Next on the NASA Space Shuttle Status Report:
As Discovery prepares for its move to the Vehicle Assembly Building, its external tank is outfitted with new sensors and foam protection…
Atlantis is equipped with cameras and laser systems for its next flight…
And Endeavour receives an external airlock to prepare for future dockings with the International Space Station!
The NASA Space Shuttle Status Report starts right now.
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I'm Jeremy Graeber, NASA test director, and this is the NASA Space Shuttle Status Report.
Final testing and closeouts continue in preparation for Discovery's move to the Vehicle Assembly Building,
and then to Launch Pad 39B. STS-121, Discovery’s mission to the International Space Station, is now targeted for liftoff in July.
Meanwhile, in the Vehicle Assembly Building, the external fuel tank for STS-121
was equipped with four new liquid hydrogen engine cutoff sensors.
These sensors indicate whether the tank still has fuel during its climb to orbit.
The tank was lifted from the checkout cell and placed horizontally on a transporter,
where technicians will reapply thermal protection foam insulation.
In the Orbiter Processing Facility Bay 1, orbiter Atlantis has new capabilities. A 50-foot-long boom was installed in the payload bay.
The boom is one of the new safety measures added prior to NASA’s Return to Flight.
It equips the orbiter with cameras and laser systems used to inspect the shuttle's heat shield while in space.
In Bay 2, technicians completed installation of Endeavour's reinforced carbon-carbon nose cap…
And, an external airlock… The airlock, located in the shuttle's payload bay is primarily used to dock with the International Space Station,
and allows the astronauts to pass freely between the two spacecraft.
That’s all the time we have for this week’s Space Shuttle Status Report.
Your inside look at NASA's three space shuttles as they prepare for flight!
Until our next report, stay with NASA TV and nasa.gov for the latest in mission news.
For the NASA Space Shuttle Status Report, I'm Jeremy Graeber.
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