Editor's note: updated at 9 p.m. Shuttle program managers today unanimously recommended proceeding with a June 13 target launch date for Endeavour's STS-127 mission to the International Space Station.
That recommendation will be reviewed, and an official launch will be set, at an executive Flight Readiness Review scheduled next Wednesday at Kennedy Space Center.
Endeavour's crew, led by mission commander Mark Polansky, now plans to fly into KSC for launch countdown training next Tuesday instead of Sunday.
The delay allows some cushion if weather keeps Endeavour from rolling down from pad 39B to pad 39A as planned this Saturday morning.
The same weather that forced Atlantis to land in California on Sunday has stalled some processing work for the mission.
For example, rain has delayed repairs to a flame trench deflector at launch pad 39A, preventing application of a flame-resistant, concrete-like material. A 25-square-foot section was damaged during the May 11 launch of Atlantis.
But managers believe the mission is still on track to make the 13th, said Candrea Thomas, a KSC spokeswoman.
The targeted launch time on the 13th would be 7:17 a.m., midway through a 10-minute window.
Endeavour is scheduled to start rolling to pad 39A at 12:01 a.m. Saturday. The 3.4-mile move takes about six hours, a similar duration to trips from the Vehicle Assembly Building because of the circuitous route between pads.
STS-127 is a planned 16-day mission including five spacewalks that will install the final components of Japan's Kibo lab complex.
IMAGE NOTE: On April 18, as dawn begins to brighten the sky over launch pad 39B at Kennedy Space Center, space shuttle Endeavour is seen bathed in lights from the fixed service structure. Endeavour will move to launch pad 39A for its upcoming STS-127 mission to the International Space Station, targeted to launch June 13. Photo credit: NASA/Dimitri Gerondidakis
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