Next on the NASA Space Shuttle Status Report:
At the pad and awaiting the go for launch, Space Shuttle Atlantis and its
crew are ready to fly into space to continue constructing the International Space Station.
This is your in-depth look at NASA's orbiter fleet, and the NASA Space Shuttle Status Report starts right now!
Music.
I'm Angie Brewer, flow director for orbiter Atlantis, and this is the Space Shuttle Status Report.
With a slow and steady pace, Space Shuttle Atlantis left
NASA's Vehicle Assembly Building and made its way to Launch Pad 39A.
The 3.4 mile trip took several hours, but once complete,
set the stage for NASA's mission STS-117 to the International Space Station in March!
The vehicle moved from it's processing facility to the assembly building February 7 and,
before long, was lifted hundreds of feet in the air. Technicians then gently lowered and attached
Atlantis to the external fuel tank and solid rocket boosters. It's a process NASA calls "lift and mate."
Now at the pad, Atlantis waits for a targeted launch date of March 15.
Also at the pad: Atlantis' payload! Tucked inside this cargo carrier are the S3/S4 integrated solar arrays.
The S3/S4 truss can produce 30 kilowatts of electricity for the International Space Station.
That's enough to power 30 homes on Earth!
Several space walks are planned to install the S3/S4 truss.
In fact, the six-member crew, led by commander Frederick Sturckow,
is training in Houston and will fly to Kennedy Space Center for a
mock countdown training exercise later this month.
That's all the time we have for this week's Space Shuttle Status Report.
To follow mission STS-117, check out nasa.gov. For the NASA Space Shuttle Status Report,
I'm Angie Brewer. Thanks for watching!