Spaceflight Now




Spaceflight Now +



Subscribe to Spaceflight Now Plus for access to our extensive video collections!
How do I sign up?
Video archive

Complex 36 demolition

The two mobile service towers at Cape Canaveral's Complex 36 that had supported Atlas rockets for decades are toppled to the ground with 122 pounds of explosives.

 Play

Atlas 5's NRO launch

The United Launch Alliance Atlas 5 rocket lifts off June 15 from Cape Canaveral's Complex 41 on the classified NROL-30 mission for the U.S. National Reconnaissance Office.

 Full Coverage

Booster cameras

Hitch a ride up and down on the twin solid rocket boosters that launched shuttle Atlantis last week. Each booster was outfitted with three cameras to give NASA upclose footage of the vehicle's ascent.

 Full Coverage

Atlantis launch coverage

Shuttle Atlantis blasted off June 8 on its mission to the space station.

 Full Coverage

Become a subscriber
More video



Atlantis prepares to leave station after successful visit
BY WILLIAM HARWOOD
STORY WRITTEN FOR CBS NEWS "SPACE PLACE" & USED WITH PERMISSION
Posted: June 19, 2007

The Atlantis astronauts are preparing to undock from the international space station this morning after a dramatic visit highlighted by installation of a new set of solar arrays and recovery from major computer problems on the lab complex.

"It's really exciting to see the station in this configuration," said Flight Director Holly Ridings. "I think we all feel like we've accomplished the mission objectives. ... There were certainly a lot of things to overcome, but in spite of all those surprises we managed to do what we always do and meet our mission objectives and have a successful mission."

The space station has a new look with the retraction of the P6-2B solar panel and installation of the new S3/S4 solar array truss segment on the right side of the lab's main solar power truss. The station now sports two huge solar panels mounted on each end of the power truss, slowly rotating like giant paddle wheels to track the sun.

Flight controllers will get a chance to take in the station's new look during a one-lap fly-around by Atlantis after undocking to photograph the outpost from different angles.

Flight controllers successfully tested the station's orientation control system Monday to make sure revived computers in the Russian segment of the lab complex will be able to keep the outpost properly oriented after Atlantis departs. There were no problems and while troubleshooting continues to find the original cause of the computer problems, engineers are confident the system is healthy.

"The international space station right now is in very, very good shape," Ridings said. "The other thing we did yesterday was do our test on the Russian thrusters, both with the (Russian) terminal computer controlling as the brains of the operation and then the U.S. navigation computer controlling it. Both of those activities went nominal, there were no problems, no issues.

"We should expect it to work just fine today," she said. "We certainly still have a lot of work to do in terms of the root cause, but as far as getting everything back up and running, we're very, very comfortable those systems and processes are on line and running properly."

Undocking is expected at 10:42 a.m. Here is an updated timeline of today's activities (in EDT and mission elapsed time; includes rev. O of the NASA television schedule):


DATE/EDT...DD...HH...MM...EVENT

06/19/07

06:38 AM...10...11...00...STS/ISS crew wakeup
08:43 AM...10...13...05...Group C computer powerup
08:58 AM...10...13...20...Group B computer powerup
09:28 AM...10...13...50...Centerline camera installation
09:31 AM...10...13...53...Sunrise
09:53 AM...10...14...15...U.S. arrays feathered
09:59 AM...10...14...21...Noon
10:26 AM...10...14...48...Sunset
10:27 AM...10...14...49...Last Russian ground station loss of signal
10:37 AM...10...14...59...Russian arrays feathered
10:42 AM...10...15...04...UNDOCKING
10:43 AM...10...15...05...Initial orbiter separation (+10 seconds)
10:44 AM...10...15...06...ISS holds current attitude
10:47 AM...10...15...09...Range: 50 feet; reselect -X jets
10:49 AM...10...15...11...Range: 75 feet; low-Z jets
10:50 AM...10...15...12...Russian arrays resume auto sun tracking
11:02 AM...10...15...24...Sunrise
11:11 AM...10...15...33...Range: 400 feet; start flyaround
11:21 AM...10...15...43...Range: 600 feet
11:23 AM...10...15...45...Shuttle directly above ISS
11:24 AM...10...15...46...ISS maneuvers to XVV TEA
11:29 AM...10...15...51...U.S. arrays resume sun auto track
11:30 AM...10...15...52...Noon
11:34 AM...10...15...56...Shuttle directly behind ISS
11:46 AM...10...16...08...Shuttle directly below ISS
11:57 AM...10...16...19...Separation burn No. 1
11:58 AM...10...16...20...Sunset
12:23 PM...10...16...45...PMA-2 depressurization
12:25 PM...10...16...47...Separation burn No. 2
12:28 PM...10...16...50...Group B computer powerdown
12:28 PM...10...16...50...Shuttle robot arm powerup
12:58 PM...10...17...20...Crew meals begin
01:58 PM...10...18...20...Heat shield inspection boom unberth
02:43 PM...10...19...05...Starboard wing survey
03:58 PM...10...20...20...Nose cap survey
04:28 PM...10...20...50...EVA unpack and stow
04:58 PM...10...21...20...Port wing survey
04:58 PM...10...21...20...Post EVA entry prep
05:00 PM...10...21...22...Mission status briefing on NTV
06:18 PM...10...22...40...Inspection boom berthing
06:53 PM...10...23...15...Robot arm powerdown
06:53 PM...10...23...15...Orbit adjust rocket firing window
10:08 PM...11...02...30...STS crew sleep begins
11:00 PM...11...03...22...Daily video highlights reel on NTV

Spaceflight Now Plus
Additional coverage for subscribers:
VIDEO: FLIGHT DAY 11 HIGHLIGHTS MOVIE PLAY
VIDEO: MONDAY'S MISSION STATUS BRIEFING PLAY
VIDEO: TWO CREWS' FAREWELL CEREMONY PLAY
VIDEO: FLIGHT DAY 10 HIGHLIGHTS MOVIE PLAY
VIDEO: POST-SPACEWALK STATUS UPDATE PLAY
VIDEO: INTERVIEW WITH LEAD EVA OFFICER PLAY
VIDEO: FLIGHT DAY 9 HIGHLIGHTS MOVIE PLAY
VIDEO: IN-FLIGHT CREW NEWS CONFERENCE PLAY
VIDEO: SATURDAY MISSION STATUS BRIEFING PLAY
VIDEO: FRIDAY NIGHT MISSION STATUS BRIEFING PLAY
VIDEO: FRIDAY MID-DAY COMPUTER UPDATE PLAY

VIDEO: SOLID ROCKET BOOSTER ONBOARD LAUNCH CAMERAS PLAY
VIDEO: SECOND SOLAR WING FULLY DEPLOYED PLAY
VIDEO: SECOND SOLAR WING DEPLOYED HALF-WAY PLAY
VIDEO: FIRST SOLAR WING FULLY DEPLOYED PLAY
VIDEO: FIRST SOLAR WING DEPLOYED HALF-WAY PLAY

VIDEO: FLIGHT DAY 4 HIGHLIGHTS MOVIE PLAY
VIDEO: POST-SPACEWALK STATUS BRIEFING PLAY
VIDEO: BRIEFING ON MISSION EXTENSION PLANS PLAY

VIDEO: SPACEWALK No. 1 BEGINS PLAY
VIDEO: NARRATED PREVIEW OF THE SPACEWALKS PLAY
VIDEO: FLIGHT DAY 3 HIGHLIGHTS MOVIE PLAY
VIDEO: SUNDAY'S MISSION STATUS BRIEFING PLAY
VIDEO: SHUTTLE CREW WELCOMED ABOARD STATION PLAY
VIDEO: ATLANTIS DOCKS WITH THE SPACE STATION PLAY
VIDEO: WATCH THE RENDEZVOUS BACKFLIP MANUEVER PLAY
VIDEO: FLIGHT DAY 2 HIGHLIGHTS MOVIE PLAY
VIDEO: SATURDAY'S MISSION STATUS BRIEFING PLAY
VIDEO: FLIGHT DAY 1 HIGHLIGHTS MOVIE PLAY
VIDEO: INSIDE MISSION CONTROL DURING LAUNCH PLAY
VIDEO: LAUNCH REPLAY: VIEW FROM COMPLEX 41 PLAY
VIDEO: LAUNCH REPLAY: PAD PERIMETER PLAY
VIDEO: LAUNCH REPLAY: THE VAB ROOF PLAY
VIDEO: LAUNCH REPLAY: THE PRESS SITE PLAY
VIDEO: LAUNCH REPLAY: UCS-23 TRACKER PLAY
VIDEO: LAUNCH REPLAY: PAD FRONT CAMERA PLAY
VIDEO: LAUNCH REPLAY: CAMERA AT THE BEACH PLAY

VIDEO: LAUNCH OF ATLANTIS! PLAY
VIDEO: FULL LENGTH MOVIE OF ASCENT TO ORBIT PLAY
VIDEO: EXTERNAL TANK ONBOARD VIDEO CAMERA PLAY
VIDEO: POST-LAUNCH PRESS CONFERENCE PLAY

VIDEO: ASTRONAUTS DEPART QUARTERS FOR THE PAD PLAY
VIDEO: PAD'S ROTATING SERVICE STRUCTURE RETRACTED PLAY
VIDEO: HIGHLIGHTS FROM ATLANTIS' LAUNCH CAMPAIGN PLAY
VIDEO: HIGHLIGHTS OF THE PAYLOAD'S LAUNCH CAMPAIGN PLAY

MORE: STS-117 VIDEO COVERAGE
SUBSCRIBE NOW



MISSION INDEX