Live at KSC: Atlantis Hanging After Crane Problem

The orbiter Atlantis is hanging vertically in the Kennedy Space Center Vehicle Assembly Building this morning after a crane problem brought a mating operation to a halt overnight.

The issue is expected to be cleared up and the operation is expected to resume this morning. It's unclear whether the resulting delay in an operation to mate the orbiter to an external tank with attached solid rocket boosters will cause a planned Oct. 13 rollout to the pad to be pushed back.

Atlantis and six astronauts are scheduled to blast off Nov. 12 on a mission to outfit the International Space Station. The orbiter rolled into the 52-story assembly building early Tuesday.

Crane operators with United Space Alliance hoisted Atlantis off the floor of the assembly building later in the day and then lifted the orbiter into the vertical position. The spaceship was maneuvered into a position that tilts its wings 45 degrees so it can be lifted over a 16th-floor transom and the lowered onto a mobile launcher platform in High Bay No. 1 of the assembly building.

Twelve hours into the lift, a mechanical problem cropped up with the overhead crane in the assembly building and the mating operation was brought to a halt.

ABOUT THE IMAGE: Click to enlarge the NASA image of the orbiter Atlantis being hoisted off the floor of the Vehicle Assembly Building transfer aisle at Kennedy Space Center on Tuesday. Crane operators then rotated the orbiter to a vertical position and were poised to lift it over a 16th-floor transom when a mechanical problem cropped up with the overhead crane in the building. NASA and United Space Alliance expect to fix the problem this morning and resume an operation aimed at mating the orbiter to an external tank with attached solid rocket boosters. Photo credit: NASA/Jack Pfaller.