Wed, 22 Jul 2009 09:37:10 AM CDT

Spacewalkers Dave Wolf and Chris Cassidy began the STS-127 mission's third spacewalk about 30 minutes ahead of schedule, at 10:32 a.m. EDT.

Wolf and Cassidy first will remove multilayer insulation from the Kibo module and prepare the Japanese Exposed Section payloads for their transfer from the Exposed Section to the Exposed Facility on Thursday. Then they will focus on battery replacements. The space station power system is a photovoltaic system that gathers solar power and stores it in batteries. Wolf and Cassidy will replace four of six old batteries in one of the six station power channels, channel 2B. In preparation for the task, the old batteries have been drained and the electrical loads normally handled by 2B have been placed on different power channels.

Wed, 15 Jul 2009 07:00:01 PM CDT

Space shuttle Endeavour and its crew of seven astronauts are in orbit after an on-time launch at 6:03 p.m. EDT from NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida. Following a smooth countdown with no technical issues and weather that steadily improved throughout the afternoon, the shuttle lifted off from Launch Pad 39A and began its orbital chase of the International Space Station.

"It was a testimony for this entire launch and flight control team," Launch Director Pete Nickolenko said of the countdown and successful liftoff, which came on the sixth launch attempt after technical issues and weather concerns prevented the first five tries. "It was an outstanding effort, and it made the complex look really easy. It really was a case of persistence."

Mon, 13 Jul 2009 05:53:38 PM CDT

Liftoff of space shuttle Endeavour on the STS-127 mission has been rescheduled for Wednesday, July 15 at 6:03 p.m. EDT.

Today's attempt was canceled due to poor weather conditions within the launch area at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida. Anvil clouds and storm cells containing lightning flared up toward the end of the countdown, violating stringent launch safety rules.

A postponement briefing will air live on NASA Television at 8 p.m. EDT this evening. The participants will be Launch Integration Manager Mike Moses and STS-127 Shuttle Launch Director Pete Nickolenko. Watch it live at http://www.nasa.gov/ntv

Sun, 12 Jul 2009 06:03:28 PM CDT

Officials at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida have called off today's liftoff of space shuttle Endeavour due to inclement weather. Cumulus clouds and lightning violated rules for launching Endeavour because of weather near the Shuttle Landing Facility. The runway would be needed in the unlikely event that Endeavour would have to make an emergency landing back at Kennedy.

Endeavour's next launch attempt is 6:51 p.m. EDT Monday. NASA TV coverage will begin at 1:30 p.m.

The oft-delayed space shuttle Endeavour will have to wait at least one more day to launch while NASA investigates whether lightning strikes near the launch pad yesterday caused any damage.

No positive signs of harm to Endeavour have yet been found from the violent lightning storm Friday afternoon, but mission managers called for a 24-hour delay to investigate before resuming the countdown to lift off.

"We need to be 100 percent confident that we have a good system across the board," said Mike Moses, Endeavour's mission management team chairman, during a Saturday briefing. "We've seen nothing so far that indicates anything was actually affected by the lightning strike. But we have to check and that's what takes time."

After weeks of repair work to plug a hydrogen leak on the space shuttle Endeavour, NASA is now watching the weather for the spacecraft's planned Saturday launch.

Endeavour has a 40 percent chance of good weather for its weekend launch toward the International Space Station, though NASA is hopeful that the potential for nearby thunderstorms and thick clouds will not hinder the much-delayed construction flight.

"That is always the remaining issue that we have," NASA test director Steve Payne said of the weather in a Thursday briefing. "If there's a hole in the clouds, we'll go for it. If not, then we'll go for it the next day. But we would rather get it done on Saturday."

Wed, 08 Jul 2009 09:36:41 AM CDT

The countdown to liftoff of space shuttle Endeavour on its STS-127 mission will officially begin tonight at 10 p.m. EDT when clocks begin ticking backward from T-43 hours.

Endeavour's seven astronauts arrived at NASA's Kennedy Space Center on Tuesday afternoon and are making their final preparations for launch, scheduled for July 11 at 7:39 p.m.

"At this point, I'm happy to report we are ready to proceed with the launch countdown," NASA Test Director Charlie Blackwell-Thompson said Wednesday morning during a countdown status briefing at Kennedy. "We're ready to (fuel) this vehicle on Saturday morning and proceed with our launch on Saturday evening."

NASA astronaut Jose Hernandez, set to fly aboard space shuttle Discovery in August, is providing insights about his training on Twitter in both English and Spanish. It will be the agency's first bilingual Twitter.

Hernandez, who considers Stockton, Calif., his hometown, grew up in a migrant farming family, travelling each year between Mexico and California. He did not learn English until the age of 12.

Hernandez, whose Twitter account is astro_jose, can be followed at:

http://www.twitter.com/astro_jose

News conferences, events and operating hours for the news center at NASA's Kennedy Space Center, Fla., have been updated for the launch of space shuttle Endeavour. The shuttle's STS-127 mission to the International Space Station is scheduled to lift off at 7:39 p.m. EDT on Saturday, July 11.

On Tuesday, July 7, Endeavour's seven astronauts are scheduled to arrive at Kennedy at about 2 p.m. NASA Television will provide live coverage as Commander Mark Polansky makes a brief statement to reporters. Badged journalists planning to cover the event must be at Kennedy's news center by 12:30 p.m. for transportation to the Shuttle Landing Facility.

Wed, 01 Jul 2009 01:00:29 PM CDT

A test fueling of space shuttle Endeavour's external tank revealed no gaseous hydrogen leaks, verifying recent repairs were successful, NASA managers confirmed during a Wednesday afternoon news conference at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida.

The tanking test began at 6:52 a.m. EDT Wednesday. During the next three hours, teams in the Launch Control Center watched closely for signs of a leak as liquid oxygen and liquid hydrogen poured into the massive orange tank. Previous attempts to launch Endeavour on the STS-127 mission were scrubbed by a leak in the area of the Ground Umbilical Carrier Plate, which attaches a gaseous hydrogen vent line to the external tank. Crews worked tirelessly to investigate and repair the problem.