Shuttle Endeavour is fully fueled at Kennedy Space Center today as NASA continues to countdown to the planned 7:17 a.m. launch of seven astronauts on a mission to complete the Japanese wing of the International Space Station.
The countdown entered a three-hour built-in hold just a few minutes ago as engineers completed the loading of cryogenic propellants into the shuttle's 15-story external tank.
More than 500,000 gallons of liquid hydrogen and liquid oxygen were pumped into the tank during a three-hour fuel-loading operation that began at 9:52 p.m. Friday. Low-level engine cutoff sensors -- troublesome in the past -- were immersed in propellant at 10:37 p.m. and data showed they were working as intended.
The Endeavour astronauts went through final preflight medical exams late Friday and now are preparing to head for the launch pad.
You can watch live NASA TV countdown coverage right here in The Flame Trench beginning at 2 a.m. Simply click the NASA TV box on the righthand side of the page to launch our NASA TV viewer and be sure to refresh this page for periodic updates.
Join us on our home page -- www.floridatoday.com -- for live countdown status reports and interviews from the roof of our Florida Today blockhouse at the Launch Complex 39 Press Site from 5 a.m. to 8 a.m. Former astronaut Jim Halsell of shuttle booster manufacturer ATK and current astronaut Rick Mastracchio will be among our guests.
Coming up next: The astronauts are scheduled to depart crew quarters at the Operations and Checkout Building in the KSC Industrial Area at 3:27 a.m. The crew will board NASA's sleek, silver AstroVan at that time and make the 12-miles ride out to pad 39A.
Led by mission commander Mark Polansky, the crew includes pilot Douglas Hurley and five mission specialists: Dave Wolf, Chris Cassidy, Tim Kopra, Tom Marshburn and the Canadian Space Agency's Julie Payette.
Once at the pad, the astronauts will take an elevator to the 195-foot-level of the launch tower, cross a metal catwalk and board the orbiter through its side hatch beginning at aboard 3:57 a.m. The hatch will be closed for flight at 5:12 a.m.
Launch is set for the middle of a 10-minute window that opens at 7:12 a.m.
The U.S. Air Force, which provides range safety services, is asking mariners to steer clear of a launch hazard area off the coast of Cape Canaveral from 4:30 a.m. through 8:45 a.m.
The exact coordinates of the danger zone are shown on this Launch Hazard Area Map.
People entering this zone while it's an active launch area should be aware that violators face civil and criminal penalties of up to six years in jail and a $250,000 fine.
The Federal Aviation Administration also enforces a no-fly zone around the Cape during launch. Check out this Restricted Airspace Map.
A clear range is critical today. NASA will have only three days to launch Endeavour before the agency would stand down for the planned June 17 launch of an Atlas 5 rocket and NASA's Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter at nearby complex 41 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station.
NASA also faces a three-week period from June 21 through July 10 when it would be unable to launch the mission. The sun angle on the station would be such that the outpost would be unable to generate enough power or dispel enough heat to support a docked shuttle mission.
Endeavour's astronauts aim to deliver the third and final segment of the Japanese Kibo science research facility to the International Space Station. They plan five spacewalks during what promises to be the longest station assembly mission to date.
Click here to see all the details in this Official NASA Press Kit.
Click here for a NASA Mission Summary.
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