Atlantis countdown begins
Wednesday, 06 Jun 2007 10:57
Atlantis on launch pad
Science In Focus
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Preparations are on schedule for the launch of the Atlantis space shuttle this Friday night, Nasa has said.
An earlier launch for the STS-117 mission to the International Space Station (ISS) had been planned for March but it was delayed after Atlantis was damaged by golfball-sized hailstones during a storm.
The shuttle is now due to take off on Friday at 19:38 EDT (00:38 BST) from the Kennedy Space Centre in Florida.
"All our systems right now are in great shape – we're tracking no constraints that are show stoppers," said Nasa test director Steve Payne.
"Teams are ready and everybody's eager to launch, we're looking forward to a successful assembly mission."
Launch weather officer Kathy Winters said there is a 30 per cent chance of weather delaying take-off. Afternoon thunderclouds are expected by meteorologists but they believe the clouds will be blown away by winds by launch time.
The next two days will be busy for the Mission STS-117 crew as they make final preparations for their 11-day mission to the ISS.
During their time in space the team will increase the orbiting outpost's power capability by installing a new segment known as the truss and a new set of solar panels. Two days and one spacewalk may be added if there are difficulties when another solar panel is folding back into its box.