KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FL - Riding atop a foot-foot tongue of flame that lit up the skies for miles around, space shuttle Endeavour blasted into space today on a two-week mission to the International Space Station. Tucked away inside its payload bay are seven tons of hardware that will allow the orbiting complex to begin hosting larger resident crews beginning in the middle of next year.
WATCH: TIMELAPSE IMAGE OF RSS ROLLBACK VIDEO: POSTLAUNCH PRESS CONFERENCE VIDEO: STS-126 FLIGHT DAY 1 HIGHLIGHTS VIDEO: ASCENT FLIGHT CONTROL TEAM REPLAY OF LAUNCH VIDEO: LAUNCH REPLAYS VIDEO: OUR VIDEO OF THE LAUNCH VIDEO: ENDEAVOUR LIFTS OFF! VIDEO: SHORTER VERSION OF LAUNCH CLIP VIDEO: STS-126 CREW BOARDS ENDEAVOUR VIDEO: THE ASTROVAN MAKES THE 20 MINUTE DRIVE TO THE LAUNCH PAD VIDEO: ASTRONAUTS LEAVE CREW QUARTERS AND BOARD THE ASTROVAN VIDEO: THE ASTRONAUTS DON THEIR LAUNCH AND ENTRY SUITS BEFORE LAUNCH LISTEN: AUDIO OF THE LAUNCH (FLIGHT DECK, LAUNCH CONTROL AND MISSION CONTROL COMMUNICATIONS ONLY) LISTEN: AUDIO OF THE LAUNCH (INCLUDING FULL LAUNCH COMMENTARY) ALL-ACCESS SUBSCRIBERS: WATCH THE ENTIRE LAUNCH BROADCAST FROM NASA TV ALL-ACCESS SUBSCRIBERS: WATCH A CLEAN FEED OF THE ENTIRE LAUNCH BROADCAST WITHOUT COMMENTARY UNTIL T-9 MINUTES ALL-ACCESS SUBSCRIBERS: LAUNCH ENGINEERING REPLAYS ALL-ACCESS SUBSCRIBERS: ADDITIONAL LAUNCH REPLAYS ALL-ACCESS SUBSCRIBERS: PRELAUNCH NASA TV @ 1200 KPBS - PART 6 ALL-ACCESS SUBSCRIBERS: PRELAUNCH NASA TV @ 1200 KPBS - PART 5 ALL-ACCESS SUBSCRIBERS: PRELAUNCH NASA TV @ 1200 KPBS - PART 4 ALL-ACCESS SUBSCRIBERS: PRELAUNCH NASA TV @ 1200 KPBS - PART 3 ALL-ACCESS SUBSCRIBERS: PRELAUNCH NASA TV @ 1200 KPBS - PART 2 ALL-ACCESS SUBSCRIBERS: PRELAUNCH NASA TV @ 1200 KPBS - PART 1 Following a mostly trouble-free countdown, Endeavour's three liquid fueled main engine rumbled to life at T-6.6 seconds and ramped up to full power. At 7:55 p.m. EST, the shuttle's two slid rocket boosters ignited milliseconds after explosive charges blew apart the eight giant bolts holding Endeavour to the mobile launch platform. At the exact second the rotation of the Earth carried the launch pad directly underneath the orbital path of the space station, the shuttle leapt into the air to begin an eight and a half minute climb to orbit and rendezvous with ISS two days from now. Endeavour soared into the heavens riding a 5,000 degree inferno that turned night into day at Kennedy Space Center, so bright one could read a newspaper outside. Seven seconds later, the shuttle cleared the launch tower and rolled over on its back with wings level to northeast on a trajectory that would place Endeavour into an orbit with an inclination of 51.6 degrees, matching that of the space station. Heading into the final hours of the countdown, the only concern of significance was, as usual, the weather forecast. A cold front was predicted to move through the area during the day Friday, bringing with it thick clouds and rain. As morning broke today, forecasters gave only a 60 percent chance that weather would co-operate and permit launch. Fortunately, the weather system stalled over northern Florida and, as T-0 approached, the skies above Kennedy Space Center were about as close to ideal as one could hope. A last-minute issue with a doorway on the white room at the end of the orbiter access arm on the launch tower gave a brief scare that today's launch would be delayed. The doorway is framed by a flexible material and, when extended, creates a seal around the orbiter's access hatch, preventing tools, debris or people from slipping through and falling to the launch pad 195 feet below. A member of the closeout crew failed to fully restrain and latch the doorway in place for launch. The concern was that the vibration from main engine ignition might cause the door to swing open and extend outside the white room. If that happened and there was an RSLS abort on the pad, it could cause the access arm to jam against the orbiter, damaging the shuttle but, more importantly, possibly making it impossible for the astronauts to escape in an emergency. There were a couple tense minutes as launch controllers verified that, even though it was only partially latched in place, the doorway couldn't swing out farther than the end of the white room and wouldn't pose a hazard in case of a launch pad abort. With that issue resolved, Endeavour was cleared for launch. "OK, Fergie, the vehicle's in good shape, the weather's beautiful and so on behalf of the entire shuttle launch team, good luck, Godspeed, and have a happy Thanksgiving on orbit," Launch Director Mike Leinbach radioed the crew a few minutes before launch. "Mike, it's our turn to take home improvement to a new level after 10 years of international space station construction," Ferguson replied. "Endeavour's ready to go." Endeavour's STS-126 crew is led by commander Chris Ferguson, accompanied in the right-hand seat of the flight deck by pilot Eric Boe. Behind them, flight engineer and mission specialist Stephen Bowen monitored the orbiter's *such language*pit instruments and called out key times for the crew. Mission specialists Don Pettit, a former ISS Expedition Science Officer, Heidemarie Stefanyshyn-Piper, Shane Kimbrough and Sandra Magnus rode to space seated in Endeavour's mid-deck. Magnus will remain on the station after Endeavour departs, replacing current Expedition 18 Flight Engineer 2 Gregory Chamitoff, who will return to Earth with the rest of the STS-126 astronauts. During the next two days, Ferguson and Boe will guide Endeavour on a trajectory to meet up with the space station. They will execute a series of precisely-timed thruster firings to refine the shuttle's approach to ISS, leading to final rendezvous and docking on Sunday around 5:13 p.m. Since the return to flight after the Columbia accident, most shuttle missions were tasked with assembling the space station by adding new modules or solar arrays, Endeavour's mission is aimed at outfitting the interior of the complex, as evidenced by the mission's moniker in the space station program - ULF-2, or Utilization and Logistics Flight 2. A primary goal of the flight is to install new hardware that will enable an increase in the station's full-time crew size from three to six astronauts next year. To this end, Endeavour is carrying over 14,000 pounds of hardware in the Leonardo Multi-Purpose Logistics Module. Among the new hardware to be installed on the station are a new toilet, two new crew sleeping quarters, a second galley including the first refrigerator and a wastewater and urine reclamation unit. The new system will extract and purify potable water from the atmospheric condensation, urine and other waste water on ISS, thereby reducing the resupply needs from the ground. This is an essential capability in order to support the expanded crew size. "When you go to the moon, when you go to Mars, you have to be able to survive more or less on your own resources," Sandra Magnus said before launch. "You can't build a system, build a colony, build a lifestyle that's dependent on deliveries from afar, and so you do need to have a system like this, which allows you to be self-sufficient. This is a first step towards that." In addition to the outfitting tasks, Stefanyshyn-Piper, Bowen and Kimbrough will conduct four spacewalks to clean, lubricate and repair the starboard solar alpha rotary joint (SARJ). The SARJ has been operating in reduced capacity since September 2007 when excessive vribration was noticed in the assembly that rotates the giant solar arrays to track the path of the Sun as the station orbits the Earth. Subsequent inspections revealed the presence of metallic shavings in the 10-foot gear mechanism and damage to its race ring and twelve trundle bearings. The astronauts will clean the metallic debris from the joint and replace 11 of the 12 trundle bearings. The hope is that the damage can be repaired enough to allow the joint to rotate more frequently to maximize the power output of the station, even though full capability won't be restored unless a replacement SARJ is installed and the cause of the original damage is determined. In addition to station repair and outfitting tasks, STS-126 will also conduct a crew rotation with Expedition 18. When Endeavour returns home, Sandra Magnus will remain on the station, joining Expedition 18 as flight engineer. She will be taking the place of Greg Chamitoff, who has been aboard the complex since he launched to the station on STS-124 last May. Magnus will return aboard STS-119, currently targeted for a February 2009 launch. STS-126 will feature four six and a half hour spacewalks outside the space station. On flight day 5, Piper and Bowen will conduct external outfitting of the station. They will replace a depleted nitrogen tank and a device used to help the flow of coolant from the truss, the backbone of the station. They also will remove thermal covers from the Japanese Kibo module to inspect the berthing mechanism where the module's exposed facility will be installed during the STS127 mission in 2009. They also will start inspecting, cleaning and lubricating the starboard SARJ and begin replacing 11 of 12 trundle bearings. One was replaced during the STS-124 mission in June. On flight day 7, Piper and Kimbrough will relocate equipment carts, setting the stage for the installation of the starboard S6 truss. The spacewalkers also will lubricate the end effector, or hand, of the Canadarm2, the station's robotic arm. They also will continue lubricating the starboard SARJ and replacing trundle bearings. On flight day 9, Piper and Bowen will complete starboard SARJ cleaning, lubricating and trundle bearing work. On flight day 11, Bowen and Kimbrough will remove several thermal covers on the port SARJ. Kimbrough will lubricate the port SARJ, while Bowen will reinstall the thermal insulation covers (removed on flight day 5) on Kibo. He then will install two GPS antennas on Kibo's logistics module, while Kimbrough installs a new TV camera on the truss. If time permits, they will remove launch restraint hose clamps on cooling lines. NASA managers are hoping to extend Endeavour's mission by a day, for landing on Sunday. This will give the crew more time to complete their tasks in a timeline that is one of the most challenging a shuttle crew has faced. It will also provide some buffer in case the crew runs into difficulties with the SARJ repairs. (The Spacearium / SpaceflightNews.net)
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