STS-118 CREW PREPARING FOR DOCKING - The STS-118 crew is performing rendezvous operations in preparation for a 1:53 p.m. EDT docking with the International Space Station. About an hour before docking, Commander Scott Kelly and Pilot Charles Hobaugh will guide the shuttle through a backflip maneuver to allow the station Expedition 15 crew to collect digital images of its heat shield. The images will be downlinked to Mission Control for analysis. More (Source: NASA - Aug 10)
ENDEAVOUR UNDERGOES HEAT SHIELD INSPECTION - Pilot Charles Hobaugh, and mission specialists Tracy Caldwell and Rick Mastracchio are using the shuttle’s robotic arm and the Orbiter Boom Sensor System (OBSS) to take an extensive and detailed look at the orbiter’s thermal protection system. Mission specialists Dave Williams and Barbara Morgan join Mastracchio for the latter part of the survey. More (Source: NASA - Aug 9)
ENDEAVOUR LIFTS OFF! - Cheers and shouts can be heard throughout the Space Center as Endeavour, carrying the STS-118 crew, roars off the launch pad into the late afternoon sky to begin the 22nd mission to the International Space Station. More (Source: NASA - Aug 8)
COUNTDOWN IS PROCEEDING SMOOTHLY - The closeout crew wished the STS-118 team good luck and best wishes as they secured Endeavour's hatch for launch. The astronauts are now going through final checks inside the orbiter to prepare for their journey to the International Space Station. Countdown is proceeding smoothly, and there's only a 10 percent chance of weather prohibiting a liftoff at 6:36 p.m. EDT. More (Source: NASA - Aug 8)
STS-118 CREW IS ON BOARD ENDEAVOUR - Commander Kelly was first to be secured in his seat assisted by the closeout crew. Endeavour's pilot Charlie Hobaugh, was next on the flight deck. The rest of the flight team was seated and strapped in while Kelly began powering up the orbiter's general purpose computer for flight. More (Source: NASA - Aug 8)
NASA FUELS ENDEAVOUR FOR LAUNCH - With good weather predicted for launch time, NASA started fueling space shuttle Endeavour on Wednesday in preparation for its evening liftoff. The space agency began pumping more than 500,000 gallons of supercold liquid hydrogen and liquid oxygen into the ship's tank shortly after 8 a.m. ET. More (Source: CNN - Aug 8)
LAUNCH DATES AGREED WITH ILS FOR THIRD INMARSAT-4 SATELLIT - The third and final satellite in the Inmarsat-4 (I-4) constellation could be launched as soon as March or April 2008 under a contract signed with International Launch Services (ILS). The plan is for ILS to launch the Inmarsat-4 F3 satellite on a Proton launch vehicle from its Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan. More (Source: Space Ref - Aug 8)
SPACE SHUTTLE MISSION COUNTDOWN CONTINUES ON SCHEDULE - Space Shuttle Endeavour is in good shape and on target for launch Wednesday, according to members of NASA's Mission Management Team. Members of the team, known as the MMT, met Monday to review the launch status, and confirmed that the countdown is proceeding right on schedule. More (Source: NASA - Aug 7)
JAPANESE SATELLITE TO BE LAUNCHED FROM BAIKONUR ON SEPTEMBER 6 - A Russian Proton-M rocket will put into orbit the Japanese telecom satellite JCSAT-11 from the Baikonur spaceport on September 6, the Khrunichev Aerospace Center announced. The satellite belongs to JSAT Corporation. As of July 1, the corporation had eight satellites in orbit. More (Source: Interfax - Aug 7)
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