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Author
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Topic: STS-135: Viewing, questions, and comments
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Robert Pearlman
Editor Posts: 42988
From: Houston, TX
Registered: Nov 1999
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posted 05-18-2011 11:39 AM
   
STS-135: mission viewing, questions, comments This thread is intended for comments and questions regarding the STS-135 mission and the reports published as part of collectSPACE's STS-135 Flight Day Journal. STS-135, targeted for launch in July 2011, is scheduled as the final mission of the space shuttle program. The flight will see space shuttle Atlantis carry the Raffaello multipurpose logistics module to deliver supplies, logistics and spare parts to the International Space Station. The mission will also fly a system to investigate the potential for robotically refueling existing spacecraft and return a failed ammonia pump module to help NASA better understand the failure mechanism and improve pump designs for future systems. The STS-135 crew is led by commander Chris Ferguson, pilot Doug Hurley and mission specialists Sandra Magnus and Rex Walheim.
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MarylandSpace
Member Posts: 1336
From:
Registered: Aug 2002
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posted 05-18-2011 11:40 AM
I read in a blog last night that the launch date for STS-135 may be moved to a July 10-12 window.Has there been an official move yet if at all? |
Tykeanaut
Member Posts: 2212
From: Worcestershire, England, UK.
Registered: Apr 2008
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posted 05-18-2011 11:40 AM
July 4th would be ideal if possible wouldn't it? |
Robert Pearlman
Editor Posts: 42988
From: Houston, TX
Registered: Nov 1999
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posted 05-18-2011 11:43 AM
NASA has yet to set a new target launch date for STS-135. Mission managers have said however, that the earliest Atlantis can launch is the second week of July given the time needed to ready Pad 39A after Endeavour's liftoff on May 16. |
Robert Pearlman
Editor Posts: 42988
From: Houston, TX
Registered: Nov 1999
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posted 05-19-2011 10:29 PM
Though not yet formally announced, NASA is looking at a new "No Earlier Than" (NET) date of July 8 for STS-135. If Atlantis launches that day (at 11:33 a.m. EDT) and if the weather cooperates, then STS-135 will land on July 20, the 42nd anniversary of the first manned lunar landing and the 35th anniversary of the first robotic landing on Mars. |
Robert Pearlman
Editor Posts: 42988
From: Houston, TX
Registered: Nov 1999
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posted 05-20-2011 11:22 AM
NASA release NASA Sets Launch Date For Final Shuttle FlightNASA's final space shuttle flight is targeted to launch July 8 at about 11:40 a.m. EDT from the agency's Kennedy Space Center in Florida. Four veteran astronauts will fly aboard shuttle Atlantis to deliver supplies and spare parts to the International Space Station. This date was targeted based on NASA's current planning. An official launch date will be announced following the June 28 Flight Readiness Review. There are several non-standard activities, including a tanking test followed by an X-ray inspection of a section of the external fuel tank, which may affect Atlantis' processing. The tank consists of three sections. Mission managers want to X-ray aluminum support beams, known as stringers, located where the liquid hydrogen tank meets the intertank. Cracked intertank stringers were identified during shuttle Discovery's first launch attempt in November 2010 and delayed its launch until the problem was resolved. X-ray inspection of the intertank stringers provides additional confidence that there are no stringer cracks in Atlantis' tank. The stringers located where the liquid oxygen tank meets the intertank were modified with extra material to add strength and do not require inspection. The 12-day mission also will deliver an experiment designed to demonstrate and test the tools, technologies and techniques needed to robotically refuel satellites in space, even satellites not designed to be serviced. The crew also will return an ammonia pump that recently failed on the station. Engineers want to understand why the pump failed and improve designs for future spacecraft. Chris Ferguson, a veteran of two previous shuttle missions, will command the flight. Doug Hurley will serve as the pilot, a role he filled on STS-127 in 2009. Sandy Magnus and Rex Walheim will be the mission specialists. Magnus spent 4.5 months aboard the station beginning in November 2008. Walheim flew on STS-110 in 2002 and STS-122 in 2008. STS-135 will be Atlantis' 33rd mission and the 37th shuttle flight dedicated to station assembly and maintenance. It will be the 135th and final mission of NASA's Space Shuttle Program. |
Jay Chladek
Member Posts: 2272
From: Bellevue, NE, USA
Registered: Aug 2007
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posted 05-20-2011 12:19 PM
Sweet! I managed to score a pretty good hotel rate late last night as the hotels hadn't began to jack their rates up yet. Of course, the date may slip, but I am confident.Funny how this will be a little longer than 6 years after STS-121 (6 years and 4 days from second RTF mission to the end of the program). |
Robert Pearlman
Editor Posts: 42988
From: Houston, TX
Registered: Nov 1999
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posted 05-22-2011 05:09 PM
NASA release NASA Announces Tweetup For Final Space Shuttle LaunchNASA will give 150 of its Twitter followers a front-row seat at the historic final space shuttle launch. The agency's fifth shuttle launch Tweetup is scheduled July 7-8 at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida. Shuttle Atlantis is targeted to lift off from Kennedy on its mission to the International Space Station at about 11:40 a.m. EDT on July 8. The official launch date will be announced after a Flight Readiness Review meeting on June 28. Those selected to participate in the Tweetup will tour the center, view the shuttle launch and speak with NASA managers, astronauts, shuttle technicians and engineers from across the agency. "Inviting people to attend the last shuttle launch and share it with their friends, family and followers is one way NASA can enable more people to experience this historic event," said Stephanie Schierholz, social media manager at NASA Headquarters in Washington. "While the Space Shuttle Program is drawing to a close, the NASA Tweetup also will give our followers a broader view of the agency's diverse activities." Tweetup registration opens at noon on Wednesday, June 1, and closes at noon on June 2. NASA will randomly select the 150 participants. |
Robert Pearlman
Editor Posts: 42988
From: Houston, TX
Registered: Nov 1999
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posted 05-26-2011 08:49 AM
Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex announcement It's the final launch of the Space Shuttle. And your chance to see it.Witness the launch of STS-135 space shuttle Atlantis, the final space shuttle mission, at Kennedy Space Center, currently targeted for Friday, July 8, 2011 at 11:40 a.m. ET. Launch Ticket Opportunity Process This process ensures a fair opportunity for all who are interested in purchasing launch viewing tickets. Register online from May 30 at 9:00 a.m. ET through June 5, 2011, at 5:00 p.m. ET. This seven-day window is the only time to register for the opportunity to purchase tickets. On June 5 at 5:00 p.m. ET, registration closes and registrants will be selected at random for the opportunity to purchase tickets. Click here to learn more about the launch viewing ticket opportunity registration process. |
GACspaceguy
Member Posts: 2475
From: Guyton, GA
Registered: Jan 2006
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posted 05-28-2011 05:09 PM
With a crew of four STS-135 is the smallest in a long time. When was the last time a crew of four flew and how were they arranged for lift off? |
Robert Pearlman
Editor Posts: 42988
From: Houston, TX
Registered: Nov 1999
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posted 05-28-2011 05:21 PM
STS-6 in 1983 was the last four person shuttle crew. All four flew on the flight deck for launch and landing. |
Tom
Member Posts: 1597
From: New York
Registered: Nov 2000
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posted 05-28-2011 05:40 PM
STS-5 was the only other four person shuttle crew. They launched and landed with three on the flight deck and one on the mid-deck. |
ApolloAlex
Member Posts: 390
From: Yeovil, England
Registered: Oct 2004
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posted 05-29-2011 05:31 AM
With little under a month to go where are most cSers going to be watching the launch from? My family and I are watching it from the shores of the Indian River in Titusville so we are pretty much geared up for it now and looking forward to watching a fantastic launch, plus anybody having a post launch party? |
Fezman92
Member Posts: 1031
From: New Jersey, USA
Registered: Mar 2010
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posted 05-29-2011 07:55 AM
I'll be watching it online. Have a great time.  |
drjeffbang
Member Posts: 110
From: Virginia
Registered: Nov 2009
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posted 05-30-2011 08:02 AM
Online registration not coming up for me.Edited: It was just a little slow this morning but we got registered. |
crowe-t
New Member Posts:
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Registered:
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posted 05-30-2011 11:27 AM
I registered for tickets and hopefully I'll get the opportunity. I'm keeping my fingers crossed. This will be my first live launch viewing. |
capoetc
Member Posts: 2169
From: McKinney TX (USA)
Registered: Aug 2005
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posted 05-30-2011 11:30 AM
There will be plenty of opportunities to buy them from eBay from sellers who bought them with no intention of ever attending the launch... |
SpaceAngel
Member Posts: 307
From: Maryland
Registered: May 2010
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posted 05-30-2011 12:21 PM
How many of you's will be VERY emotional when "Atlantis" finish out the program? |
Cozmosis22
Member Posts: 968
From: Texas * Earth
Registered: Apr 2011
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posted 05-30-2011 12:45 PM
quote:
Originally posted by SpaceAngel:
How many of you's will be VERY emotional when "Atlantis" finish out the program?
Indeed!Was at the Cape for the first shuttle fight, which was also scheduled for a Friday morning, April 10, 1981. Launch was scrubbed late in the countdown due to a computer redundancy set sequencing error of some sort. A two-day turnaround was chosen and Columbia flew on it's maiden voyage Sunday April 12th (Gagarin Day in the USSR at that time). |
Jay Chladek
Member Posts: 2272
From: Bellevue, NE, USA
Registered: Aug 2007
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posted 05-30-2011 05:12 PM
quote:
Originally posted by SpaceAngel:
How many of you's will be VERY emotional when "Atlantis" finish out the program?
I might be since for me, the shuttle was "my" space program since I was too young to remember Apollo. I remember when I saw STS-121 fly, I almost shed a tear when she did the roll pitch manuever, but when the sound hit me, then it went back to just excitement. I have wondered how I might feel sitting there minutes after the shuttle leaves view as I look around and see an empty VAB, the exhaust plumes and a partially dismantled Pad 39B structure (might be almost all gone by 135's launch). Will I feel proud at what was accomplished, or will I feel more sad since shuttle will no longer be flown. I likely will not know until that day. |
Go4Launch
Member Posts: 542
From: Seminole, Fla.
Registered: Jul 2003
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posted 06-01-2011 07:47 PM
A few musings on the crowds expected for 135... the conventional wisdom just a few months ago was that attendance would grow steadily for the last shuttle launches, which for various reasons has not come to pass. (Of course, there's no way to really know, as all estimates are attributed to the educated guesses of local businesses and law enforcement.)The 133 traffic was heavier than "usual" for a program 30 years on, but post-launch coincided with the afternoon rush hour. Certainly not amazing by any means. For 134, the scrub and reschedule for a Friday morning combined to really hold crowds down. Media predictions were for in the neighborhood of 400-500,000, but came nowhere near that -- I'd say considerably fewer than for 133. So now the question is, how many will be there on July 8? Months ago, the word was maybe a million. More than a million people showed up for Apollo 11, but fell by more than half that by Apollo 14. It's true it's summer, schools are out, vacations are on and it is the final shuttle launch. But will a million people really show up? For Apollo 11, there was not only a sense of history, but of optimistic history: "Wow! I can say I was there when they launched that first men to land on the Moon!" The future seemed unlimited. So will it be a comparable draw to be able to say, "I was there for... the last shuttle launch? Sure, it's "history," but a sadder sort of history, it seems to me. No-one knows what's next; and seemingly, few people really care. So I wonder whether the "CW" will be wrong again? Either way, would it be a statement one way or the other about public interest in the manned space program? And if so, would policymakers even notice... or care? Believe me, I'll be planning for the worst; but I won't be completely surprised if the expected crowds fall short of expectations. |
Rob Joyner
Member Posts: 1308
From: GA, USA
Registered: Jan 2004
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posted 06-02-2011 09:47 AM
quote:
Originally posted by Go4Launch:
The 133 traffic was heavier than "usual" for a program 30 years on, but post-launch coincided with the afternoon rush hour. Certainly not amazing by any means.
You must have a secret route outta there! By the time I reached I-95 I should have been home already - a 3+ hour drive, and that was bypassing the VC after leaving the causeway! |
Fezman92
Member Posts: 1031
From: New Jersey, USA
Registered: Mar 2010
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posted 06-02-2011 11:12 AM
We had no trouble getting out after 134. Then again we took buses. We were on I-95 about an hour or so after the launch. |
Fra Mauro
Member Posts: 1587
From: Bethpage, N.Y.
Registered: Jul 2002
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posted 06-02-2011 12:38 PM
There is such atmosphere of sadness among many NASA employees, especially at the KSC. I really feel badly for these people and the businesses that depend on the space program.What a thank you from the government for a job well-done. "A funeral atmosphere" is the best way to describe it. |
Fezman92
Member Posts: 1031
From: New Jersey, USA
Registered: Mar 2010
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posted 06-02-2011 12:42 PM
I agree, when we were on the bus going back to the drop off point after the launch one of the NASA people who works at KSC along with her husband said "Hope you enjoyed the launch, please stay around and buy stuff" I thought "yes please do because in a month or so she and her husband won't be working at NASA..." |
Jay Chladek
Member Posts: 2272
From: Bellevue, NE, USA
Registered: Aug 2007
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posted 06-03-2011 02:56 PM
quote:
Originally posted by Fezman92:
I thought "yes please do because in a month or so she and her husband won't be working at NASA..."
Just remember, the NASA civil servants on the government's payroll will stay employed. It is the contractors who will get cut and laid off. Of course, either way there aren't likely to be that many people remaining at KSC as those NASA employees who don't opt for retirement will likely be transferred away. That means houses that will have to be sold and income that the communities along the space coast will no longer receive.Its been said that the loss of one space worker could affect the incomes of as many as five other people in the area from gas and groceries, to municipal services. As such, a mass exodus is not going to be fun. Some that do retire will probably remain, but there are so many younger workers in the program as well who will need to move on. |
Robert Pearlman
Editor Posts: 42988
From: Houston, TX
Registered: Nov 1999
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posted 06-05-2011 11:09 AM
Revised STS-135 milestone times: - Launch: 11:26:46 a.m. EDT Friday, July 8
- Docking: 11:09 a.m. Sunday, July 10
- Undocking: 1:59 a.m. Monday, July 18
- Landing: 7:06 a.m. Wednesday, July 20
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irish guy
Member Posts: 287
From: Kerry Ireland
Registered: Dec 2001
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posted 06-06-2011 08:05 AM
That's a photo you don't see a lot, have not been to the restaurant, but if we go in July, we will look it up! |
Fra Mauro
Member Posts: 1587
From: Bethpage, N.Y.
Registered: Jul 2002
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posted 06-06-2011 11:47 AM
The end on July 20--fitting in a sense. |
crowe-t
New Member Posts:
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Registered:
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posted 06-08-2011 06:52 PM
Has anyone here received an e-mail for the opportunity to purchase launch tickets yet?I already see people selling their opportunity to purchase launch tickets on eBay. I feel this is a crime and a shame to make money off of the real fans of the Space Program. I've registered for the previous 2 launches and the current upcoming launch and never get picked. |
RSimon007
Member Posts: 24
From: Saginaw, MI USA
Registered: Apr 2004
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posted 06-08-2011 07:56 PM
I've registered also and haven't heard anything. If anyone is lucky enough to be picked in the lottery and doesn't need all 6 allowed tickets for the causeway, feel free to to grab me one. I'll be happy to pay you back, meet you in Orlando or KSC area, assist with car rental costs and, to make the offer irresistable, will even throw in a delicious causeway hotdog and soft drink. |
LM-12
Member Posts: 3208
From: Ontario, Canada
Registered: Oct 2010
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posted 06-09-2011 08:15 AM
How many Shuttle EVA suits will be onboard the ISS after STS-135 departs? How will the suits be replaced and returned if they fail? |
Robert Pearlman
Editor Posts: 42988
From: Houston, TX
Registered: Nov 1999
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posted 06-09-2011 09:10 AM
For the past several years, NASA has been developing on-orbit repair techniques and launching spare parts to the station for just such a purpose. They still have the ability to launch suit parts to the ISS on cargo craft, and with the introduction of SpaceX's Dragon, return parts as well. There are a dozen PLSS backpacks, which is the limiting part for assembling a suit, followed by hard upper torsos. NASA expects given its suit life extension program efforts, that the EMUs will extend to 2020. |
GACspaceguy
Member Posts: 2475
From: Guyton, GA
Registered: Jan 2006
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posted 06-09-2011 09:28 AM
Looks like NASA is trying to get video of the last ET all the way to it's break up. Take a look at this info. |
johnraiders
Member Posts: 78
From: Cobham, UK
Registered: Sep 2009
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posted 06-09-2011 11:29 AM
quote:
Originally posted by crowe-t:
Has anyone here received an e-mail for the opportunity to purchase launch tickets yet?
Haven't heard anything either about the lottery, but I think from previous launches I didn't get the "no" email until after the on sale, which is 0900 tomorrow. |
crowe-t
New Member Posts:
From:
Registered:
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posted 06-10-2011 10:59 AM
quote:
Originally posted by RSimon007:
If anyone is lucky enough to be picked in the lottery and doesn't need all 6 allowed tickets for the causeway, feel free to to grab me one.
I feel the same way. If anyone can get six Causeway tickets and don't need them all I'll take two and compensate. I can't pay the eBay prices due to unemployment right now but am willing to pay a little extra.Please e-mail me if anyone can spare two. |
AnaWantsTo GoToSpace
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posted 06-10-2011 12:02 PM
I ordered extra tickets to the Causeway, but it appears that KSC only gave me one placard with the order.  Would anyone be able recommend to us how to get to the Visitors Center by another mode of transportation, like a bus service?
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mjanovec
Member Posts: 3811
From: Midwest, USA
Registered: Jul 2005
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posted 06-10-2011 12:11 PM
quote:
Originally posted by AnaWantsTo GoToSpace:
Would anyone be able recommend to us how to get to the Visitors Center by another mode of transportation, like a bus service?
I think the only alternative is to carpool with someone who has the placard. Some of the bus companies will offer rides to KSC for the launch, but only if you purchase their launch viewing passes. |
capoetc
Member Posts: 2169
From: McKinney TX (USA)
Registered: Aug 2005
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posted 06-10-2011 05:32 PM
quote:
Originally posted by AnaWantsTo GoToSpace:
Would anyone be able recommend to us how to get to the Visitors Center by another mode of transportation, like a bus service?
Best bet is to have your guests meet you someplace beforehand and carpool.If you end up selling the tickets individually, in pairs, etc, the right thing to do would be to inform the buyers that they must find someone to give them a ride to the visitors' center. |
GACspaceguy
Member Posts: 2475
From: Guyton, GA
Registered: Jan 2006
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posted 06-15-2011 12:21 PM
I just received my rejection letter (once more) for launch tickets. I have not been successful in any of the launch lotteries. |
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