Launch of NASA's Shuttle Endeavour Sparks Early Monday Sunrise
CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. -- Space shuttle Endeavour lit up the predawn sky
above Florida's Space Coast on Monday with a 4:14 a.m. EST launch
from NASA's Kennedy Space Center. The shuttle's last scheduled night
launch began a 13-day flight to the International Space Station and
the final year of shuttle operations.
Endeavour's STS-130 mission will include three spacewalks and the
delivery of the Tranquility node, the final major U.S. portion of the
station. Tranquility will provide additional room for crew members
and many of the space station's life support and environmental
control systems.
Attached to Tranquility is a cupola with seven windows, which houses a
robotic control station. The windows will provide a panoramic view of
Earth, celestial objects and visiting spacecraft. After the node and
cupola are added, the orbiting laboratory will be approximately 90
percent complete.
Shortly before liftoff, Commander George Zamka said, "Thanks to the
great team that got Tranquility, cupola and Endeavour to this point.
And thanks also to the team that got us ready to bring Node 3 and
cupola to life. We'll see you in a couple of weeks. It's time to go
fly."
Zamka is joined on the flight by Pilot Terry Virts and Mission
Specialists Kathryn Hire, Stephen Robinson, Nicholas Patrick and
Robert Behnken. Virts is making his first trip to space.
Endeavour's first landing opportunity at Kennedy is scheduled for
Saturday, Feb. 20, at 10:01 p.m. The STS-130 mission will be
Endeavour's 24th flight and the 32nd shuttle mission dedicated to
station assembly and maintenance.
NASA's Web coverage of STS-130 includes mission information,
interactive features, news conference images, graphics and videos.
Mission coverage, including the latest NASA TV schedule, is available
on the main space shuttle Web site at:
http://www.nasa.gov/shuttle
NASA is providing continuous television and Internet coverage of the
mission. NASA Television features live mission events, daily status
news conferences and 24-hour commentary. For NASA TV streaming video,
downlink and schedule information, visit:
http://www.nasa.gov/ntv
Daily news conferences with STS-130 mission managers will take place
at NASA's Johnson Space Center in Houston. Johnson will operate a
telephone bridge for media briefings that occur outside of normal
business hours. To use this service, reporters must possess valid
media credentials issued by a NASA center or issued specifically for
the STS-130 mission.
Journalists planning to use the service must contact the Johnson
newsroom at 281-483-5111 no later than 15 minutes prior to the start
of a briefing. Newsroom personnel will verify credentials and
transfer reporters to the phone bridge. Phone bridge capacity is
limited, so it will be available on a first-come, first-serve basis.
Patrick, who holds a doctorate in mechanical engineering from the
Massachusetts Institute of Technology, plans to tweet from orbit
during the mission. He can be followed at:
http://www.twitter.com/Astro_
Live updates to the NASA News Twitter feed will be added throughout
the shuttle mission and landing. To access the NASA News Twitter
feed, visit:
http://www.twitter.com/nasa
For more information about the space station, visit:
http://www.nasa.gov/station
Source: NASA
