Spaceflight Now: STS-101 Mission Report

Top Story
Welcome home, Atlantis!
Commander Jim Halsell guided space shuttle Atlantis smooth nighttime landing this morning at the Kennedy Space Center to conclude a successful repair mission to the International Space Station.
   FULL STORY
   MISSION STATUS CENTER
   VIDEO: ATLANTIS LANDS IN FLORIDA
Landing
Earlier News
Iffy weather could delay Monday's shuttle landing
Rainshowers and gusty crosswinds blowing across Kennedy Space Center's swamp-surrounded runway may thwart NASA's plans to bring shuttle Atlantis back to Earth in the wee hours on Monday morning.
   FULL STORY
   LANDING GROUND TRACKS
Earth
Shuttle departs station after successful service call
Atlantis left the International Space Station Friday night after restoring the outpost to good health. But a NASA manager says not every station assembly mission will be as trouble free as this one.
   FULL STORY
Undocking
Atlantis astronauts leave repaired space station
Turning out the lights and dogging the hatches, the Atlantis astronauts methodically exited the international space station early today, leaving a healthy, refurbished spacecraft behind. Undocking is planned for tonight.
   FULL STORY
ISS
Battery problem arises aboard space station
Russian engineers are troubleshooting another possible problem with one of the new batteries installed aboard the Russian Zarya module of the international space station.
   FULL STORY
ISS
Shuttle astronauts boost space station's orbit higher
Commander Jim Halsell and pilot Scott Horowitz fired Atlantis' steering jets 27 times in 59 minutes Tuesday evening, raising the international space station's orbit. The crew continues to report no problems with air or noise in the outpost.
   FULL STORY
   VIDEO: TAKE GUIDED STATION TOUR
   VIDEO: CREW MAKES REPAIRS IN ZARYA
ISS
Astronauts breathe easy aboard space station
The Atlantis crew entered the International Space Station Monday night, beginning several days of repair work and delivery of supplies. Unlike the previous crew to visit the outpost, the astronauts have not reported of any adverse health effects.
   FULL STORY
Spacewalk
Astronauts take spacewalk
Shuttle astronauts Jeff Williams and Jim Voss ventured outside Atlantis Sunday night to repair and outfit the International Space Station, installing a Russian cargo crane and replacing a faulty U.S. communications system.
   FULL STORYVideo
   VIDEO: SPACEWALKERS INSTALL CRANE
   VIDEO: ANTENNA REPLACED IN SPACEWALK
Spacewalk
Atlantis docks to space station to begin repair effort
Veteran commander James Halsell guided the space shuttle Atlantis to a gentle, on-time docking with the 35-ton International Space Station Sunday as the two spacecraft sailed high above central Asia.
   FULL STORY
ISS
Shuttle Atlantis launches on space station mission
Shuttle Atlantis made a spectacular dawn launch Friday on a much-anticipated maintenance mission to the fledgling International Space Station. Rendezvous between the two craft is planned Saturday night.
   FULL STORY
   VIDEO: ATLANTIS LAUNCHES AT SUNRISE
Launch
Atlantis set for Friday launch attempt
Shuttle Atlantis is poised for a dawn launch Friday on a much-anticipated maintenance mission to the fledgling International Space Station. Liftoff from Kennedy Space Center is scheduled for minutes before sunrise along Florida's Atlantic coast.
   FULL STORY
   VIDEO VAULT
Atlantis
Atlantis slips to May 18
NASA will delay space shuttle Atlantis' mission to the International Space Station until May 18, the next open launch slot from Cape Canaveral. The space agency decided not to bump a weather satellite launch in favor of the shuttle.
   FULL STORY
   VIDEO: NASA ANNOUNCES THIRD SCRUB
Atlantis
NASA seeks next launch attempt for shuttle Atlantis
Senior NASA officials today will begin wheeling and dealing to secure a new launch date for shuttle Atlantis' thrice-delayed space station repair mission. The launch was scrubbed for the third straight day on Wednesday by bad weather.
   FULL STORY
   MISSION STATUS CENTER
   LAUNCH PREVIEW STORY
   VIDEO: NASA ANNOUNCES THIRD SCRUB
Atlantis
High winds ground shuttle Atlantis another day
For the second day running, NASA was forced to call off the launch of space shuttle Atlantis due to gusty winds at its Florida launch site. Liftoff has been tentatively rescheduled for Wednesday.
   FULL STORY
   VIDEO: NASA ANNOUNCES SECOND SCRUB
Atlantis
Atlantis launch scrubbed
Gusty crosswinds at the emergency landing strip at Kennedy Space Center forced NASA officials today to call off the planned launch of space shuttle Atlantis. The launch has been tentatively reset for Tuesday at 3:52 p.m. EDT (1952 GMT). Follow the countdown in our Mission Status Center.
   FULL STORY
   VIDEO: NASA ANNOUNCES LAUNCH SCRUBBED
Atlantis
Atlantis to begin space station repair mission today
The space shuttle Atlantis, fresh from a major overhaul but beset by a string of last-minute delays, is finally ready for blastoff April 24 on an impromptu space station repair mission.
   FULL STORY [Posted: April 24]
   FLIGHT SPLIT INTO 2
   ASTRONAUTS SEPARATED
Atlantis
Submarine to be tested in shuttle booster recovery
A demonstration to evaluate the use of a one-man submarine during Space Shuttle solid rocket booster retrieval operations will be conducted at sea by United Space Alliance post flight operations during the upcoming STS-101 mission.
   FULL STORY [Posted: April 23]
Sub
Shuttle crew arrives, countdown begins
The seven astronauts arrived at the Kennedy Space Center April 21 for Monday's planned launch of space shuttle Atlantis bound for the International Space Station. The countdown clocks started ticking in the evening.
   VIDEO: CREW ARRIVAL [Posted: April 21]
   MEET THE ASTRONAUTSVideo
Atlantis
Atlantis concerns: Failure probe, tight schedule
NASA says it remains optimistic space shuttle Atlantis will make its appointed launch date next Monday despite a continuing investigation into the failure of a hydraulics unit taken from the ship and a tight work schedule that has no room for more problems.
   FULL STORY [Posted: April 18]
   MISSION STATUS CENTER
Atlantis
Tricky space shuttle repair job planned
NASA workers will perform an unprecedented repair job on space shuttle Atlantis today, replacing a balky 300-pound hydraulic unit in the spaceship's tail while the winged-orbiter stands on its exposed seaside launch pad.
   FULL STORY [Posted: April 12]
Atlantis
Decision day for Atlantis repair effort
NASA officials today are expected to decide how engineers should go about repairing a hydraulic problem in shuttle Atlantis' steering system used during landing. Hanging in the balance is the scheduled April 24 launch to the International Space Station.
   FULL STORY [Posted: April 10]
   HYDRAULIC SYSTEM GRAPHIC
Launch pad 39A
NASA mulls hydraulic problem on shuttle Atlantis
NASA officials are hoping to keep space shuttle Atlantis on track for launch later this month to service the International Space Station despite uncovering a hydraulic problem in the ship's tail.
   FULL STORYVideo [Posted: April 7]
Atlantis
Astronaut injury delays next space shuttle launch
NASA will delay shuttle Atlantis' upcoming launch to the International Space Station until April 24 to allow the ship's commander more time to recover from a sprained ankle.
   FULL STORY [Posted: March 30]
Atlantis
Shuttle Atlantis moved to launch pad
The space shuttle Atlantis was hauled to its seaside launch pad at the Kennedy Space Center March 25 in readiness for next month's mission to make repairs to the fledgling International Space Station. A new target launch date for Atlantis will be set next week.
Rollout
Shuttle Atlantis attached to tank and boosters
Space shuttle Atlantis was attached to its external fuel tank and solid rocket boosters over the weekend in preparation for its upcoming mission to make repairs and replace ailing components aboard the 16-month-old International Space Station.
   FULL STORY [Posted: March 21]
Atlantis
Space station prepared for upcoming Atlantis visit
Flight controllers for the International Space Station this week turned their attention to tests to verify the readiness of the complex to support docking by Space Shuttle Atlantis next month and the arrival of the next pressurized module - Zvezda - in July.
   FULL STORY [Posted: March 18]
ISS
Shuttle Atlantis launch rescheduled for April 17
NASA officials announced Thursday that the next space shuttle mission to the International Space Station would be pushed back to no sooner than April 17, confirming what had been expected for some time.
   FULL STORY [Posted: March 17]
Atlantis
More junk seals found in space shuttle main engine
Workers will replace one of space shuttle Atlantis' main engines before the ship launches to the International Space Station next month because of another paperwork snafu.
   FULL STORY [Posted: March 16]
STS-101 patch
Atlantis antenna damaged
A communications and radar antenna aboard space shuttle Atlantis was damaged by workers inside the ship's Florida hangar on Sunday evening. The incident occurred during routine pre-flight preparations for Atlantis' planned mid-April launch to the International Space Station.
   FULL STORY [Posted: March 6]
Dish deployed
Next shuttle mission becomes two flights
As space shuttle Endeavour nears its homecoming on Tuesday, NASA officials have formally approved plans to split the next mission to the International Space Station into two voyages of Atlantis.
   FULL STORY [Posted: Feb. 22]
ISS

Pre-launch briefing
Launch timeline - Chart with times and descriptions of events to occur during the launch.

Launch windows - The predicted windows in which Atlantis could launch over the the next week.

Mission timeline - Look ahead with a brief summary of events planned each day during the shuttle flight.

Meet the crew
Get to know the seven astronauts that will fly aboard shuttle Atlantis' upcoming mission in Spaceflight Now's crew report. You can read their biographies and hear the crew decribe the flight in movie clips.

Video vault
Space shuttle Atlantis makes a smooth nighttime landing at the Kennedy Space Center under the control of commander Jim Halsell.
  PLAY (171k, 23sec QuickTime file)
Atlantis astronaut Jim Voss gives a guided tour through the International Space Station.
  PLAY (1.3M, 2min 3sec QuickTime file)
Atlantis astronauts replace a faulty battery and associated electronics in the floor of station's Zarya module.
  PLAY (411k, 56sec QuickTime file)
The Russian Strela cargo boom is assembled and attached to the International Space Station by spacewalking astronauts.
  PLAY (326k, 34sec QuickTime file)
Spacewalkers remove and replace a failed U.S. communications antenna assembly from the side of the International Space Station.
  PLAY (172k, 18sec QuickTime file)
Space shuttle Atlantis blasts off at sunrise on May 19 on a 10-day repair mission to the International Space Station.
  PLAY (480k, 56sec QuickTime file)
The sun sets on launch complex 39A and the rotating service structure is pulled away from the shuttle. One hour is compressed into seconds in this time lapsed video.
  PLAY (146k, 15sec QuickTime file)
The seven-member crew of shuttle mission STS-101 speak to reporters after arriving at the Kennedy Space Center.
  PLAY (550k, 3min QuickTime file)
Workers remove the faulty Power Drive Unit from space shuttle Atlantis using a heavy-lift crane at launch pad 39A.
  PLAY (299k, 30sec QuickTime file)
A replacement Power Drive Unit is installed inside space shuttle Atlantis' tail at launch pad 39A on April 12.
  PLAY (304k, 35sec QuickTime file)
Shuttle technicians oversee the freezing of hydraulic lines leading to Atlantis' broken Power Drive Unit on April 12.
  PLAY (374k, 29sec QuickTime file)
STS-101 commander Jim Halsell describes Atlantis' rudder speed brake problem to reporters on April 6 at Kennedy Space Center's pad 39A.
  PLAY (181k, 1min, 10sec QuickTime file)
NASA animation with narration shows Atlantis approaching and docking to the International Space Station and later separating for return to Earth.
  PLAY (249k, 1min, 04sec QuickTime file)
STS-101 Lead Flight Director Phil Engelauf describes the goals and objectives of Atlantis' mission to the International Space Station.
  PLAY (269k, 38sec QuickTime file)
   FULL VIDEO LISTING

Download QuickTime 4 software to view this file.

Photo gallery

In the VAB - Atlantis is hoisted vertically and attached to its fuel tank and solid rocket boosters in the Vehicle Assmbly Building. A main engine was also replaced.

Rollout - The fully assembled shuttle Atlantis is rolled to launch pad 39A.

Fixing Atlantis - Workers replace the faulty hydraulic unit aboard Atlantis last week.


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