NASA managers are targeting a Feb. 7 launch date for the space shuttle Atlantis as engineers prepare to replace an electrical connector in the spacecraft's external fuel tank.

A decision on the proposed launch target could come as soon as Friday, pending coordination between shuttle and International Space Station (ISS) managers, as well as the agency's international partners, said Candrea Thomas, a spokesperson at NASA's Kennedy Space Center spaceport in Cape Canaveral, Fla.

Meanwhile, shuttle workers are expected to complete efforts to replace a suspect electrical connector on Atlantis' 15-story external tank early Friday, Thomas told SPACE.com.

1. ARISS School Contacts Status Due to ISS crew schedules, no Amateur Radio on the International Space Station (ARISS) contacts are planned at this time. The ARISS team expects contacts to resume once STS-122 launches in late January. 2. Astronaut Training Status Timothy Creamer, KC5WKI, is scheduled for a training session in basic radio operations and school contacts on Tuesday, January 8. Creamer is a backup crew member for the Expedition 18 mission. 3. ARISS Annual Report The Amateur Radio on the International Space Station (ARISS) FY2007 annual report has been written and is being finalized. It will soon be posted on the ARISS section of the AMSAT Web site.