WEBVTT

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Intro music.

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The astronaut crew set to fly the Space Shuttle Atlantis into space on

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mission STS-121 late this summer is already in the final stages of preparing for flight.

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As part of that preparation, the six crew members were at NASA's Kennedy

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Space Center in Florida April 21 through 23 for their Crew Equipment Interface Test.

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The test -- which every Space Shuttle crew undergoes before a mission -- gave

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the astronauts an up-close look at the orbiter that will carry them on their 11-day mission.

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Mission Commander Steven Lindsey and his crew spent most of their time in

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the Orbiter Processing Facility inspecting the vehicle, both inside and out.

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Lindsey, Pilot Mark Kelly, and Mission Specialist Piers Sellers have flown

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on previous missions, while Mission Specialists Michael Fossum, Lisa Nowak

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and Stephanie Wilson will take their first trip into space on Atlantis.

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They all got a chance to check out the orbiter's crew module and payload

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bay, and review in-flight maintenance procedures during the test.

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This hands-on experience is vital to any Space Shuttle crew.

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It helps them gain first-hand knowledge of the flight hardware they will use on their mission.

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Atlantis -- which has flown 26 previous missions -- received updated safety

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modifications during its preparation for Return to Flight.

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The orbiter will dock with the International Space Station during the

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STS-121, which is targeted for September.

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