March 10, 2008
The rotating service structure has been rolled away from space shuttle Endeavour in a major milestone leading up to launch. The liftoff of Endeavour on the STS-123 mission remains on schedule for 2:28 a.m. EDT Tuesday, March 11.

The movement of the enclosed gantry clears the way for the loading of about 500,000 gallons of supercold liquid oxygen and liquid hydrogen propellants into the orange external tank this evening.

The rotating service structure provides weather protection to the shuttles at the launch pad and gives technicians access to the shuttle.

The current weather forecast calls for only a 10 percent chance atmospheric conditions will delay the launch, with the primary concern coming from a slight chance of a low cloud ceiling around Kennedy.

SEOUL, South Korea (AP) â€" South Korea named a female mechanical engineer Monday to become the country's first person in space by going aboard a Russian spacecraft, after Moscow rejected Seoul's first choice because of rule violations during training.

The Ministry of Education, Science and Technology said at a news conference that Yi So-yeon will replace Ko San as the country's choice to fly on a Russian Soyuz capsule to the International Space Station in early April.

South Korea named Ko as its candidate in September, but Russia's Federal Space Agency asked for a replacement last month because he violated regulations at a Russian space training center, said Lee Sang-mok, a senior ministry official.

1. Upcoming School Contact Lycee mixte René Gosse in Clermont L'Herault, France will participate in an Amateur Radio on the International Space Station (ARISS) contact on Monday, March 10 at 08:30 UTC. In preparation for the contact, students will study Math including vector work on gravitational forces, French, Ecology and Sustainable Development, and Physics, including the history of space exploration, principles of inertia, and radio waves. The school held a workshop "English for the sciences" allowing scientific themes to be discussed in English. The object of this workshop was to enable students to develop their knowledge of English while exposing them to international scientific exchanges, primarily written in this language. This course will be extended by a second workshop "Scientific exchanges in English". The ARISS contact will be a continuation of this second workshop and represents a tremendous opportunity for the students to apply their knowledge and language skills. The project will conclude with a visit to the "Cité de l'Espace" in Toulouse. The school will partner with Radio Club F6KEH also known as "Emetteurs Biterrois." Newspapers, television and radio stations will be notified of the event.