yee@trident.arc.nasa.gov (Peter E. Yee) (08/08/89)
KSC SHUTTLE STATUS REPORT - SATURDAY, AUG. 5, 1989
STS-28 - COLUMBIA (OV 102) - LAUNCH PAD 39-B
The countdown for Columbia's eighth flight began on time
this morning at 12:01 a.m. eastern time. From now through launch,
Firing Room 3 will be staffed around the clock as KSC's
processing team prepares the shuttle for launch. Technicians at
Launch Pad 39-B are busy closing out the orbiter's aft
compartment. Thermal blankets have been installed in the avionics
bays. Pre-flight inspections of all components are underway,
closeout photos are being taken for engineering purposes, and
closeouts of the shuttle's three main engines are underway. After
work is completed in the aft, access platforms will be removed.
Workers are targeting to have the aft compartment closed out for
flight by late tonight.
Coundown activities completed overnight include verifying
the operation of Columbia's data processing systems and the
backup flight control system. Flight software stored in the
orbiter's twin memory banks has been reviewed. Today,
preparations will begin to load the power reactant storage and
distribution system tanks onboard the orbiter. Engineers are also
preparing the orbiter's main propulsion system for cryogenic
loading on the day of launch.
Weather forecasters are predicting a 10-20 percent chance of
violation of weather launch commit criteria on Tuesday. The
forecast during the launch period on Tuesday calls for a 25
percent cloud cover, scatterd clouds between the 3,000-7,000 foot
levels and between the 30,000-33,000 foot levels. Winds are
expected to be from the southwest at eight knots. The expected
temperature for the launch period is between 76-89 degrees.
The STS-28 flight crew members will be arriving at KSC's
Shuttle Landing Facility at about 4 p.m. this afternoon. In the
next few days prior to launch, the astronauts will receive status
briefings including the vehicle and weather, practice approach
and landings in the Shuttle Training Aircraft and the T-38 jets.
In addition, the astronauts will begin waking up and going to bed
on a certain timeline to get their bodies used to the mission
schedule.
Launch of Columbia on mission STS-28 is scheduled for
Tuesday, August 8 with a launch period of 7:30 a.m. to 11:30 a.m.
eastern time.