix damaged cables between the shuttle's external tank and boosters and work to replace a leaking quick-disconnect fitting on one of the shuttle's hydraulic power units (see the next entry for details on this issue). While launch on a mission to repair the Hubble Space Telescope remains targeted for Dec. 9, there is no time left in the schedule to handle any unexpected problems. The latest wiring issue arose from concern about the way the stiff engine controller cable harnesses are bent sharply to get them out of the way when an engine is removed or installed. Such repeated flexing could cause fatigue-related damage and NASA managers decided last week to inspect Discovery's cable harnesses to make sure no such problems exist. In the meantime, engineers expect to complete replacement of the leaking quick-disconnect fitting on Auxilliary Power Unit No. 3 by Wednesday, before managers meet for a supplemental flight readiness review. An official launch date will be set at that time. Assuming Discovery does, in fact, take off Dec. 9 at 1:10 a.m., here is the latest Hubble rendezvous timeline, updated Friday. The complete STS-103 flight plan posted below has been updated to reflect the latest rendezvous numbers. 12/09/99 01:10 AM...00...00...00...Launch 01:19 AM...00...00...09...Main engine cutoff 01:54 AM...00...00...44...OMS-2 rocket firing 06:36 AM...00...05...26...NC-1 rendezous burn 10:25 PM...00...21...15...NPC rendezvous rocket firing 12/10/99 04:26 AM...01...03...16...NSR rendezvous rocket firing 05:15 AM...01...04...05...NC2 rendezvous rocket firing 07:36 PM...01...18...26...NH rendezvous rocket firing 08:31 PM...01...19...21...NC4 rendezvous rocket firing 11:44 PM...01...22...34...Terminal initiation burn (TI) 12/11/99 12:45 AM...01...23...35...NC4 rendezvous burn 01:56 AM...02...00...46...Hubble grapple 08:00 PM...02...18...50...EVA-1: Smith, Grunsfeld egress 12/12/99 02:25 AM...03...01...15...EVA-1: Airlock repress 08:10 PM...03...19...00...EVA-2: Foale, Nicollier egress 12/13/99 02:35 AM...04...01...25...EVA-2: Airlock repress 08:10 PM...04...19...00...EVA-3: Smith, Grunsfeld egress 12/14/99 02:35 AM...05...01...25...EVA-3: Airlock repress 08:10 PM...05...19...00...EVA-4: Foale, Nicollier egress 12/15/99 02:25 AM...06...01...15...EVA-4: Airlock repress 10:35 PM...06...21...25...HST is released 10:36 PM...06...21...26...Separation burn 1 11:02 PM...06...21...52...Separation burn 2 12/18/99 06:50 PM...09...17...40...Payload bay doors close 09:30 PM...09...20...20...Deorbit ignition 10:40 PM...09...21...30...Landing =================================================================== No problems found with engine computer wiring (11/29/99) Putting in a full holiday weekend of work, shuttle engineers made good progress readying the Discovery for blastoff Dec. 9. A supplemental flight readiness review is on tap Wednesday to assess the progress of work to complete a variety of last-minute repairs, including replacement of a leaking hydraulic system quick-disconnect fitting and work to fix suspect wiring between the shuttle's external tank and boosters. A firm launch date will be set after the review. "It appears - keep your fingers crossed - that we may be on track for the 9th," said a NASA manager who requested anonymity. But United Space Alliance, the company that processes space shuttles for NASA, only has one or two shifts of contingency time left in the schedule. Any significant problems from this point forward would force a launch delay. Late last week, shuttle program managers ordered engineers to inspect the wiring harnesses that lead to the computers mounted on each of Discovery's hydrogen-fueled main engines. They were concerned about the way the stiff controller cables are bent back out of the way when an engine is removed or installed. Such repeated flexing could cause fatigue-related damage. Weekened inspections, however, found no such problems. Work to replace the leaking quick-disconnect fitting is going smoothly and should be complete by Wednesday. Leak checks on main engine No. 3 also have been successfully completed following work to fix a seal in the low pressure oxygen pump. =================================================================== Shuttle launch slips two more days to Dec. 11 (12/01-02/99) Bowing to the inevitable, NASA managers today delayed the shuttle Discovery's launch on a long-awaited mission to repair the Hubble Space Telescope by two days, from Dec. 9 to Dec. 11, to give shuttle contractor United Space Alliance additional time to complete repairs and routine pre-flight preparations. There are no new problems to deal with, but work to close out the aft engine compartment and complete replacement of a leaking hydraulic system quick-disconnect fitting made it impossible to meet the Dec. 9 target. Liftoff now is targeted for 12:13 a.m. on Dec. 11. If the schedule holds up - and given the history of this mission, that's a big if - Discovery's crew will grapple the Hubble telescope at 12:59 a.m. on Dec. 13. The first of four back-to-back spacewalks to install new gyroscopes and other equipment on the observatory is set for 7:03 p.m. that night. The next three spacewalks will begin at roughly the same time on succeeding nights and if all goes well, Hubble will be released back into open space at 9:38 p.m. on Dec. 17. The shuttle crew then will return to the Kennedy Space Center for a landing at 9:43 p.m. on Dec. 20. The mission flight plan below has been updated to reflect the new launch date. Earlier this week, Hubble engineers have completed a critical test to make sure the telescope's three backup gyroscopes - the retrieval mode gyro assembly, or RMGA - will work properly to keep the observatory stable during the shuttle's final rendezvous and grapple. Hubble currently is in "zero gyro sunpoint mode," slowly rotating with its two solar arrays, positioned parallel to the long axis of the telescope, pointed at the sun. While shuttle commander Curt Brown and robot arm operator Jean-Francois Clervoy have practiced retrieving Hubble in this configuration, the job will be easier using the telescope's retrival mode gyro assembly. The retrieval gyros cannot be used for science; they were designed to keep the telescope in a stable, sun-pointing orientation for shuttle retrieval if the main gyros are out of action. That system has now been tested and engineers say it should work properly when it is re-activated during Discovery's final approach. =================================================================== Shuttle on track for Saturday night launch (12/08/99) Launch of the shuttle Discovery on a mission to repair the crippled Hubble Space Telescope has been rescheduled for 11:42 a.m. on Dec. 11. The one day slip was ordered to repair a slightly frayed wire on main engine No. 2. The mission flight plan below has been updated to reflect the new launch time and a detailed pre-launch timeline has been posted below. Updated versions of SpaceCalc will be posted here later today, along with an update to the Space Reporter's Handbook. =================================================================== Hubble repair flights slips another day; possible delay to January (12/08/99) NASA managers today delayed the shuttle Discovery's launch on a mission to repair the Hubble Space Telescope at least another 24 hours, from Saturday night to Sunday night, while engineers discuss whether a crushed hydrogen line can be repaired in time to get the flight off this year. Discovery must get off the ground by Dec. 18 at the latest to avoid any chance of being in orbit during the Y2K New Year rollover. Reliable sources familiar with Discovery's latest problem say it appears doubtful the shuttle's prime contractor, United Space Alliance, can replace the damaged tubing, retest the main engine plumbing for leaks and ready the ship for launch in time for more than one or possibly two launch attempts at the end of the December launch window - if at all. But NASA is under quite a bit of pressure to get this flight off the ground as soon as possible and USA might come up with a workable solution. A decision on whether NASA will make a run at launching Discovery this year or whether it will elect to stand down until January is expected Thursday. If Discovery isn't off the ground by Dec. 18 at the latest, the flight will slip to Jan. 13, moving the launch time up to around 7 a.m. A flight by the shuttle Endeavour, currently scheduled for liftoff around Jan. 20, presumably would slip into early February. Discovery's latest problem involves a 12-inch section of a six-foot tube that carries supercold liquid hydrogen to the shuttle's main engines to thermally condition them for startup. The system is not used after liftoff. Engineers have X-rayed the crushed section and conducted chemical tests to determine its integrity, but sources say there is little doubt the damaged tubing will have to be replaced. The issue is how difficult the work might prove to be with the shuttle in a vertical orientation at the pad and, as a result, how much time it might take to complete. No such repair has ever been done at the launch pad. In addition, any such repair would force engineers to carry out extensive retests to make sure no leaks are present and to re-validate the performance of critical engine systems. This is the latest in a series of problems that have surfaced on an almost daily basis over the past two weeks. While the impact of this latest issue is not yet known, NASA managers earlier this week refined their end-of-year plans to determine a more realistic "drop dead" launch date. At that time, they agreed Discovery's crew could launch as late as Dec. 17. It now appears Dec. 18 also is possible. But a launch on Dec. 17 would force the crew to give up its off-duty day and a launch on Dec. 18 would require the astronauts to give up their day off and one of their four planned spacewalks to ensure a landing before the New Year Y2K rollover. While the flight is scheduled to last just 10 days, planners have to allow time for two weather-related landing delays. NASA is under pressure to get Discovery off the ground as soon as possible. A gyroscope failure last month put the Hubble Space Telescope into scientific shutdown and every day the shuttle is grounded translates into another day without science for Hubble. NASA currently spends about $21 million a month to operate the space telescope. NASA originally planned to launch Discovery on Oct. 14. But a short circuit during the shuttle Columbia's launch in July prompted fleet-wide inspections and wiring repairs, ultimately pushing Discovery's launch to late November. Additional wiring problems pushed the flight to Dec. 2 and ultimately to Dec. 11, two full months behind schedule. =================================================================== Engineers believe repairs can be completed in time for Dec. 16 launch try (12/09/99) United Space Alliance engineers believe they can replace a crushed hydrogen fuel line jacket in time for NASA to make an attempt to launch the shuttle Discovery on Dec. 16 at 9:18 p.m.. The drop-dead date for launching Discovery on a critical Hubble Space Telescope repair mission is Dec. 18 (see the next entry for details). If the shuttle can, in fact, be readied for a launch try on Dec. 16, NASA would have three shots at getting the long-delayed mission off the ground before the December launch window closes. Based on a Dec. 16 liftoff, Discovery's crew would grapple the Hubble Space Telescope at 10:04 p.m. on Dec. 18. The first of four back-to-back repair spacewalks would begin at 4:08 p.m. on Dec. 19. Under this schedule, the Hubble telescope would be released at 6:43 p.m. on Dec. 23. The crew would get Christmas Eve off and spend Christmas day readying the shuttle for the return to Earth. Touchdown at the Kennedy Space Center would be targeted for around 6:48 p.m. on Dec. 26. As of this writing, it is not at all clear whether USA can complete the hydrogen line repair work in time to support Dec. 16. But after listening to the repair plan, shuttle program manager Ron Dittemore gave USA the green light to begin replacement of the damaged hydrogen line. But NASA managers will meet again Monday to reassess their progress over the weekend. If it becomes apparent Discovery can't make Dec. 16 and would instead only get one or two launch tries, Dittemore could elect to call off the campaign and delay launch to next year. A January liftoff would be scheduled for around 7 a.m. on Jan. 13. An updated STS-103 flight plan based on a Dec. 16 liftoff is posted below. Updated launch windows through Jan. 19 also have been posted. This status report will be updated later today or as warranted. =================================================================== Posting updated rendezvous timeline (12/09/99) Flight controllers in Houston have updated the Hubble Space Telescope rendezvous timeline to reflect the shuttle Discovery's planned Dec. 16 launch. Here is the latest data from mission control in Houston: DATE/TIME..HH...MM...SS...EVENT 12/16/99 09:18 PM...00...00...00...Launch 09:27 PM...00...00...09...Main engine cutoff 10:03 PM...00...00...45...OMS-2 (126.5 fps) rocket firing 12/17/99 02:40 AM...00...05...22...NC-1 rendezous burn (212 fps) 06:31 PM...00...21...13...NPC rendezvous rocket firing (2 fps) 12/18/99 12:46 AM...01...03...28...NSR rendezvous rocket firing (143 fps) 01:34 AM...01...04...16...NC2 rendezvous rocket firing (4 fps) 04:12 PM...01...18...54...NH rendezvous rocket firing (18 fps) 04:59 PM...01...19...41...NC4 rendezvous rocket firing (16 fps) 08:12 PM...01...22...54...Terminal initiation burn (2.9 fps) 10:26 PM...02...01...08...Hubble grapple 12/23/99 07:20 PM...06...22...02...HST is released 07:21 PM...06...22...03...Separation burn 1 07:46 PM...06...22...28...Separation burn 2 12/26/99 05:46 PM...09...20...28...Deorbit ignition (orbit 148) 06:56 PM...09...21...38...Landing (orbit 149) These numbers have been plugged into the STS-103 flight plan below. In addition, SpaceCalc has been updated to include these data, along with the STS-103 Space Reporter's Handbook Mission and Quick-Look supplements. =================================================================== Shuttle Discovery on track for Thursday launch attempt (12/13/99) Engineers have replaced a partially crushed hydrogen recirculation line in the shuttle Discovery's engine compartment, clearing the way for a long-delayed launch attempt at 9:18 p.m. Thursday. With forecasters predicting an 80 percent chance of acceptable weather, engineers at the Kennedy Space Center plan to start Discovery's countdown at 1:30 a.m. Tuesday. The 96th shuttle mission currently is running a full two months behind schedule because of work to fix numerous wiring problems and to replace a main engine. But as of this morning, NASA officials say the veteran shuttle is in good shape and ready for its 27th blastoff. If all goes well, Discovery's seven-man crew will catch up with the crippled Hubble Space Telescope at 10:26 p.m. on Saturday, Dec. 18, and begin the first of four back-to-back repair spacewalks at 4:08 p.m. the next day. Landing at the Kennedy Space Center is targeted for 6:56 p.m. on Sunday, Dec. 26. Here is a summary timeline (see the STS-103 flight plan below for complete details): DATE......TIME..........EVENT 12/16.....09:18 p.m.....Launch 12/18.....10:26 p.m.....Hubble telescope is captured 12/19.....04:08 p.m.....Spacewalk No. 1 begins 12/19.....10:18 p.m.....Spacewalk No. 1 ends (approximate) 12/20.....04:18 p.m.....Spacewalk No. 2 begins 12/20.....10:23 p.m.....Spacewalk No. 2 ends (approximate) 12/21.....04:18 p.m.....Spacewalk No. 3 begins 12/21.....10:28 p.m.....Spacewalk No. 3 ends (approximate) 12/22.....04:18 p.m.....Spacewalk No. 4 begins 12/22.....10:18 p.m.....Spacewalk No. 4 ends (approximate) 12/23.....07:20 p.m.....Hubble is released 12/24...................Crew day off 12/25...................Crew news conference; landing preparations 12/26.....06:56 p.m.....Discovery lands at the Kennedy Space Center This will be the third and final shuttle mission of 1999 and, if all goes as planned, the first shuttle flight in the 18-year history of the program to be in orbit over Christmas. Six astronauts on two earlier U.S. space missions - Apollo 8 in 1968 and Skylab 4 in 1973 - were in orbit over Christmas and while NASA at one point intended to launch shuttle mission STS-32 over the holidays in 1989, the flight ultimately slipped into the new year because of technical problems. NASA has until Dec. 18 to get Discovery off the ground this year or the flight will slip to Jan. 13 to avoid any possible problems with the Y2K year-end rollover. A launch on Dec. 16 would result in a full-duration 10-day mission featuring four spacewalks. If the flight is delayed to Dec. 17, the mission would be shortened one day and the crew would lose a scheduled day off. If the flight slips to Dec. 18, the crew would lose its day off and one of the four planned spacewalks in order to ensure Discovery is back on the ground and powered down before the end of the year. =================================================================== Shuttle Discovery's countdown finally begins (12/14/99) Countdown clocks began ticking early Tuesday for the shuttle Discovery's launch Thursday at 9:18 p.m. on a long-delayed mission to repair the disabled Hubble Space Telescope. With no technical problems at pad 39B, the millennium's final countdown for a manned space mission began on time at 1:30 a.m. "The vehicle's in great shape, the launch team is well prepared and it looks like the weather is going to cooperate," said NASA test director Steve Altemus. "So we're all expecting a successful launch on Thursday night." Shuttle forecaster Ed Priselac said he expects an 80 percent chance of acceptable weather and "right now, conditions look pretty good for getting off the ground." Should launch be delayed, forecasters predict another 80 percent chance of good weather Friday and 70 percent "go" conditions Saturday. Discovery must be off the ground by Saturday - Dec. 18 - at the latest or the flight will be delayed to Jan. 13. While NASA engineers say they don't expect any end-of-year Y2K rollover problems, they want Discovery on the ground and powered down by New Year's Eve. Just in case. Given the possibility of weather-related landing delays, Dec. 16 is the cutoff for carrying out a full-duration 10-day mission with four Hubble-repair spacewalks. A launch on Dec. 17 would force NASA to shorten the mission by one day while a launch on Dec. 18 would shorten the flight by two days and eliminate one of the planned spacewalks. NASA managers usually rule out making three launch attempts in a row to avoid tiring out the launch team. But for Discovery's flight, that rule almost certainly will be waived if conditions permit. In any case, Altemus said, the team is pumped up and ready for its first launch attempt since July. To stay sharp, engineers carried out a half-dozen simulated countdowns, pad rescue and closeout teams rehearsed critical procedures and NASA's mission management team, the panel that gives final clearance for launch, held additional simulations to stay as sharp as possible. "All these training activities have helped to ensure we're ready to go for launch," Altemus said. Here are today's major countdown events (a complete pre-launch timeline is available below): Tuesday, Dec. 14 01:30 a.m....Countdown begins at the T-43 hour mark 09:00 a.m....Countdown status briefing on NASA television 11:30 a.m....Shuttle managers meet to review Discovery's launch processing 12:00 p.m....Astronauts undergo medical exams 01:30 p.m....The astronauts take flights in T-38 jet trainers 03:00 p.m....Commander Curt Brown and pilot Scott Kelly practice landings in a shuttle training aircraft 04:00 p.m....Pre-launch news conference on NASA TV (approximate) 05:30 p.m....Countdown enters a 4-hour hold at the T-27 hour mark 09:30 p.m....Countdown resumes; shuttle electrical generators fueled for flight This status report will be updated after this afternoon's pre-launch news conference with senior shuttle managers. =================================================================== Managers insist they're under no pressure to launch Discovery (12/14/99) Consider the following (in no particular order): * The Hubble Space Telescope is in scientific shutdown due to gyroscope failures. Even so, it still costs NASA $21 million a month to operate the satellite. * The shuttle Discovery, originally scheduled for launch Oct. 14 to repair the telescope, has been repeatedly delayed due to wiring repairs and other problems. NASA now has just three days - from Dec. 16 through Dec. 18 - to get Discovery off the ground this year or the flight will be delayed to Jan. 13 to avoid any possible end-of-year Y2K rollover problems. * Shuttle program managers are willing to shorten the mission by one to two days - possibly eliminating one of four planned Hubble repair spacewalks - to permit launch attempts on Dec. 17 and 18. * As it now stands, Discovery's mission will be the first in the 96-flight, 18-year history of the shuttle program to be in orbit over the Christmas holidays. * If Discovery's flight slips into January, a flight by the shuttle Endeavour that currently is scheduled for launch around Jan. 23 would slip into February. And that would add to the turnaround time needed to ready both ships for upcoming space station flights. Skeptics reading the above might conclude shuttle program manager Ron Dittemore is under a fair amount of pressure - or is applying a fair amount of pressure to prime contractor United Space Alliance - to get Discovery off the ground this year. Why else drive the launch team to this last-minute campaign after weeks of difficult work to fix a surprising number of technical problems that contributed to six launch delays? Dittemore has a simple answer: The skeptics don't have the proper perspective. "There is no pressure to launch in December, none at all," Dittemore said at a pre-launch news conference. "We could just as well launch in January, there's nothing that says we have to launch in December. When we look at [launch dates], we look at the training of the team, the efficiency of the team and we have found that our teams ... are at their peak. And they are ready to go. And because the vehicle is ready, we think the right thing to do is launch this week." He said delaying the flight into January would cause more problems than it would solve. "We would actually have to back out of certain activities we have already performed on the vehicle. And then we also believe our teams would suffer some because they would have a three-week layoff and we'd have to bring them back up to their peak training. So there is some loss you suffer by going into January. It's just not a casual decision to say let's go into January because there is no rush in December. There is no rush in December. But when you are ready to go, when your teams are ready, then you ought to take the opportunity to launch and that's exactly what we're going to do." Between 200 and 300 NASA and contractor personnel - and Discovery's seven astronauts, of course - will have to work over the holidays, most of them at the Johnson Space Center in Houston. But Dittemore dismissed concern about such holiday work by pointing out that once the international space station is built, astronauts and mission controllers will be working year round every year. Discovery is scheduled for blastoff at 9:18 p.m. Thursday at the opening of a 41-minute launch window. That's exactly two months later than originally planned because of a half-dozen delays to complete complex wiring repairs, to replace a main engine and to replace a partially crushed hydrogen recirculation line in the orbiter's engine compartment. The delays have made Discovery's processing flow one of the rockiest in recent memory, but Dittemore said the result is a safer space shuttle. "A good friend of mine mentioned to me last week that the road to success is always under construction," he said. "Every time we seemed to turn around, we had another pothole, another curve, another bump that we had to overcome. And it certainly seems that was the case. We spent a lot of time looking in nooks and crannies on this vehicle over the last four or five months and I believe and the team believes that this vehicle is as safe to fly as it has been in years. The scrutiny that was used to inspect the wires and other areas of the vehicle, the intensity of the work teams and inspectors and the awareness of everybody in the system was increased because of this four-month period. And I think it will show itself in the overall increase in safety." Asked how he would reassure the public that NASA is not rushing to launch Discovery at the possible expense of flight safety, Dittemore said "I don't know where the nervousness is. I think most of the nervousness comes from you, the press. As I read the papers and see articles, I consistently see a theme that Y2K is a problem; we're rushing to launch in December; the work force is too low, are we really ready to fly? I would ask you to report back to the public what we have done." "We have spent a tremendous amount of effort and time in making these vehicles safe to fly," he said. "They are safer today than they ever have been." David Leckrone, Hubble project scientist at the Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Md., backed up Dittemore's assessment, saying "we don't want anyone to feel pressured because of this. Hubble will still be there waiting for us in January if we have to defer to January. We certainly don't want to put anyone at risk, put the system at risk, at all. But given the choice of going now and getting Hubble on line as perhaps the most important and valuable and productive scientific tool that I'm aware of in this period, getting that valuable tool back up and running is a high priority for us and we'd like to do that." And finally, Dittemore said the recent failures of two Mars missions and the perception, at least, that it's important for NASA to end the year with a success, had no bearing on his decision to press ahead for launch this week. "I've got to have my head in the game of launching shuttles and doing them safely and doing them when they're ready to fly," he said. "I read your press reports and I see what might have happened with the Mars program, but that does not affect my thinking, it does not affect my planning. If you try to put these in perspective, the Mars missions were maybe $400 million worth of [hardware]. The Chandra [X-ray Observatory] alone was a billion dollars. The shuttle did that mission. ... We ought not to lose perspective." =================================================================== Weather forecast improves; Hubble astronomers eager for repair mission (12/15/99) With no technical problems at pad 39B, the forecast for Thursday's planned launch of the shuttle Discovery has improved to 90 percent "go" during the orbiter's 42-minute launch window. The window opens at 9:18 p.m. and closes a few seconds before 10 p.m. Should launch be delayed, forecasters predict an 80 percent chance of good weather Friday and Saturday. If Discovery isn't off the ground by Saturday, the flight will be delayed to Jan. 13 to avoid any possible end-of-year Y2K rollover issues. "We're not working any issues or concerns, the flight and ground systems are go and we're looking forward to a successful launch on Thursday," NASA Test Director Doug Lyons said at a morning status briefing. Discovery currently is running two months behind schedule because of work to fix extensive wiring defects discovered in the wake of a potentially dangerous short circuit during a July shuttle launch. NASA originally intended to launch Discovery on Oct. 14 to repair the now-crippled Hubble Space Telescope. But the flight has suffered a half-dozen delays and now NASA has just three days to get Discovery off the ground before the end of the year. Lyons agreed Discovery's ground processing has been difficult, but he backed up senior NASA managers who have insisted throughout they are under no undue pressure to launch. "This whole processing flow has been a challenge for us and I think we've done the right things," Lyons said. "From a working level, we feel very confident in the decisions management has made to go repair items that were found. So we feel like we've got a real good launch vehicle, training has been uncompromised throughout this so we feel like the team is ready to go and we're very anxious to go ahead and launch. It's been a long while and that's what we're in business to do." As for the prospect of working over the holidays, Lyons said "it's natural that everybody would prefer to be at home with family and friends. But we all recognize we've got a job to do. It's a job we all love - to fly the shuttle - so we're going to stand up, go to the plate and do what's asked of us." The goal of the flight is to restore the Hubble Space Telescope to operation. The observatory has been in scientific shutdown since Nov. 13 when the fourth of six stabilizing gyroscopes failed. At least three gyros are required for astronomical observations and all six will be replaced Sunday evening during the first of four spacewalks by Discovery's crew. It costs NASA some $21 million a month to operate Hubble and if all goes well, the telescope will be back in action by early January, beaming down a steady stream of scientific data. Until then, Hubble astronomers and engineers are keeping busy refining post-servicing observation schedules and contingency plans. And keeping their fingers crossed. "It's absolutely, keenly felt that this telescope is up there not doing anything," said Anne Kinney, an astronomer with the Hubble project. "There's no doubt about that. There's an enormous desire to get the telescope fixed. You don't want the thing not to be working. It's like a car. You don't want to leave a car sitting in the garage not running, that's not good for it." =================================================================== Engineers assess external tank weld concern (12/15/99) Engineers are assessing a potential issue involving the shuttle Discovery's external fuel tank. They are reviewing paperwork to find out if the welding material used to build two oxygen lines on the tank came from a bad lot that did not meet NASA specifications. The huge fuel tanks are built by Lockheed Martin at a plant near New Orleans but the welding material in question is supplied by a subcontractor. NASA managers are scheduled to meet later this afternoon to discuss the issue and as of this writing, it's not known what impact, if any, this might have on Discovery's launch. This status report will be updated as more information becomes available. =================================================================== External tank weld issue appears resolved (12/15/99) Engineers reviewing paperwork and X-rays believe the shuttle Discovery's external fuel tank was built using NASA-approved welding material and as such, the tank appears good to go as is. While the issue will be reviewed Thursday by NASA's mission management team before the tank is loaded with rocket fuel, no additional problems are expected and Discovery should be cleared for an on-time blastoff at 9:18 p.m. The welding issue cropped up early Wednesday when engineers grew concerned about certain welds in an external tank slated for use in a downstream mission. The material used to make the welds in question did not meet NASA specifications and engineers wanted to make sure Discovery's tank had no similar problems. After a 5 p.m. meeting to review the matter, engineers concluded Discovery's tank was built with the correct materials after all. =================================================================== Shuttle launch delayed by concern about fuel line welds (12/16/99) 09:00 a.m. Update: Shuttle Discovery prepared for fueling Engineers resolved last-minute concern about suspect welds in the shuttle Discovery's external fuel tank, retracted a protective gantry early today and geared up to fuel the spacecraft with a half-million gallons of supercold liquid oxygen and hydrogen. With forecasters optimistic about good weather, Discovery's seven-man crew plans to blast off at 9:18 p.m. on a long-delayed mission to repair the crippled Hubble Space Telescope (see the mission preview below for complete details). NASA's mission management team will meet this morning at 11 a.m. to review launch processing and to formally clear the shuttle for fueling. The three-hour process is scheduled to begin around 12:30 p.m. NASA television coverage will begin at 4 p.m. with a traditional astronaut lunch/photo op at 4:18 p.m. The astronauts will begin donning their bright orange pressure suits at 4:58 p.m. and depart for pad 39B at 5:33 p.m. Tonight's launch window, based on Hubble's high orbit and Discovery's ability to catch up with the satellite, is a relatively short 42 minutes long. As a result, a final hold in the countdown at the T-minus nine-minute mark will last 40 minutes instead of the usual 10 to provide extra time to handle any unexpected problems. That final hold will begin at 8:29 p.m. and end at 9:09 p.m. 04:30 p.m. Update: Shuttle launch delayed 24 hours to review welding paperwork NASA managers today delayed the shuttle Discovery's launch another 24 hours, from 9:18 p.m. tonight to 8:47 p.m. Friday, for a paperwork review to make sure the orbiter's main engine propellant feed lines and support struts were built with proper welding procedures. Assuming the issue is resolved as engineers expect, NASA will still have to contend with Florida's mercurial weather. While forecasters initially predicted an 80 percent chance of good weather Friday and Saturday, the latest forecast calls for a 60 percent chance of low clouds and rain Friday that could delay launch. The forecast for Saturday calls for a 60 percent chance of acceptable weather. The decision to call off today's launch attempt was made following the discovery Tuesday of suspect welds in two external fuel tank pressurization lines slated for use on a future mission. Discovery's fuel tank was cleared for flight Wednesday, but the welding materials in question were supplied by a subcontractor - Arrowhead Products - which also provided materials used in welding the shuttle's main propellant feed lines. Discovery's internal fuel lines were fabricated more than 20 years ago and have flown 26 times. The issue is not the strength of the welds in question but whether they might be susceptible to fatigue, that is, a loss of strength due to repeated usage if they were, in fact, built with non-standard welding materials. Shuttle program manager Ron Dittemore said he expects a review of the manufacturing records to prove the main propellant lines were welded together as specified by NASA. The problem for NASA is that engineers did not have enough time between Tuesday and today to locate and review the necessary paperwork to prove the lines are safe for flight. "If this happened two or three days ago, you probably would not have even heard about it, we would be pressing for launch, we would have cleared it up by now," Dittemore said. "Unfortunately, we just did not have the time to get the work done and still support [fueling] today. I don't believe there's a hardware problem, I think what we have to do here is search our paperwork, convince ourselves this is a paperwork issue only. Tomorrow, when we come back for the [external tank] tanking meeting at 11 o'clock I fully expect the folks will have done their homework, will have searched the paperwork and will tell me the quality was done properly, there is no issue with any of the hardware and we'll be ready to tank tomorrow." NASA only had three days to get Discovery off the ground before standing down for the year and the 24-hour delay to Friday will force the crew to shorten the flight by one day in order to get back down by Dec. 26. As it now stands, all that will be lost is a planned day off in space for Discovery's crew. The astronauts still will be able to carry out all four planned Hubble Space Telescope repair spacewalks. But if the flight slips another day to Saturday - the final launch opportunity of the year - the lowest priority spacewalk will be cancelled along with the crew's day off. Discovery must land by Dec. 26 to avoid any possible end-of-year Y2K rollover problems. The latest delay - the seventh since NASA originally scheduled Discovery for blastoff Oct. 17, was a frustrating disappointment for the shuttle's seven-member crew and to astronomers eager to get the Hubble Space Telescope back in operation. But Hubble project scientist David Leckrone said he supported the decision to delay, adding "these guys have to do what they have to do and if they're not ready to go, we're not ready to go." "I said yesterday very clearly we intended to put no pressure on anybody and if we have to wait until January, that's what we'll do. I'd far rather get up there and get the job done with 100 percent mission success than to take any risk whatsoever not doing that. So I fully support what they're doing." Dittemore said the delay proves NASA's committment to flight safety. "I don't look at this as a time of failure," he said. "I look at it as an opportunity to improve our systems and to make things better and to increase our safety. And I think that's exactly what we've done. We've spent some time telling you that's what we're about in this business and we're not about to change our policies. The fact that we spent the time today to delay for 24 hours just to check the quality records is another indication of our seriousness about making sure that we don't rush to any launch." NASA is in the process of updating the mission timeline and television schedule to reflect the delay and the deletion of one flight day. In the meantime, I have updated the STS-103 Flight Plan below based on the latest estimates from NASA, along with the SpaceCalc spreadsheet. =================================================================== Second launch attempt scrubbed due to bad weather (12/17/99) 09:00 a.m. Update: Weather deteriorates; engineers troubleshoot circuit breaker issue Forecasters are now predicting an 80 percent chance of low clouds, rain and high winds that could delay this evening's planned launch of the shuttle Discovery on a mission to repair the crippled Hubble Space Telescope. The forecast for Saturday - NASA's last chance to launch mission STS-103 this year - calls for a 60 percent chance of unacceptable weather. Keeping their fingers crossed, engineers are preparing to begin fueling the shuttle around noon for a launch attempt at 8:47 p.m. A launch attempt Thursday was called off because of concern about the quality of critical welds in Discovery's main engine propellant lines. NASA managers believe the welds are good, but the results of a paperwork review to prove that are not yet known (see the next entry for complete details). Engineers also are troubleshooting another issue this morning. NASA spokeswoman Lisa Malone said circuit breakers in the crew module were found to be open when they should have been closed. It's not yet clear whether the breakers popped for some reason or whether they were not properly set in the first place. This does not appear to be a serious issue, but analysis is not yet complete. Here is the timeline for today's launch attempt: TIME.........EVENT 10:57 a.m....NASA's mission management team meets to assess Discovery's launch readiness and to clear the ship for fueling 11:57 a.m....Shuttle fueling begins 02:57 p.m....Shuttle fueling is complete 03:30 p.m....NASA television coverage begins 03:53 p.m....Astronaut lunch/photo op 04:23 p.m....The astronauts receive a final weather briefing 04:33 p.m....The crew begins suiting up for launch 05:03 p.m....The astronauts depart crew quarters 05:33 p.m....The astronauts arrive at pad 39B to begin strapping in 07:37 p.m....A 10-minute hold begins at the T-minus 20-minute mark 07:47 p.m....The countdown resumes 07:58 p.m....A final 40-minute hold begins at the T-minus nine-minute mark 08:38 p.m....The countdown resumes 08:47 p.m....Launch 12:05 p.m. Update: Shuttle fueling begins Monitoring threatening weather, engineers at the Kennedy Space Center began fueling the shuttle Discovery at 11:49.m. today, setting the stage for a launch attempt at 8:47 p.m. The 42-minute launch window closes at 9:29 p.m. and forecasters are predicting an 80 percent chance of low clouds, rain and high winds throughout the window that could force another 24-hour delay. The decision to press ahead with fueling was made after NASA's mission management team reviewed overnight work to document the quality of critical welds in the shuttle's main engine propellant feed lines. No problems were found and, as expected, the MMT gave the launch team permission to press ahead with today's countdown. Fueling should be complete by 3 p.m. NASA television coverage will begin at 3:30 p.m. and Discovery's seven-man crew will pose for a traditional lunch photo opportunity at 3:53 p.m. before donning their pressure suits and heading for pad 39B at 5:03 p.m. This status report will be updated as warranted throughout the day. 06:00 p.m. Update: Astronauts board shuttle for rainy launch attempt Shuttle commander Curt Brown and his six crewmates - pilot Scott Kelly, Jean-Francois Clervoy, Steven Smith, Michael Foale, John Grunsfeld and Claude Nicollier - have strapped into the shuttle Discovery for a launch attempt at 8:47 p.m. Despite heavy clouds and rain, NASA is pressing ahead in hopes the clouds will thin out as a marginal frontal boundary moves through the area. Tonight's launch window extends from 8:47 p.m. to 9:33:47 p.m., about four minutes longer than reported earlier. If the shuttle launches between 8:47:00 p.m. and 9:29:11 p.m. - the original 42-minute window - the shuttle will rendezvous with the Hubble Space Telescope on Sunday night. If the shuttle takes off during the second "window pane," i.e., between 9:29:22 p.m. and 9:33:47 p.m., the rendezvous will take place one day later, on flight day four. If that actually happens, sources say, NASA managers may reconsider their Dec. 26 landing deadline and extend the flight one day to permit the astronauts to complete their planned Hubble repairs. But that assumes a launch during the final four minutes of tonight's window. A final note: There are two collision avoidance cutouts during tonight's window. Discovery will not be allowed to take off between 9:20 p.m. and 9:21 p.m. or between 9:22 p.m. and 9:24 p.m. to avoid passing too close to spacecraft already in orbit. 08:00 p.m. Update: Countdown enters final hold The shuttle Discovery's countdown to launch entered a final planned 40-minute hold at the T-minus nine-minute mark at 7:58 p.m. Launch remains targeted for 8:47 p.m., but low clouds, rain showers and the potential for rocket-triggered lightning likely will delay blastoff. Tonight's launch window extends from 8:47 p.m. to 9:33:47 p.m. If Discovery isn't off the ground by then, the flight will be delayed 24 hours to Saturday at 8:21 p.m. This status report will be updated after Discovery takes off or as conditions warrant. 08:31 p.m. Update: Shuttle launch delayed by weather Low clouds and rain over the Kennedy Space Center have forced NASA managers to delay tonight's launch of the shuttle Discovery. Liftoff had been planned for 8:47 p.m., but a final hold in the countdown at the T-minus nine-minute mark hAs been extended due to adverse weather conditions. Tonight's launch window closes at 9:33:47 p.m. 08:52 p.m. Update: Shuttle launch delayed to Saturday Dismal weather - low clouds, rain and gusty winds - forced NASA managers to scrub tonight's attempt to launch the shuttle Discovery on a mission to repair the Hubble Space Telescope. Launch has been tentatively rescheduled for 8:21 p.m. Saturday at the opening of a 42-minute launch window. That will be NASA's final chance to get the shuttle off the ground this year to avoid any possible end-of-year Y2K rollover problems. "We've polled the weather community, we've got several constraints still out there in the weather world, we've got some showers down south of us that just are not going to clear in time," launch director Dave King told NASA test director Steve Altemus. "So it appears we need to scrub for the day and we'll recycle for a 24-hour scrub turnaround." If Discovery doesn't get off the ground by Saturday - and the forecast calls for a 70 percent chance of unacceptable weather - the flight will slip to Jan. 13 and a mission currently scheduled for takeoff around Jan. 23 will slip into early February. Discovery's crew - commander Curt Brown, pilot Scott Kelly, Frenchman Jean-Francois Clervoy, John Grunsfeld, Steven Smith, Michael Foale and Swiss flier Claude Nicollier - was expected to climb out of the shuttle about a half-hour after the scrub to head back to their crew quarters to rest up and prepare for Saturday's make-or-break launch try. Tonight's scrub marked the eighth time Discovery's launch date has slipped since NASA originally targeted the flight for Oct. 14. But only two actual launch attempts have been made. The countdown was called off Thursday because of concern about the quality of critical welds in the shuttle's main engine fuel lines. A review of manufacturing paperwork cleared up that issue, but the weather deteriorated today for the crew's second attempt. While forecasters were hopeful passage of a weak frontal boundary would bring thinner clouds in its wake, conditions did not improve enough to permit a safe launch. Unlike this evening's launch window, in which the crew could have rendezvoused with Hubble on flight day three or four, the window Saturday will permit a flight day three rendezvous only. Because of Y2K issues, Discovery must be back on the ground by Dec. 26 to give engineers time to drain toxic propellants and power down the orbiter before New Year's Eve rollover. A Saturday launch and a Dec. 26 landing would force the crew to give up a planned day off and, more important, one of their four planned Hubble repair spacewalks. While NASA has not yet released a revised timeline for a Saturday launch, here's a tentative schedule of major events (times approximate and subject to change): DATE.......TIME..........EVENT 12/18......02:30 a.m.....Crew sleep begins ...........10:31 a.m.....Mission management Team meets to give a 'go/no-go' for fueling ...........10:30 a.m.....Crew wakeup ...........11:31 a.m.....Countdown resumes at the T-6 hour mark; fueling begins ...........12:04 p.m.....Astronauts eat breakfast, enjoy free time ...........02:31 p.m.....Fueling complete ...........03:00 p.m.....NASA TV COVERAGE BEGINS ...........03:27 p.m.....Astronauts participate in lunch/photo op ...........03:57 p.m.....Astronauts attend a final weather briefing ...........04:07 p.m.....Astronauts suit up for launch ...........04:31 p.m.....Countdown resumes at the T-3 hour mark ...........04:37 p.m.....Astronauts depart crew quarters for pad 39B ...........05:07 p.m... .Astronauts arrive at the launch pad ...........06:21 p.m.....Discovery's hatch is closed and latched for launch ...........07:11 p.m.....Countdown enters a 10-minute hold at the T-20 minute mark ...........07:21 p.m.....Countdown resumes at the T-20 minute mark ...........07:32 p.m.....Countdown enters a final 40-minute built-in hold at the T-9 minute mark; MMT conducts a poll to give a final go for launch ...........08:12 p.m.....Countdown resumes at the T-9 minute mark ...........08:16 p.m.....Hydraulic power system start ...........08:21 p.m.....Launch 12/20......08:30 p.m.....Hubble is grappled 12/21......03:10 p.m.....Spacewalk No. 1 begins 12/22......03:20 p.m.....Spacewalk No. 2 begins 12/23......03:20 p.m.....Spacewalk No. 3 begins 12/24......05:25 p.m.....Hubble is released 12/25......01:20 p.m.....Crew news conference 12/26......06:30 p.m.....Discovery lands at the Kennedy Space Center 09:30 p.m. Update: Forecast deteriorates for Saturday launch; NASA considering possible Sunday attempt The forecast for Saturday's attempt to launch the shuttle Discovery has deteriorated to 70 percent "no go," prompting renewed discussions about a possible Sunday launch attempt. Joseph Rothenberg, NASA's associate administrator for space flight, said in an interview with CBS News this evening the agency will consider a Sunday launch attempt if engineers can shorten the time needed to power the shuttle down after landing. NASA has said for days that Saturday would be Discovery's final launch opportunity of the year. Shuttle program manager Ron Dittemore said Wednesday NASA needs to get the shuttle back on the ground by Dec. 26 to ensure enough time to drain toxic propellants and to shut down its electrical systems by New Year's Eve. While engineers do not believe the shuttle faces any Y2K computer glitches, they want it powered down and in the hangar just in case. NASA has to reserve two days at the end of each shuttle mission for possible weather delays and a landing at Edwards Air Force Base, Calif. Based on earlier planning by prime contractor United Space Alliance, that meant Discovery's mission had to be targeted for a landing on Dec. 26. But if engineers can come up with a way to shorten the turnaround time, NASA could, in theory, launch the shuttle on Sunday and bring it back to Earth on Dec. 27. Likewise, if the shuttle gets off the ground Saturday, managers could re-insert a Hubble repair spacewalk that otherwise would be eliminated to make a Dec. 26 landing. "We are looking at it," Rothenberg said. "We're looking at can we reduce the turnaround time from landing to off-loading propellant to getting it safe at Edwards in the event we have to come down at Edwards on the last possible landing day. If we can do that, we could squeeze out a launch on Sunday or add a fourth EVA [spacewalk] to a Saturday launch. But there are other considerations on a Sunday launch, and those are crew rest, launch team rest and will they be ready to have another attempt on Sunday?" He said engineers "may have the information tomorrow on the turnaround time at Edwards. If we don't have it tomorrow morning, it will probably be too late." Discovery's crew, meanwhile, began climbing off the shuttle about a half hour after tonight's launch attempt was called off. Rothenberg said the launch team was "disappointed, but on the other hand, there was not a high expectation we'd get off tonight. It was good we went through the tanking and the countdown to make sure we had everything debugged. That was one side benefit of it." =================================================================== Third launch attempt called off; NASA mulls final try Sunday (12/18/99) 11:20 a.m. Update: Shuttle fueling delayed while NASA managers mull launch options NASA managers have delayed fueling the shuttle Discovery while they assess a dismal weather forecast and the possibility of making a launch attempt Sunday. Fueling had been scheduled to begin at 11:30 a.m. for a launch attempt this evening at 8:21 p.m. But NASA's mission management te a.m., made up of senior shuttle managers, decided to delay the start of fueling while meteorologists evaluate new computer models of area weather. Fueling must begin by 1 p.m. for Discovery to make the opening of its 42-minute launch window at 8:21 p.m. NASA managers have repeatedly said today is Discovery's last chance to take off this year to ensure the shuttle is back on the ground and safely powered down before the end-of-year Y2K computer rollover. The mission is targeted to end on Dec. 26, but NASA always allows two additional days for weather-related landing delays and a possible diversion to Edwards Air Force Base, Calif. In that case, the shuttle could land as late as Dec. 28 and still be powered down by New Year's Eve. But after last night's weather delay, Joseph Rothenberg, associate administrator for space flight, said engineers were re-evaluating the time needed to "safe" the shuttle after landing and that it may be possible to shave a day off the worst-case end-of-mission scenario in order to make a launch attempt Sunday at 7:50 p.m. In that case, the astronauts would carry out three Hubble Space Telescope repair spacewalks, re-deploy the telescope on Christmas day and land back at the Kennedy Space Center on Dec. 27. As of this writing, no decisions have been made. The forecast for this evening calls for a 70 percent chance of unacceptable weather while conditions are expected to improve to 60 percent "go" on Sunday. NASA seldom passes up a launch opportunity and it would be somewhat surprising if the agency decided to stand down today and make an all-or-nothing shot at launch on Sunday. But stranger things have happened and given the rocky history of this particular mission, it's impossible to predict what the MMT might do. This status report will be updated as soon as a decision is announced. Assuming the MMT opts to press ahead for a launch attempt this evening, here is a rough timeline of events: TIME..........EVENT 03:00 p.m.....NASA TV COVERAGE BEGINS 03:27 p.m.....Astronauts participate in lunch/photo op 03:57 p.m.....Astronauts attend a final weather briefing 04:07 p.m.....Astronauts suit up for launch 04:31 p.m.....Countdown resumes at the T-3 hour mark 04:37 p.m.....Astronauts depart crew quarters for pad 39B 05:07 p.m... .Astronauts arrive at the launch pad 06:21 p.m.....Discovery's hatch is closed and latched for launch 07:11 p.m.....Countdown enters a 10-minute hold at the T-20 minute mark 07:21 p.m.....Countdown resumes at the T-20 minute mark 07:32 p.m.....Countdown enters a final 40-minute built-in hold at the T-9 minute mark; MMT conducts a poll to give a final go for launch 08:12 p.m.....Countdown resumes at the T-9 minute mark 08:16 p.m.....Hydraulic power system start 08:21 p.m.....Launch 12:30 p.m. Update: Saturday launch attempt scrubbed; no decision on Sunday launch option Faced with a dismal weather forecast - 80 percent "no go" - NASA's mission management te a.m. has scrubbed an attempt to launch the shuttle Discovery today. They are still debating, however, whether an attempt can be made to launch the shuttle Sunday or whether the flight will be grounded for the year. The launch window Sunday opens at 7:50 p.m. and closes at 8:32 p.m. The forecast calls for a 60 percent chance of favorable conditions. The MMT will meet again, at 10 a.m. Sunday, to assess its options and to make a decision one way or the other. The issue hinges on whether or not engineers can power the shuttle down at the end of its mission in time to avoid any possible Y2K computer glitches. A launch on Sunday would result in a landing on Dec. 27. That's no problem, but NASA always has to assume the possibility of two weather-related landing delays and a diversion to Edwards Air Force Base, Calif. In that worst-case scenario, Discovery's landing could slip to Dec. 29, leaving little time to offload toxic propellants and to power down critical electrical systems before the end-of-year Y2K rollover. "We will meet tomorrow morning at 10 a.m. for a tanking meeting to assess whether or not we will launch tomorrow night," said NASA spokesman Ed C a.m.pion. "We are still assessing the weather in terms of a launch tomorrow night and also assessing the ability to support landing on the 27th and two end-of-mission wave-off days and everything involved with [an Edwards] landing." If the shuttle does, in fact, take off Sunday, the astronauts would carry out three back-to-back spacewalks on Dec. 22, 23 and 24 and re-deploy the Hubble Space Telescope on Christmas day. If Discovery doesn't get off the ground Sunday, the flight will be delayed to Jan. 13 and a mission currently targeted for launch around Jan. 23 would slip into early February. This status report will be updated as more information becomes available. 01:30 p.m. Update: Updating mission flight plan to reflect possible Sunday launch The STS-103 flight plan has been updated to reflect a possible launch Sunday at 7:50 p.m. This is an unofficial timeline computed with SpaceCalc. NASA has not yet provided updated Hubble rendezvous data and the timing of some events may change somewhat. This flight plan will be updated as warranted. 11:00 p.m. Update: NASA managers order review of launch options NASA and contractor engineers met into the night Saturday to discuss launch options for the shuttle Discovery. At one point, reliable sources said, it appeared NASA would rule out any attempt to launch Discovery on Sunday - one day past the agency's previously announced deadline - and stand down for the year. Later, however, senior NASA managers ordered yet another review of launch and landing options and scheduled another meeting to consider possible scenarios at 8:30 a.m. Sunday. Just what those scenarios might entail is not yet known. At this point, it is no longer clear why NASA is even considering such a down-to-the-wire effort to get Discovery off the ground. Launch team engineers and even some astronauts privately question the wisdom of pressing ahead given the forecast and the Y2K issues facing the crew. This status report will be updated as soon as NASA makes a decision, one way or the other. Stay tuned! =================================================================== Discovery rockets into orbit after nine delays (12/19/99) 10:00 a.m. Update: Shuttle Discovery cleared for final launch try In a surprising turnabout, NASA managers today cleared the shuttle Discovery for a final attempt to blast off on a mission to repair the crippled Hubble Space Telescope. With forecasters now predicting an 80 percent chance of good weather - up from a 60 percent "go" forecast Saturday - Discovery and its seven-man crew are scheduled to take off at 7:50 p.m. The launch window lasts 42 minutes and closes at 8:32 p.m. Engineers are scheduled to begin pumping a half-million gallons of rocket fuel into Discovery's external tank at 11 a.m. NASA television coverage will start at 2:30 p.m. and the astronauts will suit up and head for pad 39B at 4:06 p.m. Here's a thumbnail look at upcoming events: TIME..........EVENT 12/19 10:00 a.m.....Crew wakeup 11:00 a.m.....Shuttle fueling begins 11:33 a.m.....Astronauts eat breakfast; free time 02:00 p.m.....Fueling complete 02:30 p.m.....NASA TV coverage begins 02:56 p.m.....Astronauts participate in lunch/photo op 03:26 p.m.....Astronauts attend a final weather briefing 03:36 p.m.....Astronauts suit up for launch 04:00 p.m.....Countdown resumes at the T-3 hour mark 04:06 p.m.....Astronauts depart crew quarters for launch pad 39-B 04:36 p.m.....Astronauts arrive at launch pad 05:50 p.m.....DiscoveryÕs hatch is closed and latched for launch 06:40 p.m.....Countdown enters a 10-minute hold at the T-20 minute mark 06:50 p.m.....Countdown resumes at the T-20 minute mark 07:01 p.m.....Countdown enters a final 40-minute built-in hold at the T-9 minute mark; NASA managers make a final "go-no go" decision for the launch of Discovery 07:41 p.m.....Countdown resumes at the T-9 minute mark 07:45 p.m.....Hydraulic system start 07:50 p.m.....Launch 12/21 07:41 p.m.....Hubble Space Telescope grappled by Discovery 12/22 02:40 p.m.....Spacewalk No. 1 begins 12/23 02:50 p.m.....Spacewalk No. 2 begins 12/24 02:50 p.m.....Spacewalk No. 3 begins 12/25 06:03 p.m.....Hubble is redeployed 12/27 04:13 p.m.....Deorbit ignition (orbit 118) 05:24 p.m.....Landing at the Kennedy Space Center Assuming an on-time liftoff, Discovery's crew will pluck Hubble out of open space at 7:41 p.m. Tuesday. The first of three back-to-back spacewalks to repair and service the observatory will begin around 2:40 p.m. Wednesday with the final excursion planned for Christmas Eve. If all goes well, Hubble will be released from Discovery around 6 p.m. Christmas day and Discovery will return to the Kennedy Space Center around 5:24 p.m. Dec. 27. The STS-103 flight plan below has bee updated with the latest numbers. NASA managers initially said Saturday would be the crew's final chance to launch this year because of a Y2K deadline and the ever present possibility of weather delays at the end of the mission that could divert the shuttle to Edwards Air Force Base, Calif. While NASA managers believe their software is Y2K compliant, they don't want to take any chances. For a launch today, landing will be targeted for Dec. 27 with two additional days for weather delays. In a worst-case scenario, Discovery could end up at Edwards on Dec. 29, leaving ground crews just two days or so to power down critical systems. They will not have time to drain toxic propellants, a requirement that played into NASA's original Saturday launch deadline. But engineers say the shuttle should be safe in that configuration until after the New Year begins. Flight controllers doubt that worst-case scenario will play out. Discovery's crew has multiple landing opportunities at Kennedy and Edwards on Dec. 27, 28 and 29, so the odds of ending up at Edwards on Dec. 29 are remote. If Discovery fails to get off the ground today, however, the flight definitely will slip to Jan. 13. 04:10 p.m. Update: Astronauts head for launch pad; weather appears ideal Commander Curt Brown and his six crewmates - pilot Scott Kelly, Frenchman Jean-Francois Clervoy, John Grunsfeld, Steven Smith, Michael Foale and Swiss flier Claude Nicollier - departed crew quarters and headed for pad 39B this afternoon at 4:07 p.m. to strap in and prepare for a make-or-break launch attempt at 7:50 p.m. The shuttle's external tank has been topped off with rocket fuel, there are no technical problems of any significance and the weather appears ideal, with clear skies and light breezes in the launch area. All seven shuttle fliers smiled and waved to well wishers as they boarded NASA's "astrovan" for the 25-minute trip to the launch pad, looking cheerful and optimistic about their chances of getting off the ground this evening. Brown, Kelly, flight engineer Clervoy and Grunsfeld will make the climb to space strapped in on Discovery's upper flight deck. Foale, Smith and Nicollier will ride up on the orbiter's middeck. 06:10 p.m. Update: Shuttle crew strapped in for launch The Discovery astronauts are strapped in for launch. The shuttle's hatch has been closed and locked, there are no technical problems of any significance and the weather appears to be ideal for an on-time liftoff at 7:50 p.m. There are two built-in "holds" remaining in tonight's countdown: A 10-minute hold at the T-minus 20-minute mark and a 40-minute hold at T-minus nine minutes. This evening's launch window closes at 8:32 p.m. Revision D of the NASA television schedule, which assumes an on-time launch, has been posted below. This status report will be updated after Discovery takes off or as conditions warrant. 08:05 p.m. Update: Discovery rockets into orbit Facing a looming Y2K deadline, the space shuttle Discovery's crew finally rocketed away this evening on the last manned space flight of the millennium, an abbreviated, down-to-the-wire mission to repair the crippled Hubble Space Telescope. Running two months behind schedule because of technical problems and bad weather, Discovery's twin solid-fuel boosters ignited with a crackling roar at 7:50 p.m., instantly pushing the 4.5-million-pound spacecraft away from pad 39B. "We have a go for main engine start..." launch commentator Bruce Buckingham said from the firing room. "...four, three, two, one, we have booster ignition... and liftoff of the shuttle Discovery on a mission to repair the Hubble Space Telescope." "Houston, Discovery, roll program!" commander Curt Brown called out a moment later as the shuttle wheeled about to line up on the proper trajectory. The brilliant flame from the boosters' 5,000-degree exhaust briefly turned night into day as the shuttle thundered away, putting on a spectacular show for area residents and tourists. Eight-and-a-half minutes after liftoff, now moving at five miles per second, Brown and his six crewmates slipped into their planned preliminary orbit, hot on the trail of the $1.5 billion Hubble Space Telescope. "I'm thrilled to pieces," said Hubble project scientist David Leckrone. "I had convinced myself we weren't going to get to go after the washouts the last couple of nights, so this is a very nice Christmas present indeed." At the moment of launch, Hubble was sailing 370 miles above southeast Africa. But if all goes well, Discovery will catch up Tuesday night and French astronaut Jean-Francois Clervoy, operating Discovery's 50-foot-long robot arm, will pluck the observatory out of open space and mount it in the shuttle's cargo bay. Then the stage will be set for the first of three back-to-back spacewalks Wednesday evening to install six new gyroscopes and voltage regulators to keep Hubble's batteries from overheating. During two more spacewalks Thursday and Christmas Eve, the astronauts will install a new flight computer, a replacement radio transmitter, a new solid-state data recorder and insulation panels to help keep the telescope from getting too hot or too cold. "We can't wait to get back to work, to get the thing up and operating and get it back pointing to the sky," said Hubble astronomer Anne Kinney. Joining Brown aboard Discovery are pilot Scott Kelly, Frenchman Jean-Francois Clervoy, John Grunsfeld, Steven Smith, Michael Foale and Swiss flier Claude Nicollier. This evening's launch marked NASA's last opportunity of the year to get the oft-delayed repair mission off the ground because of concerns about possible end-of-year Y2K computer problems after Discovery returns to Earth. NASA managers originally said Saturday was the shuttle's drop-dead date, but they reconsidered after Discovery's crew missed three straight launch opportunities because of bad weather and a last-minute technical issue that has since been resolved. The Y2K deadline was based on NASA's worst-case landing scenario, one in which bad weather forced the crew to extend the flight by two days and then to land at Edwards Air Force Base, Calif. For a Saturday launch, that meant a possible Dec. 28 landing in California. Discovery was cleared for a launch attempt today after engineers with prime contractor United Space Alliance revised their worst-case Edwards processing plans to reduce the time needed to "safe" the shuttle after landing. Instead of draining residual liquid oxygen and liquid hydrogen, the shuttle will simply be powered down; the hydrogen and oxygen will simply vent overboard on its own. But NASA managers are optimistic it won't come to that in any case. Discovery's crew has multiple landing opportunities at Kennedy and Edwards on Dec. 27, 28 and 29, so the odds of a worst-case landing in California are remote. NASA originally planned to launch Hubble Servicing Mission 3 next April. But last February, a third stabilizing gyroscope aboard the telescope failed, leaving Hubble with the bare minimum needed - three - to carry out astronomical observations. NASA managers then decided to break Servicing Mission 3 into two parts and to launch a quick-response rescue flight on Oct. 14 to install six new gyroscopes as quickly as possible. But wiring problems in the wake of a July shuttle flight forced NASA to ground its shuttle fleet for extensive repairs. In the meantime, a fourth Hubble gyro failed Nov. 13, putting the telescope in scientific shutdown. Given that NASA spends $21 million a month to operate the observatory, the agency was eager to get Discovery off the ground as soon as possible to make repairs. "I do feel a lot of pressure from my scientific background to get the spacecraft back in operation," spacewalker John Grunsfeld said before launch. "This is a big hit for astronomy. ... We need to get off the ground, go up and fix the telescope." It wasn't easy. A launch attempt Thursday was called off because of concern about the quality of critical fuel line welds in Discovery's engine compartment. After reviewing manufacturing records, NASA managers cleared the shuttle for a launch attempt Friday night only to confront rain and low clouds that forced yet another delay. Engineers did not even bother fueling Discovery for a Saturday attempt. NASA got the Sunday launch day by cutting two days from Discovery's mission. The astronauts gave up a planned day off and the lowest-priority spacewalk, which was to have been carried out by Foale and Nicollier, was eliminated. But that was of little consequence to Discovery's crew or to scores of scientists and engineers who have been working around the clock to plan the mission and to restore Hubble to good health. A successful mission also will have an added benefit: Boosting NASA's morale after the back-to-back failures of two Mars probes in September and early December. Launch director David King echoed the thoughts of many when he told the crew Discovery had been cleared for blastoff. "We appreciate your patience hanging in there with us, the vehicle and team are ready to go," King radioed. "We hope you have a great mission to Hubble and we'll see yuou back here before the next millennium." "We copy that," Brown replied. "We know it's been a little bit challenging over the past months to get us ready to go, but we knew we had the best processing and the best laundh team in the known universe behind us. So we're honored to be part of that team and we have one request. We'd like you to send a note to Hubble to get ready, because we're on our way." A detailed overview is posted below, along with an updated flight plan and revision D of the NASA television schedule. 09:30 p.m. Update: NASA pleased with end-of-millennium launch NASA managers hailed this evening's launch of the shuttle Discovery as proof the agency is back on track after months of work to fix frayed wiring and other technical problems. "Obviously, we're very pleased," said Don McMonagle, chairman of NASA's mission management team. "We have what I believe is a darn near perfect vehicle on orbit right now, things are going extremely well. We have a vehicle that has absolutely no anomalies, not a single one. We couldn't ask for a more perfect vehicle and a more perfect scenario to execute this mission." But McMonagle said reporters should not expect flight controllers to extend Discovery's mission to pick up a fourth Hubble repair spacewalk that was eliminated earlier to permit a launch attempt today. "We do not intend to extend this mission past the 27th unless there are mitigating circumstances that require us to do that," he said. "Mission success can be achieved in three EVAs, that is the plan for this mission." But Hubble planners are looking at what the astronauts might be able to add to the existing spacewalks to complete some of the deleted tasks. "We're creating a lists of tasks that they can do at the end of each EVA if they have any time left, tasks that wouldn't involve rotating the telescope, which is a time-consuming thing to do," said Hubble project scientist David Leckrone. "So we're trying to build in opportunities to get some work done over and above the standard time line. For example, if they have a little time left, and it's a simple thing to do, they can go ahead and put one of the wallpaper [insulation] blankets on. That would be a possibility." =================================================================== Astronauts test spacesuits, rendezvous tools for Hubble capture (12/20/99) 01:00 p.m. Update: Astronauts close in on Hubble The Discovery astronauts are gearing up for a busy day in orbit, closing in on the Hubble Space Telescope while checking out the spacesuits and rendezvous tools they'll need to capture and then repair it later in the mission. At 2 p.m., the crew will lower the shuttle's cabin air pressure to 10.2 psi, the equivalent of being at an altitude of 10,000 feet. This is a standard procedure that will help spacewalkers Steven Smith, John Grunsfeld, Michael Foale and Claude Nicollier adjust to the even lower pressure settings of their spacesuits later in the mission without getting the bends. After activating and checking out Discovery's 50-foot-long robot arm, the astronauts will inspect the lazy susan-type servicing platform in the shuttle's cargo bay that Hubble will be mounted on after capture Tuesday night. The orbiter's airlock will be prepared for spacewalk operations and the crew will inspect and test the spacesuits they will use during three back-to-back spacewalks beginning Wednesday evening. At 9:35 p.m., the astronauts will field questions from CBS News and two millennium television projects, including an ABC News/PBS collaboration. A mission status briefing is scheduled for 10:15 p.m. and the crew will go to bed at 2:20 a.m. Tuesday. Throughout the next two days, commander Curt Brown and pilot Scott Kelly will be making a series of rocket firings to narrow the gap with Hubble. Two such rocket firings are planned tonight, one at 11:32 p.m. and another at 12:27 a.m. Rendezvous operations will begin at 1:18 p.m. Tuesday and if all goes well, astronaut Jean-Francois Clervoy will pluck Hubble out of open space at 7:41 p.m. The shuttle Discovery continues to operate in flawless fashion with no technical problems of any significance, circling the globe every 95 minutes in an orbit with a high point of 363 miles and a low point of 298 miles. NASA's latest mission control status report (No. 2) is posted below, along with revision E of the NASA television schedule and an updated state vector for readers with satellite tracking software. This status report will be updated throughout the day as warranted. 10:30 p.m. Update: Crew confident about Hubble repair; won't rule out extra spacewalk Despite losing one of four spacewalks because of a Y2K launch-and-landing deadline, the Discovery astronauts are confident they can complete all their major objectives before re-launching the refurbished observatory Christmas Day. "I'm sure we're going to achieve all the objectives that were specified as necessary for 100 percent success," spacewalker Michael Foale told CBS News in an orbital interview this evening. "And that's basically to replace the gyroscopes that have failed on the telescope and also change out the computer, some [battery] charging units and also the fine guidance sensor. Those are the critical elements that have to be done on this flight. We'll achieve those actually in two EVAs [spacewalks] and then we'll get some extra tasks done on the third one." Foale and crewmate Claude Nicollier spent months training for the fourth spacewalk, which was cancelled to ensure Discovery returns to Earth in plenty of time to be safely powered down before the end of the year. NASA managers believe their software is Y2K compliant, but they aren't taking any chances. For his part, Foale took the loss of a spacewalk in stride. "Well, they come, they go, and you have to kind of roll with it," he said. "I try to look at the big picture. Down the road a bit, there'll be other flights, other chances. Certainly, I would regret not getting as many EVAs as I could, being as greedy as I am, but this is fine and I understand why the program made that decision." Foale said he doubts enough time will be left over to squeeze in many of the tasks from the deleted spacewalk but commander Curt Brown did not rule out the possibility of a fourth excursion if Hubble's condition demanded additional time. "As you know, we haven't been to Hubble in a few years and we never know what we'll find," Brown said. "I'm sure if we find some need to do a fourth EVA or make changes to our current EVAs, the program would look at that and we'd come up with the right decision. Our plan right now is to do the three EVAs and, like I said, there's no better place to be than to be in space, so we're very happy up here." On a lighter note, the astronauts declined to reveal what they might be planning to mark Christmas. "We can't tell you all our secrets," Brown joked. Discovery's crew is the first in the 96-flight history of the shuttle program - and only the third in U.S. space history - to be in orbit over Christmas. Pilot Scott Kelly said he finished all his Christmas shopping before launch, when the crew was in medical isolation during multiple launch delays. "We can't do any Christmas shopping on line from here, but we were able to take care of that on line during our two weeks in quarantine," he said. "At least I was able to do that." As for explaining his absence to his five-year-old daughter? "Before we flew this mission, and there was a possibility of flying over Christmas, I talked to my five-year-old daughter about that and explained to her how that could be a possibility," he said. "And once I told her that we were going to point the telescope at the North Pole and get a picture of Santa, she was all excited and really didn't mind too much her dad being away for Christmas." During their first full day in space Monday, the astronauts successfully tested Discovery's robot arm and the flight support equipment in the orbiter's cargo bay that will be used to hold Hubble steady during the upcoming repair work. Laser range finders, computer software and other rendezvous tools were checked out as well, along with the crew's spacesuits. So far, no major problems have been found. "The orbiter Discovery is in excellent shape tonight, we have no anomalies to report," lead flight director Linda Ham told reporters. "We're in good shape for rendezvous coming up tomorrow." Discovery's launch into a slightly lower orbit was the first step in a complex rendezvous procedure that will culminate Tuesday at 7:41 p.m. with the capture of the Hubble Space Telescope. The first of three back-to-back spacewalks to repair the observatory is scheduled to get underway around 2:40 p.m. Wednesday. =================================================================== Discovery astronauts retrieve Hubble Space Telescope (12/21/99) 04:00 p.m. Update: Hubble rendezvous begins Looking like a brilliant, over-exposed star in the shuttle Discovery's television cameras, the Hubble Space Telescope stood out like a beacon against the black backdrop of space today as the orbiter closed in for rendezvous and retrieval. Clearly visible at a distance of 52 miles, Hubble appeared to be hanging stationary in space, its low-precision back-up gyroscopes holding it steady with its solar arrays aimed face on to the sun. Trailing Hubble by about 10 miles, Discovery commander Curt Brown plans to fire the shuttle's maneuvering thrusters at 5:28 p.m. to begin the terminal phase of the two-day rendezvous. If all goes well, French astronaut Jean-Francois Clervoy, operating Discovery's 50-foot-long robot arm, will pluck the four-story-tall satellite out of open space at 7:41 p.m. He then will carefully mount it atop a lazy Susan-type turntable at the back of Discovery's cargo bay where it can be rotated to give spacewalking repairmen access to critical equipment bays. A detailed post-grapple photographic survey is scheduled to help engineers assess how well Hubble's aging insulation blankets have held up to the harsh environment of space. During a servicing visit in 1997, shuttle astronauts were surprised to find that insulation on the telescope's sun-lit side had been weakened by long-term exposure to ultraviolet radiation and other space hazards. One of the goals of Discovery's mission is to install new insulation blankets in some critical areas. But the astronauts will not be able to install all the insulation they originally intended during three planned spacewalks. A fourth spacewalk was cancelled before takeoff because of launch delays and an end-of-year Y2K landing deadline. That's of little consequence in the big scheme of things. The top priority of the 96th shuttle mission is replacing all six of the telescope's stabilizing gyroscopes during a spacewalk Wednesday evening, the first of three back-to-back excursions. At least three gyros are needed for scientific operations and Hubble has been out of action since Nov. 13 when the fourth of the six already on board failed. The gyroscopes are what allow Hubble to remain locked on astronomical targets, sending signals about the telescope's orientation and motion to an on-board computer much like the inner ear tells the brain about a body's balance. Hubble's flight computer - like the brain - then sends commands to keep the telescope properly locked on a target. But the failure of the fourth gyroscope in November put the telescope into a form of electronic hibernation until Discovery's crew could install replacements. It also complicated today's rendezvous somewhat. The retrieval plan originally called for Hubble to be oriented with its base pointing toward the center of the Earth and the other end of its long axis pointing toward deep space. The preferred retrieval scenario called for Brown to approach Hubble from directly below with the shuttle's long axis properly "clocked" around so that the robot arm would be in position to move straight in and lock onto a grapple fixture. But when Hubble's fourth gyro failed, it went into "zero gyro sun-point mode" as a safety precaution. In this mode, the telescope's solar arrays are aligned parallel with the long axis of the spacecraft and the vehicle is oriented perpendicular to the sun so the arrays face dead on. It then rotates about the telescope-sun line about once an hour, all the while keeping the arrays face on to the sun to keep the observatory's batteries fully charged. While Brown and company could safely rendezvous and grapple Hubble in zero sun-point mode, they will use a slightly different approach instead. At 2:18 p.m. today, Hubble's retrieval mode gyro assembly, or RMGA, was activated. These low-precision back-up gyros were designed to stop Hubble's slow rotation. Whatever orientation the telescope was in when the RMGA's took over is the orientation Brown will have to deal with on final approach. The retrieval mode gyro assembly is "not accurate enough to do science," Brown explained before launch. "It's there for retrieval and that's what we're going to use it for. That mode puts the axis that needs to point at the sun again pointing at the sun. And it stabilizes all the other axes. It makes grapple really a non event. "It's very similar to the original plan. The only difference, maybe, is the axis that's pointing at the sun is the V3 [axis] and it can rotate around that axis. So the big end, the aperture end, may be pointing toward a different place in inertial space than we would expect it normally. But when we get there and see it, we'll fly around and align [it] and then we'll move on in and grapple it with the arm." Said arm operator Clervoy: "We trained several hours to exactly the scenario we have in orbit and Curt has always been able to stabilize the orbiter very, very steady relative to the telescope, even with the maximum drift rates we can expect. It's an easy task to grapple it." 05:30 p.m. Update: Discovery begins final rendezvous Commander Curt Brown fired the shuttle Discovery's steering thrusters today at 5:28 p.m. for 16 seconds to begin the final phase of today's rendezvous with the Hubble Space Telescope. Trailing the observatory by about 10 statute miles, the rocket firing changed Discovery's velocity by just 3 mph, causing the shuttle to drop slightly below Hubble's orbital track, or velocity vector. Orbital velocity depends solely on altitude (the radius of the orbit measured from the center of the Earth) and the terminal initiation burn will caused Discovery to slowly begin closing the gap to Hubble. Up to four mid-course correction rocket firings may be carried out to fine tune the approach. If all goes well, Discovery will be directly below Hubble around 7 p.m. The following SpaceCalc timeline is based on the latest flight plan revision as uplinked to the crew in the daily "execute package." As with all rendezvous profiles,however, the times listed are targets only and subject to change. TIME.......DD...HH...MM...EVENT 05:28 PM...01...21...38...Terminal initiation burn 05:48 PM...00...00...20...Mid-course correction burn 1 (MC 1) 06:21 PM...00...00...53...MC 2 ignition 06:38 PM...00...01...10...MC 3 ignition 06:48 PM...00...01...20...MC 4 ignition (if required) 06:48 PM...00...01...20...Brown begins manual trajectory control 07:02 PM...01...23...12...Discovery is directly below Hubble 07:07 PM...00...01...39...Range less than 400 feet 07:10 PM...00...01...42...HST solar array deflection report 07:13 PM...00...01...45...HST verified in capture attitude; range less than 200 feet 07:20 PM...00...01...52...Range 150 feet; Brown begins a manual flyaround as required to position shuttle for grapple 07:26 PM...00...01...58...KU-band antenna switched from radar to communications mode; TV possible after this at the commander's discretion 07:28 PM...00...02...00...The shuttle matches HST's rates 07:41 PM...01...23...51...The shuttle's robot arm grapples HST 08:05 PM...02...00...15...HST latched on shuttle service platform 08:30 PM...02...00...40...HST switched to shuttle power 08:40 PM...02...00...50...HST photographic survey begins 08:45 PM...02...00...55...Shuttle maneuvers for HST battery charging 10:10 PM...02...02...20...Robot arm parked 10:35 PM...02...02...45...HST heaters configured for payload bay 10:45 PM...02...02...55...HST solar arrays slewed to 0 degrees 11:15 PM...02...03...25...Detailed HST health checks begin 11:30 PM...02...03...40...Astronauts review spacewalk procedures 09:45 PM...02...01...55...Spacewalk tools configured for use 01:50 AM...02...06...00...HST checkout continues; crew sleep begins 08:10 p.m. Update: Discovery astronauts grapple Hubble Space Telescope Streaking through space at five miles per second, the Discovery astronauts pulled up to the crippled Hubble Space Telescope Tuesday and snared it with the shuttle's 50-foot-long robot arm, setting the stage for the first of three back-to-back repair spacewalks Wednesday. "Houston, Discovery, we have a good capture, we have Hubble grappled," said French astronaut Jean-Francois Clervoy after using the robot arm to grab the telescope. "Discovery, congratulations!" radioed astronaut Stephen Robinson from mission control. "Everyone in here congratulates you on your first-class job. It was a good grapple." At the moment of capture at 7:34 p.m. - seven minutes ahead of schedule - both spacecraft were sailing 370 miles above the Gulf of Mexico just south of the Johnson Space Center. Watching from the ground, the shuttle-space telescope combination appeared just slightly dimmer than Jupiter and brighter than Saturn as the spacecraft passed overhead, an impressive showing given the brightness of the near-full moon. "And Discovery, I would like to report that just as you grappled you were just about over Houston," Robinson told the crew a few minutes later. "And our observers here on the ground reported a beautiful view of your bird, Discovery, and the Hubble going overhead. It was actually visible from Houston." "That's awesome, Steve," astronaut-astronomer John Grunsfeld replied from orbit. "We were wondering whether you'd be able to see that. Thanks." "We had a lot of people watching," Robinson said. "It was really a great show from our point of view." "Ours was a little better," Grunsfeld quipped. "But thanks." With Hubble locked firmly to the end of the robot arm, Clervoy began carefully maneuvering it toward a lazy Susan-type turntable at the back of Discovery's cargo bay where it will be mounted for repairs. 11:00 p.m. Update: Telescope managers elated with successful retrieval Hubble Space Telescope program manager John Campbell, "really fantastically pleased" with the telescope's retrieval by the shuttle Discovery's crew this evening, says he's optimistic the astronauts will be able to complete at least some of the repair tasks originally planned for a now-deleted spacewalk. The astronauts originally planned to carry out four spacewalks to repair and refurbish the 10-year-old observatory, but the fourth excursion fell victim to Discovery's last-minute launch Sunday and a Y2K landing deadline. The deleted spacewalk primarily involved installing wallpaper-like insulation on the top part of the telescope's tube to keep it from getting too hot or too cold. But if the astronauts get ahead of schedule during the second and third spacewalks, or EVAs, they likely will attempt to hang one or more insulation panels as time permits. "I think we're just going to have to wait to see how it goes," Campbell said. "If there's extra time, we'll do extra things, if there's not and we get done what we set out to get done those three days, then we'll be happy." Campbell said he was elated when Discovery's crew finally captured Hubble Tuesday night after a two-day orbital chase. "I'm really fantastically pleased," he told reporters at a status briefing. "You can talk to an old friend on the telephone for a few years and kind of feel how your old friend is, but there's nothing like [getting] face to face once again and back into a formal acquaintance. Many of us have been with HST ever since launch and we can feel how HST is from telemetry. But there's nothing like seeing it. I sure was on pins and needles waiting for that first video shot that told us what it looked like." Anne Kinney, director of NASA's Origins program, said the first views of Hubble were like "seeing an old friend again." "It is just a fantastically beautiful telescope," she said. "I wish I could be up there seeing it on approach. ... There were an awful lot of smiling faces, the scientists were very happy to see this telescope again and to get their hands on it. ... I think everybody's really ready to get down to work now and fix that telescope. It was just an awfully happy day for all of us." A major question has been the condition of Hubble's exterior insulation. The side facing away from the sun - the side facing Discovery's cameras after grapple - looked in good shape, with little or no unexpected degradation. But the big question mark is the condition of the other side, which is constantly exposed to the sun's unfiltered radiation. During a servicing mission in 1997, engineers were surprised to find large areas of cracked and peeling insulation on the side facing the sun. "So far, we haven't learned a lot," Campbell said, "because the side that we've seen is the side of HST that doesn't see the sun and hadn't shown any significant degradation when we serviced HST in 1997. So we're waiting for the Hubble to be rotated 180 degrees, and that'll happen two days from now when we do the second EVA [spacewalk]." In the near term, however, the focus is on the first spacewalk, scheduled to begin around 2:40 p.m. Wednesday. Lead flight director Linda Ham said if Steve Smith and John Grunsfeld complete preparations ahead of time, they could exit the shuttle earlier than planned. The primary goal of the spacewalk is installation of six new gyroscopes and six voltage regulators to keep Hubble's batteries from over heating. These two tasks are the top priority of the mission and if Discovery had to leave Thursday, the telescope would be able to resume scientific observations. "Tomorrow is a big day," Campbell said. "The gyros are job one. I can't wait to get those gyros up and working so we know we can go back on science and have a stable telescope to work with." The gyros are housed two each inside three rate sensing units, 50-pound devices about the size of a large toaster. As soon as each RSU is plugged in, ground controllers will begin "aliveness" tests to make sure they are working properly. "As soon as the first rate sensing unit is plugged in, we'll begin doing aliveness tests," Campbell said. "Those aliveness tests are designed to make sure the electrical connectors are connected, that the pins are connected properly and that electricity is going through them properly. That gives us about 90 percent confidence everything is OK. Then later on, we'll do what we call functional tests, where we'll actually sense rates [of motion]. Because the orbiter moves, we'll be able to get some information. By the time the [access] doors are closed [at the end of the spacewalk] we should have a good idea of how we're doing." The Discovery astronauts spent the evening Tuesday carrying out a detailed photographic survey of the telescope to document its condition and re-orienting its two big solar arrays from perpendicular to the cargo bay to parallel. Flight controllers were obviously pleased with the successful start of the orbital repair work, which came on the 31st anniversary of Apollo 8's launch to the moon in 1968. That flight was the first U.S. space mission to be away from Earth over Christmas and three decades later, Discovery's is just the third. "As we looked at your video photos of the moon, we were reminded that 31 years ago today, Apollo 8 launched, taking Frank Borman and Jim Lovell and Bill Anders to the moon," astronaut Stephen Robinson radioed before signing off for the night. "Steve, we copy that," commander Curt Brown replied. "It was a beautiful sight today as we got closer and closer to Hubble and were able to accomplish the rendezvous and the grapple and the berthing. We want to say special thanks to our training team for making sure we were able to do all that hard work and to Steve Walker and the rendezvous team for making sure we knew exactly how we were going to find Hubble. As you know, it takes a team to make it work and without you all today, we couldn't have made all this work. And we appreciate all that." He paused a moment, then added: "I sure wish we were going to the moon today." =================================================================== Spacewalkers install gyroscopes, battery regulators (12/22/99) 02:05 p.m. Update: Smith and Grunsfeld begin spacewalk Astronauts Steven Smith and John Grunsfeld, floating in the shuttle Discovery's airlock, switched their spacesuits to internal battery power at 1:54 p.m. today, officially beginning the first of three spacewalks to repair the broken down Hubble Space Telescope. The astronauts began the excursion about 46 minutes ahead of schedule and likely will stay outside an additional hour or so beyond the planned six-hour duration to complete get-ahead tasks for upcoming spacewalks. "OK, John, are you ready to go EVA?" Smith asked Grunsfeld just before they floated out of the airlock. "Ready to go," astronomer-astronaut Grunsfeld replied. "All right. Hubble needs us." The goal of today's spacewalk is the highest priority of the 96th shuttle mission: Installation of six new gyroscopes to return Hubble to operation. The telescope has been in scientific shutdown since Nov. 13 when the fourth of six gyroscopes failed, leaving the observatory with one less than the bare minimum needed to lock onto and track astronomical targets. After the gyros are installed, a process expected to take about two hours and 45 minutes, Smith and Grunsfeld will install six voltage regulators to keep Hubble's batteries from overcharging and getting too hot. Once these tasks are complete, Hubble could resume normal operations even if Discovery's crew had to leave Thursday for some reason without completing the final two planned spacewalks. "The gyros are job one," said Hubble program manager John Campbell. "I can't wait to get those gyros up and working so we know we can go back on science and have a stable telescope to work with." The gyros are housed two each in boxes about the size of a small microwave oven called Rate Sensing Units, or RSUs. Each RSU weighs 24 pounds and measures 12.8-by-10.5-by-8.9 inches. The three RSUs cost NASA a combined $8 million. Installation is relatively straight forward, but Smith and Grunsfeld will have to be very careful not to damage delicate internal equipment as they work almost completely inside one of the telescope's aft equipment bays. "You climb inside the telescope, you disconnect some connectors, run some bolts out and swap out the gyros," Grunsfeld said. "But ... everything around us is tremendously fragile. You can't move your arm in other than a very pre-planned way when you reach for a connector. So from the ballet aspect, it has to be a highly choreographed activity." Complicating the task, the astronauts must be careful not to brush up against internal insulation, which could flake away and contaminate the optical system. In addition, the duo must avoid any contact with nearby fixed head star trackers that help keep Hubble properly oriented. Smith will be entirely inside the telescope for the RSU replacement. After electrically disconnecting the first box, Smith will hold it in place while Grunsfeld, anchored to the end of the robot arm, reaches inside with a power tool to drive out bolts holding the RSU in place. Smith then will carefully pass the box out to Grunsfeld, connect its replacement and hold it in position while Grunsfeld locks it down with the power tool. Ground controllers will immediately begin so-called "aliveness" tests to verify each RSU is properly connected and operational. "As soon as the first rate sensing unit is plugged in, we'll begin doing aliveness tests," Campbell said. "Those aliveness tests are designed to make sure the electrical connectors are connected, that the pins are connected properly and that electricity is going through them properly. That gives us about 90 percent confidence everything is OK. Then later on, we'll do what we call functional tests, where we'll actually sense rates. Because the orbiter moves, we'll be able to get some information. By the time the doors are closed we should have a good idea of how we're doing." While the aliveness tests are going on, Grunsfeld and Smith will move to the back of the telescope and open a valve that will allow any residual nitrogen to vent from the NICMOS cooling system. The NICMOS instrument, designed to operate at 58 degrees Kelvin, currently is out of action because of a thermal short that caused its nitrogen ice coolant to evaporate faster than expected. During Servicing Mission 3B in 2001, an innovative gaseous neon cooling system will be installed that will chill the instrument to about 70 degrees Kelvin and allow it to continue operation. Before then, however, engineers want to make sure all the nitrogen is gone. Assuming the gyro aliveness tests go well - a spare RSU will be available if necessary - Smith will install the battery voltage regulator kits, or VIKs, that will keep Hubble's batteries properly conditioned. In a worst-case scenario, overcharging could cause a battery to rupture. At the same time, Grunsfeld will install covers on handrails near fine guidance sensor No. 2, which will be replaced during the second spacewalk the following day. Paint on several handrails on Hubble is believed to be flaking away and the covers will minimize any threat of contamination. Here's a blow-by-blow description of the spacewalk by Grunsfeld from a pre-launch NASA interview: "I'll go out and climb onto that arm and we'll get to work on the very first task, which is the highest priority task, changing out those gyroscopes," Grunsfeld said. "And it's a very delicate task that we're going to do. We'll go back to the telescope, which is in the back part of the shuttle, and open some large doors, and I will physically put Steve, initially, in the bottom of the telescope where the gyros live. "And this is a very sensitive area. We have large star tracker shades that we're not allowed to touch. We have the axial scientific instrument bay, which has hundred-million-dollar science instruments. [These] are, of course, what Hubble uses to do its observing, [and] we're not allowed to touch [them]. So I'll delicately put Steve into the telescope and then with very careful choreography, we'll remove the old gyroscopes and put in the new ones. Steve is going to do two of them, then I'll take him out of the telescope and I'm going in, on the robotic arm on my back, so to speak, and replace the center one, RSU #1, again, touching nothing other than the gyroscope. "So we've been told, once we're in the telescope, to be a statue and not touch anything other than the gyroscopes. It's a very delicate activity for something that was planned to be somewhat routine. "After that, we are going to close those doors and put in something called Voltage Improvement Kits. Essentially, this is because of some battery-charging problems that they've encountered. We're going to improve the ability of Hubble to use all of its solar power for doing science. "And while Steve's doing those ... I'll actually go around to the back side of the telescope with some small pieces of white blanket and put [them] on handrails on the back of the telescope where, the next day, Claude [Nicollier] and Mike [Foale] will be working. That's because, frankly, Hubble has been in orbit for nine years, coming up on its tenth birthday in orbit, and some of the paint is starting to look a little shaky. So to protect the telescope from any flakes of paint that they might knock loose, I'm going to put covers on the handrails that they use, and so I'll be back there free-floating for about an hour. 02:30 p.m. Update: Revised spacewalk timeline Here is a revised timeline for today's spacewalk based on the actual 1:54 p.m. start time (see the next entry for an explanation of the NICMOS valves): TIME.......DD...HH...MM...EVENT 01:54 PM...00...00...00...Spacesuits to internal power 02:09 PM...00...00...15...Worksite/tools setup 03:09 PM...00...01...15...Gyro installation begins 05:54 PM...00...04...00...Gyro work ends; open NICMOS instrument valves 06:09 PM...00...04...15...Aft shroud door closure 06:19 PM...00...04...25...Grunsfeld gets off robot arm; Smith gets on 06:29 PM...00...04...35...Battery regulator (VIK) installation begins 07:39 PM...00...05...45...VIK work ends; worksite cleanup 08:09 PM...00...06...15...Airlock ingress 08:24 PM...00...06...30...Airlock repressurization 08:39 PM...00...06...45...End EVA operation 07:10 p.m. Update: Astronauts complete gyro replacement; open NICMOS valves Spacewalkers Steven Smith and John Grunsfeld completed installation of six new gyroscopes aboard the Hubble Space Telescope this evening a few minutes before 6 p.m., wrapping up the primary objective of the 96th shuttle mission. Initial "aliveness" tests to verify electrical connectivity were successful, giving flight controllers at the Goddard Space Flight Center near Greenbelt, Md., confidence the new gyroscopes will operate properly after Discovery departs. More extensive functional tests, in which the gyros will be used to actually sense the motion of the shuttle-telescope combination, will be carried out overnight. Should any problems develop - and none has as of this writing - a spare gyro pack is available that could be installed later if necessary. The gyros, housed two each in toaster-size rate sensor units, or RSUs, went in fairly easily, although the astronauts had minor problems with a few tight bolts. In addition, a box used to house one of the old RSUs failed to close properly after the unit was installed. That device will instead be stored inside the crew cabin. After completing the RSU installation, Smith and Grunsfeld attempted to open two valves in the same equipment bay to allow any residual nitrogen to vent from an instrument cooling system. The valves refused to budge. The Near Infrared Camera and Multi-Object Spectrometer - NICMOS - was designed to operate at 58 degrees above absolute zero. It currently is out of action because of a thermal short that caused its nitrogen ice coolant to evaporate faster than expected. During the next Hubble servicing mission in 2001, an innovative gaseous neon cooling system will be installed that will chill the instrument to about 70 degrees Kelvin and allow it to continue operation. Before then, however, engineers want to make sure all the nitrogen is gone. But Smith and Grunsfeld were unable to remove valve covers and thus, to open the valves in question. The spacewalkers were told to photograph the valves and to press ahead with installation of voltage regulators to keep Hubble's batteries from overheating. But a few minute later, flight controllers asked Smith and Grunsfeld to make one more attempt, using a wrench capable of delivering more torque. This time around, Smith was able to remove the covers and loosen the valves as desired. This was not an especially high priority task, but it was an important milestone toward getting the NICMOS instrument operational again. That task complete, the astronauts closed the aft shroud doors and turned their attention to installation of the battery voltage regulators. 08:35 p.m. Update: Astronauts cleared to complete voltage regulator installation after falling behind schedule Six hours and 45 minutes into a planned six-and-a-half-hour spacewalk, Steven Smith and John Grunsfeld have been given permission to install a final three battery voltage regulators to keep the Hubble Space Telescope's batteries from overheating. The spacewalk probably will run close to eight hours by the time Smith and Grunsfeld complete the work and clean up Discovery's cargo bay. The spacewalkers fell behind schedule earlier this evening when they had to make a second attempt to free up stuck coolant system valves (see below) and then ran into minor problems closing and locking two large access doors over the bay where six gyroscopes were installed earlier in the spacewalk. They originally intended to close out this first Hubble repair spacewalk by installing six voltage temperature improvement kits - one for each battery aboard the telescope - in two equipment bays. But because it took longer than planned to complete the earlier tasks, flight controllers told the astronauts to install just three regulators and to defer the other three to a later spacewalk. After assessing the timeline in more detail, the astronauts were given permission to install the final three regulators before cleaning up the cargo bay and calling it a day. The spacewalk should be complete shortly after 10 p.m. 11:15 p.m. Update: Astronauts complete first spacewalk Astronauts Steven Smith and John Grunsfeld completed the second longest spacewalk in shuttle history this evening, equipping the Hubble Space Telescope with six new gyroscopes and a half-dozen voltage regulators to keep the observatory's batteries from overheating. The spacewalk began at 1:55 p.m. and ended at 10:10 p.m. when Smith and Grunsfeld began repressurizing Discovery's airlock. "Discovery, Houston. Absolutely fantastic job today, we're very pleased with everything you've done," astronaut Stephen Robinson radioed from mission control. "You deserve a good rest tonight," "We'd like to thank you for your support," replied Michael Foale from Discovery's flight deck. "It was a long day, but we're very pleased we achieved so much. And I think Steve and John especially deserve a great hand and the great team that supported them on the ground. So thank you very much." The outing lasted eight hours and 15 minutes, second only to an eight-hour 29-minute record set in May 1992 during a satellite rescue mission. "We got everything done!"ÊGrunsfeld exclaimed when the last task was completed. "Except for a couple of handrail covers," Smith replied. "Incredible, Steve, a good job today, you guys," Foale radioed. The primary goal of the mission was to install the new gyroscopes. Hubble has been out of action since Nov. 13 because of gyro failures and with today's spacewalk, the telescope is once again operational. NASA managers were ecstatic. "The gyros are in. There are six of them, we watched as each of them got its power on, cheered each one of the six and were really pleased to see all six come up," said Hubble program manager John Campbell. "We know from the aliveness tests that the central computer can use all six gyros when the central computer needs them. The functional test that's left to do tonight is to be sure the hardware safe mode computer can use these gyros. All our experience tells us that should not be a problem, but we have to complete that to be 100 percent sure the installation was proper." Even if Discovery had to leave Hubble Thursday, Campbell said, the mission already has accomplished 80 percent of its pre-flight goals. "The most important thing was the gyros, there's no question," he said. "We need the gyros to do science. Because we didn't have the gyros, we weren't able to do science. So I would give this day a measure around 80 percent. I think the things we do in the next two days will be improvements, but it was absolutely necessary to have the new gyros installed." "That would be 80 percent for the mission," lead flight director Linda Ham emphasized. "Because we really got 100 percent of what we wanted to get done today done." Ham said the astronauts completed the gyro installation on schedule. Their next task was to remove two valve covers and then to open the valves in question to prepare Hubble for installation of an instrument refrigerator on the next servicing mission. Smith and Grunsfeld initially were unable to remove the valve covers. Mission controllers thought they were unable to turn the valves and ordered them to press ahead with other tasks. Later, Ham said, they asked the astronauts to clarify the status of the valves and learned the covers were still in place. At that time, Smith and Grunsfeld were cleared to use a different wrench capable of applying more torque and this time around, the covers and valves turned and opened as desired. But the work took longer than expected. It also took longer to close and latch the aft shroud doors over the equipment bay where the work was done. With time running out, NASA managers initially considered installing just three of the voltage regulators and to defer installation of the others to a later spacewalk. But after additional analysis, the crew was cleared to press ahead and all six were successfully installed. A second spacewalk by astronauts Foale and Claude Nicollier is scheduled to begin around 2:40 p.m. Thursday. The goal of the second excursion is to install a radiation-hardened Intel 486 computer to replace the 1970s-era machine currently on board Hubble and to install a refurbished fine guidance sensor, one of three such devices that help the telescope find and track its astronomical targets. As with today's spacewalk, Thursday's outing could begin up to an hour ahead of schedule. =================================================================== Astronauts install new computer, fine guidance sensor on HST (12/23/99) 02:15 p.m. Update: Astronauts begin second spacewalk With the patient now stabilized, two astronauts floated into the shuttle Discovery's cargo bay to give the Hubble Space Telescope an electronic brain transplant today, installing a faster, more efficient computer in place of its increasingly senile 1970s-era machine. Astronauts Michael Foale and Swiss flier Claude Nicollier also plan to install a refurbished fine guidance sensor, one of three optical devices that keep Hubble locked onto guide stars for astronomical observations. Hubble was equipped with six new gyroscopes and a half-dozen battery charging regulators during a spacewalk Wednesday by John Grunsfeld and Steven Smith that accomplished the primary goal of the 96th shuttle mission. Today's outing by Foale and Nicollier is intended to upgrade two critical systems, improving the efficiency of the observatory and its ability to steadily track astronomical targets. The excursion began at 02:06 p.m. when Foale and Nicollier, floating in Discovery's airlock, switched their $2 million spacesuits to internal battery power. While the spacewalk is officially scheduled to last six-and-a-half hours, the astronauts likely will remain outside longer to perform additional tasks if time is available. "And Claude, if you look up at the arm we've got you on the elbow camera. Welcome to the EVA fraternity," veteran spacewalker Smith radioed Nicollier as the Swiss astronaut floated into Discovery's cargo bay. Frenchman Jean-Francois Clervoy, Discovery's robot arm operator, passed along his best wishes as well. "Claude, congratulations for being the first European astronaut to be selected by NASA to go EVA," Clervoy radioed. "Thank you very much," Nicollier replied. "It's a great privilege to work on Hubble for the astronomical community all over the world." Here is a timeline of today's spacewalk based on the actual start time and the latest flight plan revision as reflected in today's uplink package to the crew. As with all spacewalks, readers should take these times with a grain of salt: TIME.......HH...MM...EVENT 02:06 PM...00...00...Start 02:21 PM...00...15...Worksite setup 02:51 PM...00...45...Computer installation begins 04:11 PM...02...05...Computer aliveness test 04:41 PM...02...35...Computer installation complete 04:41 PM...02...35...Foale and Nicollier trade places on robot arm 04:56 PM...02...50...Fine guidance sensor changeout begins 07:16 PM...05...10...Computer functional test 07:51 PM...05...45...Fine guidance installation complete 07:56 PM...05...50...Computer functional test 08:21 PM...06...15...Foale and Nicollier enter shuttle airlock 08:36 PM...06...30...Airlock repressurized 08:56 PM...06...50...Computer functional test 09:56 PM...07...50...Fine guidance sensor functional test The first item on the agenda is installation of a new $7 million flight computer to replace Hubble's current electronic brain, an aging DF-224 computer equipped with an Intel 80386 coprocessor. The new machine - made up of three identical computer boards for redundancy - is built around the Intel 80486 DX2 processor running at 25 megahertz. The new computer is 20 times faster than the old machine and features six times the on-board memory - two megabytes. "That doesn't sound like much," said program manager John Campbell. "But you should keep in mind that we don't do [processor-intensive tasks like] Windows, we don't have disks and we don't do internet. The old computer only had a tenth of a megabyte. So this is a major increase in capability." More important, the new computer will not require the costly custom programming the old model needed and will operate on just 30 watts of electricity instead of 100 watts. All that translates into increased efficiency, faster data processing and lower operating costs. Even so, NASA engineers joke that today's swap-out amounts to the most expensive 386-to-486 computer upgrade in history. The new computer box, which, again, includes three identical computers, weighs 70.5 pounds and measures 18.8-by-18-by-13-inches. Installation is somewhat complicated because it will be difficult for Foale to see critical connectors on the far side of the box. "It's tricky in the sense that the connectors are on the left side of the box," said lead spacewalk planner Kieth Johnson. "It is inside bay 1 and the problem is we have a box on the door - the data management unit - and it has connectors that come out of it that are close to where the crew member is when he's trying to disconnect the left-side connectors on the computer. Because of that, he could impact those connectors. So there is a clearance issue." Grunsfeld said in a pre-launch interview the computer swap is not intrinsically difficult. But he agreed Foale will need to be careful with the connectors. "All the connectors are on the side of the box where you can't see them," Grunsfeld said. "So Mike has to do that basically without the aid of stereoscopic vision. He'll have one eye as he's reaching around to do that. And on the left of him on the doors is the data management unit, or DMU, and huge bundles of delicate cables. So the challenge there is how do you jam yourself as close as you can to that without touching it so you can see the connectors you have to disconnect without damaging the cables. So Claude's going to be free floating by the door, telling him his clearance." Once the new computer is in place and hooked up, ground controllers at the Space Telescope Operations Control Center at the Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Md., will send commands to make sure the machine is properly connected. More intensive functional tests will be carried out later. If any problems are found, a spare computer is on board just in case. Assuming all that goes well, the astronauts will turn their attention to installation of a 480-pound fine guidance sensor that was removed from Hubble during a 1997 servicing mission. It has been refurbished to improve its accuracy. The sensor being removed today will be refurbished and re-installed on a future servicing mission. The fine guidance sensors serve two functions: As the name implies, they help guide Hubble when it is tracking astronomical targets; and they also can be used for scientific observations in their own right. At least two are required to keep Hubble on target by locking onto guide stars and tracking their motion - and thus the telescope's - with an accuracy equivalent to holding a laser beam on a dime 200 miles away. Hubble's computer uses that information to keep the telescope rock steady as observations progress. "These fine guidance sensors are, in a way, star trackers - they give you an image of the periphery of the field of view that is being studied by the Hubble Space Telescope," Nicollier explained in a pre-launch NASA interview. "Now there are a certain number of stars in that field of view, and the operator on the ground picks up one of these stars. The telescope always keeps these stars in the same position within these fields at the periphery of the science field." The guidance sensors work in concert with the gyroscopes installed by Grunsfeld and Smith Wednesday to keep the telescope locked onto its targets. While the fine guidance sensor is a large device measuring 5.5-by-4-by-2 feet and weighing 478 pounds, installation is relatively straight forward. But given the critical nature of the device, great care must be taken to avoid damaging it. "That's a scientific instrument, it's very expensive and because it's an enhanced fine guidance sensor we actually can do astrometry with it," Grunsfeld said in an interview. "So again, we have to treat it with the utmost care. Even the one we're pulling out we have to treat with care. In the event something goes wrong with the new FGS, we can always put the old one back." 04:55 p.m. Update: New computer installed aboard Hubble telescope Spacewalkers Michael Foale and Claude Nicollier successfully installed a new computer inside the Hubble Space Telescope today, a faster, cheaper-to-operate and more scientifically productive machine than the aging computer it replaced. "Most excellent!" said astronomer-astronaut John Grunsfeld from Discovery's flight deck after the new computer was plugged in around 4:30 p.m. "The brains of Hubble have been replaced." A half-hour later, ground controllers sent commands to verify the computer, built around the Intel 80486 processor, was properly connected. "We'd like to congratulate you," astronaut Stephen Robinson called from mission control. "The payloads community reports a good 486 aliveness test. The Hubble not only has new brains, it's thinking." "That's terrific news," Foale replied. 08:45 p.m. Update: Astronauts install fine guidance sensor Michael Foale and Claude Nicollier successfully installed a new star tracker on the Hubble Space Telescope this evening, completing the second major objective of their spacewalk. It took them two tries to seat the 480-pound $13 million fine guidance sensor in its alignment rails, but after pulling the device out a foot and carefully re-inserting it, everything went smoothly. A handling fixture then was removed and electrical connections plugged in. NASA managers initially held open the possibility of adding one or more tasks to the spacewalk if time permitted to get ahead on a third and final spacewalk Friday. And the astronauts clearly were ready to do their part. But around 8:40 p.m. flight controllers ruled out any additional tasks and told the crew to call it a day. "I think things have gone pretty smoothly today and Claude and Mike, as you can see, are doing fantastic," astronaut Steven Smith radioed from Discovery. "We'd like to know if you folks could give us a go for OCE." He was asking for clearance to install a device to improve calibration of the fine guidance sensor, a task planned for the third spacewalk. But it was not to be. "You just can't beat that kind of attitude," astronaut Stephen Robinson replied from Houston. "We appreciate it. We've been adding up the numbers down here and it looks like we're going to go long tonight, with somewhere between seven-and-a-half and maybe a little bit more of suit time. The consensus down here is that ought to be enough. So when you're done with the planned activities today, we would like you to go into daily closeout. But thanks for the offer." Foale and Nicollier were running about one hour behind their original timeline, in large part because of minor but time consuming problems getting the fine guidance sensor properly installed. The spacewalkers should be back inside Discovery's airlock within a half-hour to 45 minutes. 10:20 p.m. Update: Third-longest shuttle spacewalk ends Floating in the shuttle Discovery's airlock, spacewalkers Michael Foale and Claude Nicollier started repressurization procedures at 10:16 p.m., officially ending a successful eight-hour 10-minute excursion to replace the Hubble Space Telescope's flight computer and to install a refurbished fine guidance sensor. It was the third longest spacewalk in U.S. history, second only to Wednesday's eight-hour 15-minute outing and an eight-hour 29-minute spacewalk in 1992. The Discovery spacewalkers - Foale, Nicollier, Steven Smith and John Grunsfeld - have now logged 16 hours 25 minutes walking in space to give the $1.5 billion telescope a new lease on life. "Thanks for a grand show today," astronaut Stephen Robinson radioed the crew from Houston. "Excellent work, gentlemen." "Houston, we appreciate the great support we had today," commander Curt Brown replied. "Obviously we had a very successful day. We've got another person qualified outside. We're pretty excited up here and again,thanks for the hard work this close to the holidays." With the completion of the second spacewalk, the astronauts have completed the highest priority objectives of the mission, installing six new gyrocopes, a half-dozen battery charging regulators, a new flight computer and the fine guidance sensor. Before releasing Hubble on Christmas Day, however, a third and final spacewalk is planned Friday to install a solid-state data recorder, a replacement data transmitter and insulation panels to keep Hubble from getting too hot or too cold. These items are not required for safe operation, however, putting them more in the realm of preventive maintenance than desperately needed repair work. This evening's spacewalk went by the book, although it took Foale and Nicollier longer than expected to line up and install the new guidance sensor. The only other problem involved a portable work platform that can be attached to Hubble at various points. While keeping an astronauts feet firmly anchored, the platform is designed to swivle and at the end of the spacewalk, as Foale was stowing it for the night, its locking mechanism apparently failed. A spare platform is on board, however, and this will not impact the third spacewalk. =================================================================== Astronauts complete Hubble repairs in third spacewalk (12/24/99) 02:55 p.m. Update: Third Hubble servicing spacewalk begins Wearing $2 million spacesuits, astronauts Steven Smith and John Grunsfeld left the shuttle Discovery's airlock today for a third and final spacewalk to refurbish and repair the increasingly healthy Hubble Space Telescope. The spacewalk officially began at 2:17 p.m. when the astronauts, still floating in the shuttle's airlock, switched their suits to internal battery power. The crew's third and final spacewalk has three major objectives: to install an optical control electronics package to enhance the performance of a new star tracker; to install a new solid-state data recorder to replace an aging reel-to-reel model; and to replace an S-band radio transmitter that failed last year. They also will install new thermal insulation over equipment bays toward the bottom of the telescope. Here is a timeline for today's spacewalk based on the actual start time. TIME.......HH...MM...EVENT 02:08 PM...00...00...Start 02:23 PM...00...15...Worksite setup 02:43 PM...00...35...OCE installation 03:13 PM...01...05...S-band transmitter installation 04:28 PM...02...20...Solid-state recorder installation 05:28 PM...03...20...Smith and Grunsfeld trade places on robot arm 05:43 PM...03...35...NOBL insulation installation on bays 5-10 07:53 PM...05...45...Final worksite closeout 08:53 PM...06...45...Airlock ingress 09:03 PM...06...55...Airlock repressurization 09:28 PM...07...20...Post EVA The OCE and recorder installation are considered routine. But the S-band transmitter was not designed to be replaced in orbit. "We have to work with tiny little bolts," Grunsfeld said before launch. "It's kind of like if you had to repair a watch wearing winter gloves. I'm trying to deal with little screws that are non captive and if you drop one, obviously it'll float away." But after practicing the procedure dozens of times on the ground, Grunsfeld said what appeared to be one of the most complicated jobs in Servicing Mission 3A has evolved into "a very straightforward task. I'm pretty confident that will go just fine." The spacewalkers will close out the third excursion by "putting up some new wallpaper on the telescope," Grunsfeld said. "It's actually more like a huge cookie sheet on the lower part of the telescope over the electronics bays to improve the thermal condition of the telescope." The spacewalk is scheduled to last about six hours and 45 minutes. But if time is available, Smith and Grunsfeld likely will hang a few panels of wallpaper-like insulation originally scheduled for a fourth spacewalk that was deleted before launch. If all goes well, Hubble will be released back into open space Christmas Day and Discovery's crew will return to Earth two days later. 07:00 p.m. Update: Spacewalkers complete major repairs Nearly five hours into a planned seven-hour spacewalk, astronauts Steven Smith and John Grunsfeld are about 45 minutes to an hour behind schedule because of extra time needed to complete installation of a new S-band radio transmitter. The transmitter, equipped with numerous small screws and cable connectors, was not designed to be replaced by spacewalking astronauts and the work proved to be a challenge. In the end, however, the astronauts succeeded, restoring redundancy in a critical system and eliminating a single-point failure mode. Smith and Grunsfeld also replaced an aging reel-to-reel data recorder with a new solid-state machine and installed equipment to help engineers fine tune the performance of a new fine guidance sensor, one of three on board that help Hubble lock onto and track astronomical targets. Unlike Hubble's main scientific instruments, which are equipped with corrective optics, the fine guidance sensors receive light from the periphery of the telescope's vision that has not been corrected for a flaw in its primary mirror. The equipment installed today will help engineers provide a correction of sorts to maximize performance of the new guidance sensor. Because of the time taken to complete installation of the radio transmitter, Smith and Grunsfeld will not have time to complete installation of stainless steel foil insulation panels over six equipment bays housing sensitive electronic gear. Around 6:45 p.m., they were cleared to install panels on two bays only while flight controllers assess when they will need to start wrapping things up. It will take the spacewalkers about an hour to stow tools and work platforms in Discovery's cargo bay before they can return to the shuttle's airlock. 11:30 p.m. Update: Astronauts congratulated for '100 percent mission success' Spacewalkers Steven Smith and John Grunsfeld completed an eight-hour eight-minute spacewalk this evening - the fourth longest in U.S. space history - achieving "100 percent success" restoring the Hubble Space Telescope to health. Pausing before re-entering Discovery's airlock, Smith took a moment to congratulate the flight controllers, engineers and scientists who made the repair work possible. "In the last three days we put 13 new [components] in the Hubble Space Telescope with 100 percent success," he said. "And we appreciate, greatly, the great folks who are working on this holiday, Christmas Eve 1999. More important, though, we just want to point out to our country and the world that we've been working on Hubble for about 10 years now. The teams across the nation and around the world have been working very hard for the last year in particular to prepare this hardware and this seven-member crew to fix the telescope. We're all incredibly proud to be part of that team. "You're all very special to us," he went on. "Every time Hubble returns some magnificent science, we hope you take the great pleasure that we do. The information that Hubble's returning is making us a lot smarter, it's making our lives better and it's making the lives of our children a lot better. "So our congratulations to everyone at NASA and the contractor team," he concluded. "The country and the world can be very proud of you. Fellow spacewalker John Grunsfeld took a moment to praise their $2 million Hamilton Sundstrand-built spacesuits, saying "they are incredible machines and they allowed us to fix the Hubble Space Telescope." They did. As it turned out, however, Grunsfeld's suit failed to switch from battery power to shuttle power as the astronauts were preparing to repressurize Discovery's airlock. At the time, he only had about a half-hour of battery power left. After a bit of troubleshooting, flight controllers told the spacewalkers to press ahead, leaving Grunsfeld's suit on battery power, and repressurization was uneventful. Astronaut Claude Nicollier, inspecting Grunsfeld's power cable after the spacewalk was over, reported seeing a bent pin in the multi-pin electrical connector, presumably explaining the problem. This evening's eight-hour and eight-minute spacewalk began at 1:17 p.m. and ended at 9:25 p.m., making this the fourth longest spacewalk in U.S. history. The record - eight hours 29 minutes - was set during a satellite repair mission in 1992. The next three records were set during Discovery's mission: An eight-hour 15-minute spacewalk Wednesday; an eight-hour 10-minute outing Thursday; and tonight's eight-hour eight-minute excursion. Discovery's total through three spacewalks is 24 hours 33 minutes, pushing the total spacewalk time in three Hubble servicing missions to a remarkable 93 hours and 13 minutes. "What a Christmas for Hubble!" said program manager John Campbell. "Six gyros, new ones, not normally found under the tree, a new computer, better batteries - everybody needs batteries on Christmas - more storage, new clothes, better fine guidance - and everybody needs better guidance on Christmas - and a new radio transmitter. So we're leaving Mom tomorrow and going back to work." He said aliveness and functional tests of the new hardware have gone smoothly and while a few tests have not yet been completed, there are no signs of any problems. "We offer a Christmas thanks to the people here at Johnson and the people in orbit and certainly the people at Goddard and everybody's families," Campbell said. Grunsfeld echoed those sentiments earlier, saying "I feel especially privileged, as do all the crew members on board ... to have the chance to work on the world's greatest telescope. And we hope to see it back in service very soon. And from the crew of Discovery, we'd also like to wish everybody happy holidays and peace on Earth." "Thank you very much for the powerful words," astronaut Stephen Robinson replied from mission control. "It means all the more that is comes from you two. ... We'll pass all the words on and we just can't say enough for you and your crew members for what you've done for us." "Merry Christmas!" Grunsfeld replied. If all goes well, Hubble will return to service in about two weeks, after its new components have acclimated to the space environment. "We expect to have our first science back from Wide Field Planetary Camera 2 in two weeks," Campbell said. "The Space Telescope Imaging Spectrograph, we expect to have the CCD detector enabled and operating in just a little over two weeks, the second class of detectors on STIS in a little over three weeks. The new fine guidance sensor takes a while to check it out, to align it, to calibrate it, to uplink new constants for it to run, and it will be under checkout for a little over two months." Discovery's crew plans to re-launch the Hubble Space Telescope around 6 p.m. Christmas Day. =================================================================== Space telescope re-deployed from shuttle Discovery (12/27/99) 04:20 p.m. Update: Hubble Space Telescope set for deployment Spending a quiet-but-busy Christmas in space, the Discovery astronauts readied the upgraded Hubble Space Telescope for deployment this evening to complete a near perfect orbital service call. French astronaut Jean-Francois Clervoy, operating Discovery's 50-foot-long robot arm, is scheduled to release the 24,000-pound telescope at 6:03 p.m. as the two spacecraft sail 380 miles above western Australia. Commander Curt Brown then will fire Discovery's maneuvering jets to move away, leaving the $1.5 billion observatory behind in its own orbit. "That was one wonderful mission," NASA Administrator Daniel Goldin radioed the crew early today. "I've been watching from the ground, it looked like the training really paid off, you guys did a tremendous job." "Thank you very much for the words," Brown replied. "As you know, it is a team effort. ... We had no surprises and we're very excited to return Hubble to operation." The unberthing operation began at 4:19 p.m. when latches holding Hubble's base to a rotating service platform at the back of Discovery's cargo bay were released. Clervoy then used the robot arm to slowly move Hubble up over the payload bay into a pre-determined release orientation, or attitude. "The unberth is exactly the reverse of the berth," Clervoy said in a pre-flight NASA interview. "I grab the telescope with the robot arm, and Steve [Smith] and John [Grunsfeld] will activate the latches to release the bottom of the telescope," Clervoy said. "Then the telescope is free to move. I will move the telescope up, then forward above the rendezvous camera and slightly above the level of the crew cabin, until it's in release attitude. "Once we are at the exact time of the release, everybody will have some actions to do," Clervoy said. "As far as I'm concerned, I will have to open those snares that were grabbing the telescope and the telescope will be free; then I move the arm away, I mean, quite far away, and then I give control back to Curt who will fly the orbiter horizontally. He will fire the forward jets so the orbiter will kind of slide underneath the telescope, and we will see that huge telescope flying just above the overhead windows, at just a few feet, and that will be probably quite impressive. The release will be complete at this point." During three back-to-back spacewalks Wednesday, Thursday and Friday, spacewalkers Smith, Grunsfeld, Michael Foale and Nicollier installed six new gyroscopes, a half-dozen battery regulators, a new computer, a refurbished fine guidance sensor, a solid-state data recorder and a new S-band radio transmitter. The astronauts also installed equipment to help calibrate the fine guidance sensor and attached three insulation panels to keep sensitive equipment from getting too hot or too cold. "This proves once again you need people to do things," Goldin told the crew today. "You just can't send a robot up there to go fix that telescope. it was like watching a ballet. It was just fantastic what you folks have done. I'm very, very pleased." "Well sir again, thank you for the words, but we must put that credit on the folks who trained us and prepared us for this," Brown said. "They did a great job and I think it shows. During the EVAs we did exactly as planned and had a number of surprises that Hubble threw at us with bolts that were a little tighter [than expected] and things that were a little bit different than planned. As you mentioned, humans are able to accomplish the changes without any trouble and robots, obviously, wouldn't be able to do that." Goldin ended the call by wishing the crew a merry Christmas. "I hope you're all planning to have a delayed celebration with your families and that there'll be some presents waiting for everyone to come home to," he said. "I think we've all been good up here so we do expect some presents when we get back," Brown joked. "We've been receiving tremenous support from the folks in mission control with messages from our families during the holiday season and that's really made things quite nice. "Well, you have a lot to do, let me know hold you up any longer," Goldin said. "I'm proud, the country's proud and everyone on this planet is going to share the fruits of what you have done and what everyone else associated with this mission has done. You've done all of us proud. Have a great, great Christmas." While Discovery's crew sets its sights on landing Monday, ground controllers at the Goddard Space Flight Center near Greenbelt, Md., will spend the next two weeks monitoring Hubble's systems and running engineering tests while new components added during Discovery's overhaul acclimate to the space environment. If all goes well, Hubble will resume scientific observations in early January after a two-month hiatus. "We expect to have our first science back from Wide Field Planetary Camera 2 in two weeks," program manager John Campbell said late Friday. "The Space Telescope Imaging Spectrograph, we expect to have the CCD detector enabled and operating in just a little over two weeks, the second class of detectors on STIS in a little over three weeks. The new fine guidance sensor takes a while to check it out, to align it, to calibrate it, to uplink new constants for it to run, and it will be under checkout for a little over two months." 08:45 p.m. Update: Repaired Hubble Space Telescope released into space The repaired Hubble Space Telescope was released from the shuttle Discovery today as the two spacecraft sailed 373 miles above the south Pacific Ocean northeast of Australia. French astronaut Jean-Francois Clervoy, operating Discovery's robot arm, unlatched from the 24,000-pound telescope at 6:03 p.m. to complete a near flawless three-spacewalk repair mission. "And as we can see, the Hubble Space Telescope, a Christmas present to the world, now refurbished after three spacewalks, 24-and-a-half hours of service on the telescope, now being returned to space to conduct the scientific investigations for which it was designed," said mission control commentator Kyle Herring. A half-hour later, the shuttle passed over the Kennedy Space Center, leading Hubble by about 900 feet, a brilliant Christmas "star" over the Florida penninsula. In the meantime, ground controllers reported Hubble was operating normally on its own, holding rock steady with its newly installed gyroscopes. Discovery's crew broke into cheers on hearing the news. At the same time, they were sad to see it go. "We just left Hubble to its own devices and that of the Space Telescope Operations Center," spacewalker John Grunsfeld told a reporter. "We know Hubble is in good hands but I think I speak for all of us, I think out here, 300 nautical miles above planet Earth, we all made a new friend, one we got very close to and we had a big part in putting back into operation. "It's a remarkable telescope, remarkable to look at, to be inside," he continued. "It brings back remarkable images to all of us on planet Earth. So it was a little bit of a sorry departure. We felt like we could have stayed a little bit longer, learned a little bit more, [but] that's the way it goes. So we're just happy everything went so well and that Hubble's on its way to start observing again." The astronauts planned to enjoy a Christmas meal together later this evening, including duck liver and other delicacies from southwest France supplied by Clervoy. Discovery's flight is only the third mission in U.S. space history to be in space over Christmas and the first in the 96-flight history of the shuttle program. The only other such holiday missions were Apollo 8 in 1968 and Skylab 4 in 1973. The three Apollo 8 astronauts stirred feelings around the world when they took turns reading from Genesis while in orbit around the moon. Discovery's crew did not try to top that. But commander Curt Brown, clearly moved by the crew's success and the spirit of the day, took time out to send Christmas wishes to the world. "The familiar Christmas story reminds us that for millennia, people of many faiths and cultures have looked to the sky and studied the stars and planets in their search for a deeper understanding of life and for greater wisdom," Brown said. "We, the Discovery crew, in this mission to the Hubble Space Telescope are very proud to be part of this ongoing search beyond ourselves," he said. "We hope and trust that the lessons the universe has to teach us will speak to the yearning that we know is in human hearts everywhere. The yearning for peace on Earth, good will among all the human family." Each of his six crewmates followed with holiday thoughts of their own in English, German, French and Spanish. "To all our family and friends and the people of planet Earth," Grunsfeld radioed. "Happy holidays and may we have peace on Earth in the new millennium." A NASA mission status briefing is planned for 10:30 p.m. This status report will be updated as warranted. =================================================================== Astronauts say Hubble 'good model' for space servicing (12/26/99) 05:30 p.m. Update: Astronauts say Hubble 'good model' for space servicing The Discovery astronauts tested the shuttle's re-entry systems today, stowed loose gear and prepared for a sunset landing Monday at the Kennedy Space Center. Forecasters are predicting good weather, although they're monitoring potentially high crosswinds at the shuttle's 3-mile-long runway. Deorbit ignition on orbit 118 is scheduled for 4:10 p.m. with landing at 5:21 p.m. A detailed entry overview will be posted here later this evening, after a 9:30 p.m. briefing with entry flight director Wayne Hale. At an in-flight news conference earlier today, the astronauts discussed their repair of the Hubble Space Telescope, saying lessons learned during three marathon spacewalks will have direct application to the international space station project. Lead spacewalker Steven Smith also said the crew left Hubble in good shape and that barring a major malfunction, flight controllers should be able to operate the telescope through 2010 as currently planned. The key, he said, is Hubble's modular design and periodic servicing missions like Discovery's. "Hubble will be serviceable to 2010 easily," Smith said. "It really is the flagship for serviceable spaceships. We designed it back in the 70s and we've replaced probably over 20 boxes now over three different missions. Some of the boxes were easier to change than others and I think we'll take those lessons to the space station, which we're developing now. We found the 13 boxes we put in [during Discovery's mission] to be pretty easy to deal with." Fellow spacewalker John Grunsfeld said "one of the big lessons I've learned from this is the model for training that we used on the Hubble Space Telescope mission is really a great model for spacewalking. "We spent about 10 hours in the water for every one hour we were out EVA and just the organization of the teams - the team from Goddard, the team from the Johnson Space Center, all the contractors - the way they trained us for all the contingencies and how to deal with stubborn bolts and boxes that might not come out was really excellent. We should apply that to not only the next Hubble repair mission but also all of the space station missions." The astronauts originally planned four spacewalks, or EVAs, to install new equipment and insulation, but the fourth excursion was eliminated when Discovery's launch slipped to Dec. 19. Because of the lateness of the mission and an end-of-year Y2K concern, Discovery's mission was shortened two days and the fourth spacewalk was cancelled to make sure the shuttle would be back on the ground by Dec. 29 at the latest. The elimination of the fourth spacewalk left the astronauts little additional time to cope with problems and as it turned out, they had more than usual. While each spacewalk was budgeted to last six hours or so, all three ran longer than eight hours. "We trained about 10 hours in the pool for every hour in space and we also estimated how long everything would take," Smith said. "It did take a little bit longer on a couple of tasks. ... I counted 13 anomalies on the first spacewalk and with the Y2K concern on the other end of the mission, we really didn't have the capability to delay to a fourth EVA, which we would have [been] standard. So I think we probably took a little bit longer because of the end-of-mission constraint." Even so, he said, "I don't think we would have planned the EVAs any different. It's always hard to estimate the anomalies that'll come up. By my recollection, that's the most anomalies to ever come up in a spacewalk." Most of the problems involved minor trouble with hard-to-turn bolts and balky access panels. In the end, the astronauts completed virtually all the tasks assigned to the three spacewalks. And even though they were not able to complete installation of new insulation blankets to cover cracked and peeling panels currently on Hubble, the telescope should have no problem making it to the next servicing mission in 2001. "We did a couple of look-arounds to inspect some connectors and the condition of the rest of the telescope and to me it was really surprising," Grunsfeld said. "For a telescope that's been up here for 10 years with only three servicing missions, it's really in pretty great shape. Right at the end of the mission, as we were putting a couple of tools away, I had a couple of seconds just to look up and sort of survey the telescope up close and personal. And Hubble's doing really well. I think the next team will have a good opportunity to make the telescope even better." Discovery's crew represents the final manned space flight of the millennium. Foale, who spent five months aboard the Russian Mir space station and has a broader perspective than most, offered an eloquent look back and painted an optimistic picture of the next millennium, at least when it comes to space flight. "All of us feel the privilege we have here on board participating in the last mission of this century, servicing something as great as the Hubble Space Telescope," he said. "Historically, we've had extraordinary development of technology and civilization over the last millennium. We've had certainly enormous conflicts on Earth and they continue. They may be reducing but certainly this century is not a very good sign of human peacefulness. "I hope very much in the next millennium we'll be far, far more peaceful but I think it's going to be coming in stages and in fits and starts," he said. "I think the cooperation that we're doing internationally in building the international space station is one part of a steady process on Earth now that's making us more tolerant of our neighbors in other countries. "And I think we're learning as we go into space, especially building the international space station, that though we may have big differences culturally between different nations and different peoples, we can work together and achieve great things. So in a very altruistic and dreamy way - because that's my nature - I believe the human race will get far, far better in dealing with itself. I think we will build outposts on the moon and Mars and I think by the end of the next century we'll have explored most of the solar system. And I think by the end of the millennium, I'm sure we'll be on planets around other stars." =================================================================== Shuttle Discovery returns to Earth (12/27/99) 01:00 a.m. Update: High crosswinds possible issue for Monday landing Commander Curt Brown and his six crewmates stowed equipment, tested the shuttle Discovery's entry systems and geared up for a return to Earth Monday to close out the millennium's final manned space flight. Leaving the repaired Hubble Space Telescope behind in orbit, Discovery's crew is scheduled to touch down on the Kennedy Space Center's 3-mile-long runway at 5:18:50 p.m. to close out the 96th shuttle mission. The only concern is potentially high cross winds at the shuttle's 3-mile-long Florida runway. Based on a favorable weather forecast at Edwards Air Force Base, Calif., NASA will make two attempts on successive orbits to get Discovery back to the Kennedy Space Center, at either 5:18:50 p.m. or 7:01:14 p.m. If the weather prevents a Monday landing in Florida - and if the Edwards forecast remains favorable Tuesday - Brown and company will remain in orbit one more day and land Tuesday, one way or the other, in Florida or California. "We believe as long as the forecast remains good for Tuesday, if for some reason we do not make it into the Cape on Monday, we would wait a day to try to get to KSC," entry flight director Wayne Hale said late Sunday. "It's of great value to the program not to have to ferry the shuttle cross country and we believe a one-day delay would not be something that would be unacceptable." Discovery blasted off Dec. 19, the last possible day to launch and still get back on the ground by Dec. 29 to avoid any possible Y2K year-end rollover problems. Discovery is targeted for a Dec. 27 - Monday - touchdown, but NASA always protects against the possibility of two landing weather delays. The actual deadline, then, is Wednesday, Dec. 29. The forecast for Kennedy on Monday calls for light cloud cover at high altitudes, unrestricted visibility and winds out of the west at nine to 14 knots. The forecast for Edwards calls for near ideal conditions. For daylight landings, the shuttle's crosswind limit is 15 knots, the rule that will be in effect for a 5:19 p.m. Florida landing. The nighttime limit, which will be in effect if Discovery comes home one orbit late, is just 12 knots. "Before landing time [in Florida], they'll be peaking up to 18 knots," Hale said. "So we're going to watch the wind a little bit at the Kennedy Space Center, that may be our only concern. The Edwards forecast is even better ... and in fact, the forecast looks even better for Tuesday and it's acceptable for Wednesday, looking ahead if we need that." Before Discovery's launch, NASA managers said Kennedy and Edwards would be "co-prime" landing sites and that the shuttle would land Monday in either Florida or California. But NASA's mission management team met Sunday and decided that with a good forecast Monday and Tuesday at Edwards, Discovery's crew could safely make two attempts on successive orbits to land at Kennedy and, if they didn't make it, remain in space an additional day and then land Tuesday at either Edwards or Kennedy. NASA engineers have tested shuttle and ground processing software for Y2K compatibility and "we have done everything that we, NASA, could do to make sure we are ready for the year-end rollover," Hale said. "We have tested, we have done everything that we know to do to make it as seamless as possible. As far as we know, everything would work just fine if we worked right through 12 midnight on Dec. 31. "But we're dealing with a very valuable national resource, and we're involved in hazardous operations where people could be hurt if things didn't go well," he continued. "So for those reasons, we think it's prudent to stand down just to be on the conservative side in case there's something out there that we didn't catch." It takes about two days to fully "safe" a shuttle after landing. Liquid oxygen must be off loaded, rocket propellant must be drained and numerous pyrotechnic devices must be disarmed. NASA's concern is not so much the shuttle's computer systems as it is the complex ground-processing software that controls the health of the space shuttle between flights. "The ground processing system is the one we are probably more concerned about," Hale said. "Simply because there are more lines of [computer] code and that system monitoring the vehicle is the one that we really want to have shut down over the rollover just to avoid any possible problems. That's the thing that's driving us." Asked just what sorts of systems could malfunction, Hale said "there are any number of things, from pyrotechnics that are unexpended on the vehicle, to rocket propellant, to cryogenics [like liquid oxygen] that are still boiling off." "I mean, you really are off in the land of speculation," he said. "There are just nasty things on the orbiter that you've got to take care of after you land that if you let your imagination run wild in the worst-case scenario could be very hazardous to the people working around the orbiter, not to mention could cause damage to the orbiter." The real issue, he said, is "how much do you fear the unknown that you don't know about in your computer systems and your digital electronics systems?" "No, I don't believe the power's going to go out in central Florida, or in Houston or in California," Hale said. "No, I don't think the computers are going to go berserk and cause pyrotechnics to fire on the orbiter. None of those things are remotely possible. But you have to consider that it's a very complicated system and to test every branch of every software logic in the ground and the on-board systems is very time consuming. Given all the unknowns, it's just more prudent to stand down and be safe and not worry about it." 11:30 a.m. Update: Shuttle crew gears up for landing Commander Curt Brown and his six crewmates are readying the shuttle Discovery for a fiery plunge back to Earth late today, shooting for a touchdown on runway 33 at the Kennedy Space Center at 5:18:50 p.m. to close out the millennium's final manned space mission. The only concern is possibly high crosswinds, but forecasters said conditions appear to be improving and flight controllers are increasingly optimistic. Brown and pilot Scott Kelly are scheduled to fire Discovery's twin braking rockets at 4:06:40 p.m. for four minutes and 58 seconds to begin the hourlong descent. The rocket firing, over the Indian Ocean east of Madagascar, will slow Discovery by 358 mph, just enough to set up a touchdown in Florida half a world away. An on-time touchdown would occur about 15 minutes before sunset. Here's the entry timeline: TIME............EVENT 01:27:00 p.m....Discovery's cargo bay doors are closed 01:49:00 p.m....OPS-3 entry software is loaded 02:13:00 p.m....The crew reviews entry procedures 02:42:00 p.m....The astronauts begin donning pressure suits 03:46:00 p.m....Mission control gives a 'go' for entry 04:06:40 p.m....Deorbit ignition 04:47:30 p.m....Discovery falls into the discernible atmosphere 05:12:18 p.m....The shuttle slows to mach 2.5 05:14:28 p.m....Mach 1 05:14:52 p.m....Discovery begins overhead turn to line up on runway 33 05:18:50 p.m....Landing Discovery has six landing opportunities today on successive orbits, three in Florida and three at Edwards Air Force Base, Calif. Given a favorable forecast at Edwards, however, Brown and company will focus soley on the first two opportunities at Kennedy. If the weather doesn't cooperate, the astronauts will remain in orbit another day and land Tuesday at either Kennedy or Edwards. For the record, here are all the currently available landing times for Monday and Tuesday at both sites (all times in EST; dV: change in velocity in feet per second; dT: burn duration): ORBIT...TIME...........EVENT..........SITE......NOTES MONDAY, DECEMBER 27 118.....03:56:45 p.m...Deorbit burn...Edwards...dV: 515 fps; dT: 4:51 119.....05:10:06 p.m...Landing........Edwards 118.....04:06:40 p.m...Deorbit burn...Kennedy...dV: 525 fps; dT: 4:58 119.....05:18:50 p.m...Landing........Kennedy 119.....05:39:01 p.m...Deorbit burn...Edwards...dV: 504 fps; dT: 4:45 120.....06:51:38 p.m...Landing........Edwards 119.....05:49:27 p.m...Deorbit burn...Kennedy...dV: 525 fps; dT: 4:58 120.....07:01:14 p.m...Landing........Kennedy 120.....07:21:13 p.m...Deorbit burn...Edwards...dV: 505 fps; dT: 4:45 121.....08:33:36 p.m...Landing........Edwards 120.....07:32:12 p.m...Deorbit burn...Kennedy...dV: 525 fps; dT: 4:58 121.....08:43:23 p.m...Landing........Kennedy TUESDAY, DECEMBER 28 (times approximate) 132.....02:31:00 p.m...Landing........Kennedy 133.....04:04:00 p.m...Landing........Edwards 133.....04:14:00 p.m...Landing........Kennedy Again, the only opportunities currently under consideration for today are the first two at Kennedy. See the next entry for notes on NASA's Y2K landing deadline from entry flight director Wayne Hale. As the millennium draws to a close, it seems appropriate to review the demographics of space flight. Starting with Yuri Gagarin's pioneering flight in 1961, 390 different people have flown in orbit, 354 men and 36 women from 29 nations. Here are the numbers: 133.....04:14:00 p.m...Landing........Kennedy 390.....Different people have flown in space 29......Nations represented in space 354.....Men 36......Women 825.....Total tickets (total plus repeat fliers) 244.....Americans 216.....American men 28......American women 72......Soviets 70......Soviet men 2.......Soviet women 20......Commonwealth of Independent States 19......CIS men 1.......CIS woman 54......Men and women from non-space faring nations 49......Men 5.......Women ........Astronauts/Flights 5.......Men with six flights 0.......Women with six flights 9.......Men with five flights 3.......Women with five flights 36......Men with four flights 3.......Women with four flights 66......Men with three flights 10......Women with three flights 93......Men and women with two flights 165.....Men and women with one flight 03:40 p.m. Update: Shuttle landing delayed one orbit by high crosswinds High crosswinds at the Kennedy Space Center have forced flight director Wayne Hale to delay the shuttle Discovery's return to Earth by at least one 96-minute orbit in hopes stiff breezes will die down as the afternoon wears on. Discovery's crew has two more Kennedy landing opportunities today, one at 7:01 p.m. and another at 8:43 p.m. Both of these opportunities are nighttime landings with slightly lower allowable crosswinds - 12 knots instead of 15 knots. "The current winds are staying out of limits, observed, at the moment and the forecast has been revised to show a 16-knot crosswind," astronaut Scott Altman radioed the crew from mission control. "We are going to wave off. You are no-go for the deorbit burn." "OK, Houston, we copy," commander Curt Brown replied. The astronauts had hoped to touch down at 5:19 p.m. - about 15 minutes before sunset - to close out an eight-day mission to repair the Hubble Space Telescope. NASSA flight rules permit crosswinds of up to 15 knots for daytime landings and 12 knots for nighttime returns. But at 3:40 p.m., just before Brown was to have fired Discovery's braking rockets to begin the hourlong descent to Earth, Hale told them to hold off and wait one more orbit. If Discovery cannot make it back to Kennedy today, the astronauts likely will remain in orbit one more day and land Tuesday at Kennedy or Edwards Air Force Base, Calif., one day ahead of NASA's Y2K landing deadline Wednesday (see the 1 a.m. update below for a detailed explanation of the Y2K issue). But Hale has asked his flight dynamics officer to generate landing timelines for a possible diversion to Edwards today, depending on the weather. 06:00 p.m. Update: Shuttle Discovery's braking rockets fired Flying high over the Indian Ocean east of Madagascar, commander Curt Browk and pilot Scott Kelly fired the shuttle Discovery's twin braking rockets at 5:48:26 p.m. to begin an hourlong glide back to the Kennedy Space Center. The deorbit rocket firing lasted four minutes and 45 seconds, slowing Discovery by about 355 mph and setting up a touchdown at 7:01 p.m. to close out the millennium's final manned space mission. High crosswinds delayed the crew's first landing attempt by one 96-minute orbit, but flight controllers are confident conditions will be acceptable for Discovery's upcoming touchdown. This status report will be updated after Discovery lands or as conditions warrant. 07:05 p.m./08:45 p.m. Update: Shuttle Discovery returns to Earth The shuttle Discovery glided to a ghostly night landing this evening to close out the millennium's final manned space flight, leaving the repaired Hubble Space Telescope behind in orbit to continue its mind-bending observations into the next century. With commander Curt Brown at the controls, Discovery swooped to a picture-perfect touchdown on runway 33 at 7:00:47 p.m. to end an eight-day voyage spanning 119 complete orbits and 3.2 million miles since blastoff Dec. 19. "Houston, Discovery, wheels stopped," Brown radioed after Discovery rolled to a halt. "Roger, wheels stopped, Discovery. Welcome back to Earth after a fantastic flight," replied astronaut Scott Altman from mission control in Houston. It was just the 13th night landing in shuttle history and only the eighth at the Kennedy Space Center. Discovery's fiery plasma trail in the upper atmosphere was clearly visible to observers from southern Texas to New Orleans and the Gulf Coast as the crew headed home. Appropriately enough, the Hubble Space Telescope preceded the shuttle's arrival in Florida by about five minutes, shining like a brilliant star 380 miles up as its solar arrays caught the fading light of the sun. Astronomers hope to resume observations with the repaired and upgraded telescope in early January, after components installed by Discovery's crew during three marathon spacewalks acclimate to the space environment. Brown and his crewmates, meanwhile - pilot Scott Kelly, Frenchman Jean-Francois Clervoy, John Grunsfeld, Steven Smith, Michael Foale and Swiss flier Claude Nicollier - climbed out of the orbiter an hour and 15 minutes after landing for belated holiday reunions with friends and family members. All seven appeared in good spirits, walking easily and chatting with shuttle workers as they inspected their spacecraft. "Astronomy is one of the most incredible things people can do," Grunsfeld said a few moments later, standing on the runway in front of Discovery. "It's all about exploration, it's about the human spirit, it's about finding out where we've come from, where we're going, what we're made of. I'm extremely excited we were able to play a part getting Hubble back into shape." Added the British-born Foale: "We shouldn't forget, really, this is almost the end of the century, this is the end of a millennium." "We started this century dreaming about leaving the planet Earth and flying. And human beings have achieved that," he said. "It started in the United States of America. I think it's fantastic that we're rounding out this century with such a mission as Hubble. "I think the effort that went in this year to prepare the orbiters, make them seafer, make them better vehicles for the next century, and to continue our fantastic science program with the Hubble Space Telescope, is a great way to round out this year. And I think it will make us all be enervated (sic) in the coming years to further build our international space station with our partners and work better together. So I'm very proud we were able to do this. And I'm also very pleased and relieved that we pulled it off! I want to thank everybody for taking part in all of that." All seven astronauts are scheduled to return to Houston early Tuesday. Discovery's touchdown came two days before NASA's self-imposed end-of-year Y2K landing deadline. While engineers believe the shuttle's software and the ground computers are Y2K compliant, they wanted to make sure the orbiter was powered down and drained of toxic propellants before the end of the year. Just in case. "No, I don't believe the power's going to go out in central Florida, or in Houston or in California," entry flight director Wayne Hale said late Sunday. "No, I don't think the computers are going to go berserk and cause pyrotechnics to fire on the orbiter. None of those things are remotely possible. "But you have to consider that it's a very complicated system and to test every branch of every software logic in the ground and the on-board systems is very time consuming," he said. "Given all the unknowns, it's just more prudent to stand down and be safe and not worry about it." With today's landing, technicians will have no problems "safing" Discovery and doing just that in plenty of time before 7 p.m. Dec. 31, when NASA's GMT-based computers roll over to the next century. "We have just completed a great mission," said shuttle program manager Ron Dittemore. "We really did not work any problems at all, it was a wonderful mission. ... We accomplished all of our major objectives and for me personally, it was a great Christmas gift and I couldn't be happier. I'm just a happy camper right now and I plan to enjoy the rest of the holidays thinking about what a great mission we had and get ready for the next." ===================================================================