Conference 7.286::space

	The following is the crew list:

	STS 70	- Discovery (21) June 22-27 1995
		- TDRS-G; CMSE-01
		- Commander: Terrance Henricks (3)
		- Pilot: Kevin Kregel
		- MS1: Nancy Sherlock (2)
		- FE/MS2: Donald Thomas (2)
		- MS3: Mary Weber

[Downloaded from NASA Spacelink]
 
	       KENNEDY SPACE CENTER SPACE SHUTTLE STATUS REPORT
		     MONDAY, APRIL 3, 1995 (12:06 PM EST)
 
KSC Public Affairs Contact: Bruce Buckingham 407-867-2468 (fax 407-867-2692)
(Internet e-mail: [email protected])
 
 
			   MISSION: STS-70 -- TDRS-G
 
VEHICLE: Discovery/OV-103     
LOCATION: Orbiter Processing Facility bay 2
TARGET LAUNCH DATE: June 22             APPROX. LAUNCH TIME: 11:13 a.m.
LAUNCH WINDOW: 2 hours, 30 minutes
TARGET KSC LANDING DATE/TIME: June 30 at 9:23 a.m.
MISSION DURATION: 8 days                CREW SIZE: 5
ORBITAL ALTITUDE and INCLINATION: 184 statute miles/28.45 degrees
 
IN WORK TODAY:
o Preparations to install main engines
o Auxiliary power unit leak and functional checks
o Ammonia servicing
o Payload premate tests
o Solid rocket booster stacking operations in Vehicle Assembly Building high 
	bay 3
 
WORK COMPLETED:
o Orbital maneuvering system pod functional checks
 
WORK SCHEDULED:
o Begin installation of space shuttle main engines
o Transfer to Vehicle Assembly Building for temporary storage
 

 
			     PAYLOAD STATUS REPORT
				 April 6, 1995
 
George H. Diller
Kennedy Space Center
407/867-2468
 
STS-70/TDRS-G
Discovery/June
 
     The Inertial Upper Stage (IUS) booster arrived at the Vertical Processing 
Facility (VPF) on Monday, April 3 and was hoisted into the west test cell of 
the VPF on April 4.  The Tracking and Data Relay Satellite (TDRS-G) is 
scheduled to arrive by C-5  military aircraft at the Shuttle Landing Facility 
on Friday morning.  The spacecraft will be taken to the VPF and undergo 
receiving inspections and state-of-health checks.  TDRS will be mated to the 
IUS on April 13 and integrated testing will follow.
 

	       KENNEDY SPACE CENTER SPACE SHUTTLE STATUS REPORT
		     FRIDAY, APRIL 7, 1995 (10:35 AM EST)
 
KSC Public Affairs Contact: Bruce Buckingham 407-867-2468 (fax 407-867-2692)
 
NOTE: Missions STS-71 and STS-70 are both being targeted for no earlier
than launch dates and options are being protected for each to be the next
one launched.  A firmer decision is expected within the next two weeks. 
 
 
		      MISSION: STS-70 -- TDRS-G
 
VEHICLE: Discovery/OV-103     
LOCATION: Orbiter Processing Facility bay 2
*TARGET LAUNCH DATE: June 8 (no earlier than)
*APPROX. LAUNCH TIME: 10:23 a.m.        LAUNCH WINDOW: 2 hours, 30 minutes      
*TARGET KSC LANDING DATE/TIME: June 16 at 8:33 a.m.
MISSION DURATION: 8 days                CREW SIZE: 5
ORBITAL ALTITUDE and INCLINATION: 184 statute miles/28.45 degrees
* Change from earlier report
 
NOTE: Discovery will not be transferred to the VAB for temporary storage
but will remain in OPF bay 2 for an accelerated flow schedule to meet an
earlier targeted launch date.  The accelerated flow is made possible by not
going to the VAB. 
 
IN WORK TODAY:
o Auxiliary power unit leak and functional checks
o Water spray boiler checks
o Solid rocket booster stacking operations in Vehicle Assembly Building high 
  bay 3
 
WORK COMPLETED:
o Ammonia servicing
o Landing gear checks
 
KEY OPERATIONAL MILESTONES (dates are targeted only):
o Install main engines (April 17)
o Roll to Vehicle Assembly Building (May 3)
o Roll out to pad 39 B (May 11)
 
 

Mark Hess/Ed Campion 
Headquarters, Washington, DC                 May 2, 1995
(Phone:  202/358-1778)
 
Rob Navias
Johnson Space Center, Houston
(Phone:  713/483-5111)
 
Bruce Buckingham
Kennedy Space Center, FL
(Phone:  407/867-2468)
 
 
RELEASE:  95-59
 
NASA ALTERS SHUTTLE FLIGHT SCHEDULE
 
     After reviewing processing operations and consulting with Russian Space 
Agency officials, NASA managers have decided to change the flight order for 
the launch of two upcoming Space Shuttle missions.
 
     Space Shuttle Discovery, being prepared for the STS-70/Tracking Data 
Relay Satellite-G mission, will be the next flight of the Shuttle system.  
Following the STS-70 mission, Atlantis will be launched on Mission STS-71, the 
first Shuttle-Mir docking mission.
 
     "Both of these flights are very important to NASA's space flight effort," 
said Brewster Shaw, Director, Space Shuttle Operations.  "STS-70 represents 
the first flight of the new Block I Space Shuttle Main Engine (SSME) with the 
new Phase II+ powerhead, single coil heat exchanger and new high pressure 
oxidizer turbopump.  The Block I changes will increase SSME durability, 
reliability and safety margins," he said.
 
     "The STS-71 mission represents a significant step forward in our 
cooperative effort with the Russians and also the development of the 
international Space Station.  By flying the missions in this order, we are 
able to make the best use of the work force, Shuttle processing resources and 
the ability to meet our future manifest assignments," said Shaw.
 
     Launch of the STS-70 mission is currently targeted for June 8 with a 
mission duration of 5-8 days.  The official launch date and mission duration 
will be set following a flight readiness review meeting at the end of this 
month.  The STS-71 mission is targeted for launch in the June 19-24 timeframe.  
Atlantis' official launch date will be set following its flight readiness 
review in early June.

               KENNEDY SPACE CENTER SPACE SHUTTLE STATUS REPORT
                       MONDAY, MAY 8, 1995 (1:15 PM EDT)
 
KSC Public Affairs Contact: Bruce Buckingham 407-867-2468 (fax 407-867-2692)
 
 
                           MISSION: STS-70 -- TDRS-G
 
VEHICLE: Discovery/OV-103               LOCATION: Vehicle Assembly Building
TARGET LAUNCH DATE: June 8              LAUNCH TIME: 9:01 a.m. EDT
LAUNCH WINDOW: 2 hours, 30 minutes
TARGET KSC LANDING DATE/TIME: June 16 at 8:18 a.m.
MISSION DURATION: 7 days, 22 hours (with option to shorten to 5 days)
CREW SIZE: 5
ORBITAL ALTITUDE and INCLINATION: 184 statute miles/28.45 degrees
 
IN WORK TODAY:
- Shuttle interface verification tests
- TDRS fueling operations at Launch Pad 39-B
 
WORK COMPLETED:
- Orbiter/external tank electrical mates
- Lift and mate with external tank
 
KEY OPERATIONAL MILESTONES (dates are target only):
- Roll Shuttle vehicle to Launch Pad 39-B (4 a.m. Thursday)
- Hot fire auxiliary power unit no. 2 (May 12)
- Install TDRS into orbiter payload bay (May 13)
- TDRS interface verification test and end-to-end test (May 15-18)
- Terminal Countdown Demonstration Test (May 18-19)
- Flight readiness review (May 26)
 

    Mission Objective:
    
    
    The primary mission is the launch of the 7th Tracking Data Relay
    Satellite (TDRSS) and will be the 6th placed in operational use. The
    first TDRSS was launched aboard STS-6 on 4/5/83 with a scheduled
    lifetime of 7 years. The second TDRSS (TDRS-2) was lost aboard
    Challenger on mission 51-L . Other TDRSS satellites have flown on
    STS-26 (TDRS-3), STS-29 (TDRS-4), STS-43 (TDRS-5) and  STS-54 (TDRS-6). 
    
    The TDRSS system is a space-based network that provides communications,
    tracking, telemetry, data acquisition and command services essential to
    the Space Shuttle and other low-Earth orbital spacecraft such as the
    Hubble Space Telescope (HST), the Compton Gamma Ray Observatory (GRO),
    the Upper Atmosphere Research Satellite (UARS), Cosmic Background
    Explorer (CBE), Extreme Ultraviolet Explorer (EUE), TOPEX-Poseidon,
    Landsat and many more. TDRS-G will reside at 178 degrees West
    longitude. It was built by TRW. 
    
    The deploy operations utilize 3 seperate control centers to manage
    orbit operations. The White Sands ground station will control the
    TDRSS, the JSC Mission Control Center (MCC) will control the shuttle,
    and the Inertial Upper Stage (IUS) control center at Onizuka Air Force
    Base in Sunnyvale California. Deploy operations will begin six hours
    into the mission. Once deployed, the satellite measures over 50ft end
    to end. TDRSS-G will add to the complement of satellites already in
    orbit.
    
    Launch:
    
    Launch June 8, 1995 11:13 a.m EST (ESTIMATED) Launch Window is 2 hours
    30 min. The launch of  STS-70 was move ahead of the launch of STS-71
    because of a delay in the launch of the Russian Spektr laboratory
    module to the russian space station MIR. The launch of Spektr in Russia
    was moved from May 10 1995 to May 21, 1995. Russia needs 30 days to
    prepare Mir for Atlantis on STS-71 after the attachment of Spektr. 
    
    

    Launch August, 1995 9:26 a.m EDT (ESTIMATED). Launch Window is 2 hours
    30 min. 
    
    STS-70 had originally been moved ahead of the launch of STS-71 because
    of a delay in the launch of the Russian Spektr laboratory module to the
    Russian space station MIR. The launch of Spektr in Russia was moved
    from May 10 1995 to May 21, 1995. The Spektr launch was successful and
    docking with MIR occured June 1, 1995. 
    
    On 5/31/95 NASA shuttle managers were assessing minor damage to the
    external tank of STS-70 caused by nesting Flicker Woodpeckers. The
    damage consists of about 71 holes (ranging in size from 4 inches in
    diameter to 1/2 inch in diameter) in the ETs thermal protection foam
    insulation. Technicians installed safeguards against additional damage. 
    
    On 6/2/95, NASA managers decided to delay the launch of Discovery on
    Mission STS-70 in order to make repairs to foam insulation on the
    vehicle's external fuel tank. STS-71 will probably be the next shuttle
    mission flown. Technicans are preparing to rollback Discovery to the
    VAB. 
    

>    On 5/31/95 NASA shuttle managers were assessing minor damage to the
>    external tank of STS-70 caused by nesting Flicker Woodpeckers. The
>    damage consists of about 71 holes (ranging in size from 4 inches in
>    diameter to 1/2 inch in diameter) in the ETs thermal protection foam
>    insulation. Technicians installed safeguards against additional damage. 

Safeguards:  Yeah, plastic owls and airhorns!

Burns

    There has been a thread in the newsgroup sci.space.shuttle on the
    woodpeckers. Someone had mentioned that there used to be an owls
    nest at pad 39B and it/they used to leave & return after every flight.
    Just prior to the STS-63 flight, workers apparently noticed baby
    owls, so they moved the nest. Since then the owls have unfortunately 
    not returned to the structure. Thus the woodpeckers (actual species
    is Northern Flicker), have had full reign.
    
    Bob

                                                                           
For Release:
Ed Campion                                    May 26, 1995
Headquarters, Washington, D.C.
202-358-1780
 
Bruce Buckingham
Kennedy Space Center, Fla.
407-867-2468
 
KSC RELEASE NO.  49 - 95
 
NASA SETS JUNE 8 AS LAUNCH DATE FOR 100TH HUMAN SPACE MISSION
 
     NASA managers today set June 8, 1995 as the official launch date for
Space Shuttle Discovery on the STS-70 mission.  The STS-70 mission achieves
a unique milestone in the history of the American space program as it will
mark the 100th human space mission flown by the United States since Alan
B. Shepherd s historic 15 minute suborbital flight into space in 1961.
The primary objective of the STS-70 mission is the deployment of the
Tracking and Data Relay Satellite-G, the last in a series of a space-based
satellite network that provides communication, tracking, telemetry, data
acquisition and command services essential to Shuttle and low-Earth
orbital spacecraft missions. 
 
     Discovery and the STS-70 crew are scheduled to be launched into a
160-mile circular orbit during a two hour 30 minute window which opens at
9:26 a.m. EDT on June 8.  The mission is scheduled for seven days, 22 hours
and 10 minutes but Shuttle officials may shorten the flight to five days
depending on when the mission actually begins so that the next Shuttle
mission - a historic link up with the Russian space station Mir - can be
launched on or about June 22.  An on-time STS-70 launch and full eight day
mission would result in a June 16 landing at the Kennedy Space Center at
7:36 a.m. EDT. 
 
     Aboard Discovery will be a five-person crew commanded by two-time
Shuttle pilot Terence Tom Henricks, pilot Kevin Kregel and mission
specialists Donald Thomas (second flight), Nancy Curie (second flight) and
Mary Ellen Weber.  This will be Kregel and Weber s maiden space voyage. 

 
Ed Campion
Headquarters, Washington, DC                 June 2, 1995
(Phone:  202/358-1780)
 
Bruce Buckingham
Kennedy Space Center, FL
(Phone:  407/867-2468)
 
 
NOTE TO EDITORS:  N95-36
 
NASA MANAGERS DELAY LAUNCH OF DISCOVERY, ATLANTIS DATE NOT SET
 
     NASA managers have decided to delay the launch of 
Space Shuttle Discovery on Mission STS-70 in order to make 
repairs to foam insulation on the vehicle's external fuel 
tank.  Earlier this week, technicians at Launch Pad 39-B 
discovered that woodpeckers had inflicted about six dozen 
small holes in the insulation material.
 
     Due to the critical role the insulation plays from a 
thermal standpoint during the Shuttle's launch and ascent, 
and the tank's re-entry into the atmosphere, it was 
determined that the damaged areas must be fixed prior to 
flight.  After evaluating the location and nature of the 
areas in question, it was determined the repairs should be 
performed in the Vehicle Assembly Building (VAB).  This is 
due to access and environmental concerns at the launch pad.
 
     Technicians will now begin preparations for 
Discovery's rollback to the VAB which may take place the 
week of June 5.  The insulation repair work should take 
less than a week to complete.  Upon completion of the 
insulation work, Discovery will be moved back to the launch 
pad for final vehicle preparations.  The TDRS/IUS payload 
will be removed prior to rollback.
 
     With the rollback decision on Discovery, Space Shuttle 
Atlantis on Mission STS -71, the first Shuttle-Mir mission, 
will probably be the next mission flown.  The STS-71 
mission is scheduled for launch during the third week of June. 
 
     An official launch date is expected to be announced 
late next week.  A launch date was not selected at the 
conclusion of today's Flight Readiness Review due to 
ongoing work aboard the Mir station that needs to be 
completed prior to Atlantis' arrival.   The launch team at 
the Kennedy Space Center will continue vehicle processing 
work so that Atlantis will be ready for launch anytime on 
or after June 22.
 
    Shuttle managers are considering various manifest 
options in terms of which mission will follow the STS-71 
flight.  There is a flight opportunity scheduled for mid-
July and initial indications show another flight could be 
done in mid-August.
 
    STS-71 is the first of seven planned Space Shuttle-Mir 
missions between 1995 and 1997, including rendezvous, 
docking and crew transfers, which will pave the way toward 
assembly of the international Space Station beginning in 
November 1997.
 

 
              KENNEDY SPACE CENTER SPACE SHUTTLE STATUS REPORT
                    FRIDAY, JUNE 2, 1995 (10:31 AM EDT)
 
KSC Public Affairs Contact: Bruce Buckingham 407-867-2468 (fax 407-867-2692)
 
 
                        MISSION: STS-70 -- TDRS-G
 
VEHICLE: Discovery/OV-103                LOCATION: Launch Pad 39-B
LAUNCH DATE: TBD                         LAUNCH TIME: TBD
LAUNCH WINDOW: 2 hours, 30 minutes       KSC LANDING DATE/TIME: TBD
MISSION DURATION: 7 days, 22 hours, 10 minutes
CREW SIZE: 5
ORBITAL ALTITUDE and INCLINATION: 184 statute miles/28.45 degrees
 
NOTE: Workers at Launch Pad 39-B continue to gain access to the higher reaches
of the STS-70 external tank in an effort to repair holes caused by Northern
Flicker Woodpeckers.  Technicians continued damage assessments overnight and
have counted up tp 135 holes in the external tank�s thermal protection foam
insulation.  The size of these holes vary and are up to four inches in diameter.
So far, about 20 holes on the lower parts of the external tank have been
repaired.  It was determined that another 38 holes on the "intertank" portion of
the external tank need not be repaired.  (The intertank area represents a
portion of the tank not subjected to extremely low temperatures during fueling
operations.)
 
     Today, a 250-foot crane with a long boom attachment is in place on the pad
surface.  The crane is being secured and man-rated for repair work to begin
this afternoon.  Additional smaller cranes continue to be used for the lower
areas of the tank.
 
     As managers continue to assess damage to the external tank of STS-70, the
Mission Management Team is meeting at Kennedy Space Center for the STS-71 Flight
Rediness Review.  Following the meeting late this afternoon, the team will
discuss launch scenarios for STS-70.  Current estimates based on the time
required to perform the necessary repairs indicate at least a one or two day
delay from the previously scheduled June 8 launch date.
 
IN WORK TODAY:
- Repairs to external tank foam insulation
- Aft engine compartment close-outs
- Countdown preparations
 
WORK COMPLETED:
- Install and check-out contingency spacesuits
 
KEY OPERATIONAL MILESTONES (dates are target only):
- Close payload bay doors for flight (June 5)
- Countdown begins (TBD)
- Crew arrival for launch (TBD)
 
 

 
                       TDRS-G/IUS-26 PAYLOAD STATUS REPORT
                          4:00 p.m. Monday, June 5, 1995
 
George H. Diller
Kennedy Space Center
407/867-2468
 
 
     The STS-70 payload test team this afternoon began implementing a 
schedule which would preserve an option for Space Shuttle Discovery to roll 
back to the Vehicle Assembly Building as early as Thursday.
 
     At this time the batteries of the Inertial Upper Stage (IUS) are being 
disconnected and the TDRS batteries are being discharged.  Later tonight the 
Redundant Inertial Measurement Unit (RIMU), the primary guidance and 
navigation system of the IUS, will be removed.  An IUS shock recorder will be 
installed.  All payload disconnections should be complete by 9:30 a.m. Tuesday.  
     Work will begin to extract the TDRS/IUS payload from Discovery's 
payload bay starting at 10 a.m. Tuesday.  The payload should be fully removed 
and installed in the payload changeout room at Pad 39-B by 6 p.m. Tuesday.  
Protective covers will installed over the solar panels early Wednesday.
 
     No further work will be performed on TDRS/IUS until the new launch 
schedule has been determined about mid-week.  If a decision is made to launch 
Discovery in August, the TDRS/IUS stack will be returned to the Vertical 
Processing Facility (VPF) in the KSC Industrial Area.  It will not be necessary
to offload the attitude control propellant which is aboard the satellite. The
payload test team is currently discussing what additional checks, if any, would
be appropriate while in the VPF.
 
     Once Discovery has been returned to the launch pad and the TDRS/IUS 
reinstalled into the payload bay, an Interface Verification Test (IVT) will be 
performed.  Whether another end-to-end communications test is necessary is 
under discussion.

Ed Campion
Headquarters, Washington, DC              June 7, 1995
(Phone:  202/358-1778)
 
Rob Navias
Johnson Space Center, Houston
(Phone:  713/483-5111)
 
NOTE TO EDITORS:  N95-39
 
NASA MANAGERS SET LAUNCH DATES FOR DISCOVERY AND ENDEAVOUR
 
     NASA managers have set new target launch dates for two Shuttle missions 
scheduled to fly this summer.  Space Shuttle Discovery on Mission STS-70 is 
now targeted for launch on July 13 and Space Shuttle Endeavour is set to be 
launched on Mission STS-69 on July 30.
 
     The new flight dates for Discovery and Endeavour have no impact to the 
processing work on Space Shuttle Atlantis being prepared for the STS-71 launch 
on the first Shuttle-Mir docking mission.  The Atlantis launch remains planned 
for no earlier than June 22 and a firm launch date may be announced early next 
week.
 
    The new target launch dates for Discovery and Endeavour were established 
after the launch team finished assessing the impact of last week's decision to 
roll Discovery off Launch Pad 39-B.  The rollback was required in order to 
make repairs to the foam insulation on the external tank.  

 
[Downloaded from NASA Spacelink]
 
6/21/95:  STS-70 Woodpecker Update
 
 
6/21/95
 
There have been some conflicting reports in the press lately regarding the
woodpeckers and Discovery on mission STS-70. 
 
Let me help set the record straight.
 
As of late last week, the final woodpecker hole repair count stands at
195.  The repairs have been completed and the vehicle was returned to pad
39B on Thursday, June 15. 
 
There have been no reported sightings of woodpeckers on or near Atlantis
at pad 39A and no more reported woodpecker sightings on Discovery since
the problem first came to light over the Memorial Day Weekend.  Woodpeckers
have been seen around Discovery's pad, outside the fence, but none to my
knowledge on the vehicle itself. Certainly no more holes have been
identified. 
 
Several bird deterrent mechanisms are currently in place on both pads.
These include the plastic owl decoys, mylar strips, air horns, and water
hoses.  All but the mylar strips will be removed from pad A before Atlantis
is launched this week.  Additionally, three predator bird tapes have been
acquired by the NASA Test Directors and will be played over the PA system
at the pad if necessary.  A test of the tapes was performed last night and
apparently every bird within earshot flew away.  It seems to work. 
 
The long term plan is to develop a wildlife habitat management plan.  NASA
is working on this with the U.S. Dept. of Ag.  A final plan should be
established in the next several weeks. 
 
 
Bruce

They're off!

There appeared to be a momentary hold at T-31 before they enabled auto-sequence
start.  There was a pause, I heard the controllers being polled, and one of them
said something like "It's only a xxxxx, GO!".  So they continued at T-31 about
30 seconds late.

Burns

Has any mention been made of why the new MCC room is not in use?

They make big hay of it in the Web pages, but the NASA TV feed clearly
shows the mission in the original center...


- dave

    They apparently won't switch over to the new MCC room until after
    TDRS-G is deployed later this afternoon. I heard this several times
    on NASA-Select while watching STS-71 last week and while watching
    some of the pre-flight press conferences on STS-70.
    The new MCC is apparently being phased in while the current MCC
    is being used for launch & re-entry. Later missions this year are
    expected to use the new MCC for the whole mission. Apparently since
    last December, they have been "shadowing" missions in the new MCC to 
    wring out bugs in new software, procedures, protocols, etc.
    Last night they showed one of those daily collection of NASA clips
    with the brief text followed by some footage of the new room. 
    Brightly lit consoles, people at the consoles, big 21" DEC (oops
    "Digital") monitors, keyboards, mice, & the Alphas are all rack-mounted
    in the console housings. The camera shot brought some screens almost
    withing reading distance, but I couldn't see any Digital logos on 
    the front bezels of the monitors.
    For those with NASA-Select, we'll probably get to see the new room 
    this evening when we get home from work, as they should have deployed 
    TDRS-G by then.
    
    Bob

    
    Delay info from WWW :-
    
    Launch July 13, 1995 at 9:41:55.078 a.m. EDT. The launch window was 2
    hours 30 min. The hatch was closed at 8:13am EDT and the count
    proceeded smoothly until T-31 sec. The count was held for 55 seconds at
    T-31 sec by the Booster Range Safety Engineer (CBRS) Tod Gracom at the
    LCC C-5 Console due to fluxuations seen on the external tank automatic
    gain control (AGC) ET range safety system receiver . Launch Commit
    Criteria contigency procedures were worked and the count then proceeded
    on schedule. 
    
    

    MISSION CONTROL CENTER
    STS-70 Status Report #1
    
    
    Thursday, July 13, 1995, 5 p.m. CDT
    
       After a flawless launch this morning, the crew of Discovery
    accomplished the main objective of their flight this afternoon with
    the trouble-free deploy of a NASA communications satellite.
    
       Following an 8:42 a.m. launch, the Tracking and Data Relay
    Satellite-G, the sixth and last such satellite to be deployed from a
    space shuttle, was ejected from Discovery's cargo bay exactly on time
    at 2:55 p.m. Central.  The release of the satellite was overseen by
    Mission Specialists Don Thomas and Mary Ellen Weber.  About 15 minutes
    later, Discovery's Commander Tom Henricks fired the shuttle's engines
    to raise the orbit and move away from the vicinity of the satellite
    and its Inertial Upper Stage booster.  At about 3:55 p.m., the
    satellite's IUS booster fired the first of two burns that will put
    TDRS-G into its proper, 22,000-mile-high geostationary orbit above the
    central Pacific Ocean.  The next burn for the IUS booster is planned
    for around 9:30 p.m.
    
       In Mission Control, operations are in the process of being moved to
    a
    new facility.  Following the satellite deploy, flight controllers are
    planning to vacate the current room which has been used for three
    decades, since Gemini 4 in 1965, to control human space flights.
    Beginning at about 6:30 p.m. Central, the overnight shift of flight
    controllers will be the first to operate from the New Mission Control
    Center, and all further orbit operations for STS-70 and future flights
    will be performed from the new control center.
    
       Until early next year, launches and landings still will be
    controlled
    from the old Mission Control.  But, eventually, they also will be
    flown from the new control room and the old room will be permanently
    vacated.
    
      Discovery's crew will begin an eight-hour sleep period at 7:12
    p.m. Central and awaken for the second day of STS-70 at 3:12
    a.m. Friday.
    
    --end--
    
    

    <---- RE: .17 
    I was watching the replay of the post launch press conference
    where they discussed the range safety receiver on the external
    tank that went bonkers or whatever. They said that what they 
    believe it actually was, was some communications "multipath"
    where some signals end up bouncing off multiple surfaces and are
    received as multiple reflections of the same signal. It's the same
    sort of behavior with multipath when you see ghosting of a tv picture
    on your television at home (connected to a house antenna rather than
    cable). When asked by a reporter what would have happened if this
    multipath problem hadn't been detected on time, one of the NASA folks
    said that once the hand-off had been done to the orbiter computers,
    with the multipath interfering with communications, there would have
    been a shutdown and they would have had to recycle things to 20 minutes
    countdown. It was also mentioned when asked how long they could have
    kept the hold at 31 seconds, they said maybe the most 5-6 minutes.
    The question was also asked as to what the range safety receivers
    purpose are. The answer was to say that it's a function they hope they
    never have to employ....self-destruct.
    They said that Todd has been at his job for many years and knew his
    job inside & out. It was also mentioned that in appreciation for Todds
    quick actions, he was given the honor of coming up to the front of the
    launch control room and placing the plaque for this mission on the
    wall. It was mentioned I think that Todd is a Rockwell employee.
    
    Bob

    While watching last evening, shortly after supper time, (about
    7:00 or so), they transferred control to the new MCC. While showing
    some TV shots of the new center, and providing narrative, they
    also included some prior footage of the older MCC's working up to the
    new one. When they showed some footage of the new one along with
    some narrative about its ease or servicability, they showed some
    service personnel taking the back cover off a console and you could see
    the rear of the DEC monitor (with its serial number label & logo), and
    also the rear of the ALPHA box connectors & its label with DEC logo.
    It's pretty damned neat seeing all that hardware of ours in that control
    room and nobody elses. What a win!
    
    Bob

    Gee, I hope it was the Digital logo!!  
    
    Opps, sorry, wrong conference! :-) :-)
    

    MISSION CONTROL CENTER
    STS-70 Status Report #2
    
    Friday, July 14, 1995, 6 a.m. CDT
    
    For the first time since June 1965, a human spaceflight mission is
    being controlled from a different flight control room in the Mission
    Control Center.  Before going to sleep late yesterday, Discovery's
    crew was notified that operations had been transferred down the hall
    to the new control room known as the "White FCR" (pronounced ficker),
    or Flight Control Room.
    
    The remainder of the on-orbit phase of the flight will be controlled
    from the new room, except the entry and landing which will be
    controlled from the old Mission Control.
    
    The crew of STS-70 was awakened shortly after three this morning
    Central time to the theme from "Woody Woodpecker," a cartoon character
    adopted as the mascot for the mission when real woodpeckers plucked
    holes in protective insulation on Discovery's external fuel tank last
    month causing a delay in the mission.
    
    Overnight, controllers in Sunnyvale, California, monitored the
    progress of the deployment of the communications tracking satellite
    called TDRS (Tracking and Data Relay Satellite), which was the prime
    objective of Discovery's mission.  Riding atop a solid rocket motor
    called an Inertial Upper Stage, the satellite was placed in an orbit
    high above the equator over the Pacific.  All of its appendages have
    been deployed and command and checkout of the spacecraft has begun.
    
    The satellite deployment followed launch of Discovery from the Kennedy
    Space Center at 8:42 a.m. Central yesterday.  The five astronauts
    onboard will now turn their attention to the wide variety of
    experiments being flown in the crew compartment of the orbiter.
    
    Commander Tom Henricks, Pilot Kevin Kregel and Mission Specialists Don
    Thomas, Nancy Currie, and Mary Ellen Weber came on duty about 6
    a.m. for their work day in space.  No problems are being tracked by
    the flight control team as Discovery sails into the second day of its
    21st mission in space.
    
    
                                            -end-
    
    

    MISSION CONTROL CENTER
    STS-70 Status Report #3
    
    Friday, July 14, 1995, 5 p.m. CDT
    
    Discovery's crew began a steady pace of working with a variety of
    secondary experiments aboard the shuttle today, their first full day
    in orbit.
    
    The primary objective for Discovery -- releasing a Tracking and Data
    Relay Satellite -- was accomplished yesterday. Today, the crew worked
    with experiments ranging from the HERCULES camera, a camera that can
    imprint the latitude and longitude of areas photographed on Earth, to
    the Windex, a study of the glow created as the shuttle surfaces
    interact with atomic oxygen in low Earth orbit.
    
    Commander Tom Henricks also fired Discovery's engines to lower the
    shuttle's orbit, a firing that enhanced the landing opportunities that
    will be available at the end of the flight and provided a viewing
    opportunity for the Windex experiment. Mission Specialist Nancy Currie
    set up Windex to observe the effect of the engine firing on the
    glowing phenomenon. Investigators with the experiment hope to better
    characterize the glow, which occurs on all spacecraft in low orbit,
    and thus better design future Earth orbiting, sensitive astronomy
    satellites with which such a glow could interfere.
    
    Also, Henricks, Pilot Kevin Kregel and Mission Specialist Mary Ellen
    Weber answered questions from the general public via the New York
    Times On-Line Services. The crew will begin an eight-hour sleep period
    at 6:12 p.m. They will awaken at 2:12 a.m. Saturday.
    
    Discovery is now in an orbit with a high point of 195 statute miles
    and a low point of 175 statute miles, circling Earth every 90 minutes,
    36 seconds.
    
    -- end --
    

    MISSION CONTROL CENTER
    STS-70 Status Report #4
    
    Saturday, July 15, 1995, 9 a.m. CDT
    
    Halfway through its third day in space, Discovery's crew has settled
    into a routine of conducting and monitoring nearly 20 different
    science experiments on the orbiter's middeck and flight deck.
    
    Pilot Kevin Kregel and Mission Specialist Don Thomas began the day
    working with the HERCULES camera which will record pinpoint data on
    the surface location of Earth observations images.  A first attempt to
    align the camera's Inertial Measurement Unit was unsuccessful, but the
    crew attributed this to a need for some practice with the procedure,
    which involves locating two stars with the camera in different
    orientations.
    
    Mission Specialist Mary Ellen Weber checked the Bioreactor
    Demonstration System and found the cells there to be developing
    well. She also participated in visual function data gathering. Weber's
    test followed a report that Kregel had successfully extricated a mote
    from her eye.
    
    The workday began shortly after two o'clock this morning with a wakeup
    call from Kate Smith singing "Beautiful Ohio" in honor of four of the
    five crewmembers being from that state. Kregel claims New York as his
    home state.
    
    Commander Tom Henricks is scheduled to talk with a disabled veteran at
    8:42 a.m. CDT, while Thomas, Weber and fellow Mission Specialist Nancy
    Currie will be interviewed by ABC's Mike and Maty Show at 1:12
    p.m. Henricks will talk with the Toledo Blade at 1:52 p.m.
    
    Discovery continues to function flawlessly as it orbits the Earth
    every 90 minutes at an altitude of 200 miles.
    
    -- end --
    

    MISSION CONTROL CENTER
    STS-70 Status Report #5
    
    Saturday, July 15, 1995, 3 p.m. CDT
    
    With Discovery performing as flawlessly as has any spacecraft in
    history, crew members completed a steady pace of experiment work
    during their third day in orbit, taking a few breaks to speak with
    media and other guests.
    
    The day's work centered on the HERCULES video camera, a camera
    experiment sponsored by the Department of Defense Space Test Program
    that allows the video to be automatically marked with the latitude and
    longitude of its subject areas. Pilot Kevin Kregel and Mission
    Specialist Nancy Currie worked with the camera, attempting to finely
    align its internal navigation equipment by using star
    sightings. Payload controllers are currently evaluating various
    methods that may make it easier for the crew to take sights on stars
    and align the camera as the flight progresses.
    
    Other work included operations with an experiment that gauges
    astronauts' reflexes and hand-eye coordination by having a subject
    respond to quick questioning from a laptop computer using a touch
    screen. Another observation was made with the Windex experiment as
    well, a study that observes the glowing effect created by the
    shuttle's surfaces as they encounter atomic oxygen in low
    orbit. Windex observed the effect of an engine firing on the glow
    yesterday and today observed the effect of a waste water dump from the
    shuttle.
    
    The crew also is maintaining a variety of biological experiments
    ranging from tissue loss in space to the growth of cell cultures in
    weightlessness to the effect of space flight on the early development
    of animals.
    
    During the day, the crew spoke with World War II veteran Harland
    Claussen at the Clement Zablocki Veterans Affairs Medical Center in
    Milwaukee, WI, celebrating the installation of the first phone in that
    VA facility for the free use of patients. Later in the day, ABC's Mike
    and Maty show interviewed crew members as did the Toledo Blade
    newspaper of Toledo, Ohio.
    
    The crew begins an eight-hour sleep period at 5:12 p.m. and will
    awaken for Day 4 of the mission at 1:12 a.m. Sunday. Discovery remains
    in a 195 mile by 175 mile orbit.
    
    -- end --
    

    MISSION CONTROL CENTER
    STS-70 Status Report #6
    
    Sunday, July 16, 1995, 7 a.m. CDT
    
    As Discovery's crew began its fourth day in orbit, all of the space
    shuttle' systems continued to perform exactly as designed, providing a
    "no hassles" workplace for the astronauts' scientific investigations.
    
    The crew was awakened at 1:11 a.m. CDT to the sounds of Mission
    Specialist Nancy Currie's 8-year-old daughter, Stephanie, and her
    Ferguson Elementary School second- grade classmates singing "God Bless
    the USA"
    
    Pilot Kevin Kregel is still having difficulty aligning the internal
    navigation equipment on the HERCULES video camera, a payload sponsored
    by the Department of Defense Space Test Program that allows the video
    to be automatically marked with the latitude and longitude of its
    subject areas. Payload controllers continued to investigate methods
    that may make it easier for the crew to take sightings on stars and
    align the camera as the flight progresses.
    
    Mission Specialist Mary Ellen Weber also reported that the colon
    cancer tissue samples growing in the Bioreactor Development System so
    far look better than those cultured on the ground. The BDS is designed
    to use ground-based and space-bioreactor systems to grow individual
    cells into organized tissue that is morphologically and functionally
    similar to the original tissue or organ. The BDS is composed of a
    rotating cylinder that suspends cells and tissues in a growth medium,
    simulating some aspects of microgravity. The system has been in use
    for several years for ground-based research.
    
    Other work today will include operations with a microbial
    contamination monitor that will be used to check the purity of
    drinking water samples, additional measurements of the astronauts
    visual acuity with the Visual Function Tester, and continued study of
    the glowing effect created by spacecraft surfaces as they encounter
    atomic oxygen in low orbit.
    
    The crew is scheduled to participate in a news conference at 7:32
    a.m. CDT, answering questions from media representatives in Houston,
    Cleveland and Florida.
    
    -- end --
    

    MISSION CONTROL CENTER
    STS-70 Status Report #7
    
    Sunday, July 16, 1995, 2 p.m. CDT
    
      With its spacecraft continuing to perform flawlessly, Discovery's
    crew
    sailed through a third day of work with the various experiments,
    ranging from biological studies to Earth-observing cameras.
    
      Although the crew has experienced some difficulty with aligning the
    HERCULES camera using star sightings, investigators with the
    Department of Defense study said they are delighted with the views
    they have seen from the device so far. The crew sent Mission Control
    views of Florida and the Bahamas today taken by the camera, which
    automatically prints the latitude and longitude of the subject matter
    on the video. The crew members also sent video of star alignments they
    have performed, and investigators say the video provides excellent
    insights into possible improvements to the device.
    
      Other experiments included observations of a series of small
    steering jet firings by Discovery using the Windex experiment, an
    optical device that studies the glowing phenomena created as the
    shuttle encounters atomic oxygen in orbit. The crew also reported at
    least 60 contacts with amateur radio operators around the world using
    the Shuttle Amateur Radio Experiment. During the mission, the
    astronauts will speak with students at 10 schools worldwide using the
    ham radio. In another study, the Visual Function Tester, crew members
    reported their eyesight is affected slightly by weightlessness, taking
    somewhat longer to adjust and focus on near objects. The experiment
    studies this reaction to weightlessness, which has been noted since
    the early flights of the Gemini Program.
    
      The crew also took time out to hold a press conference this morning,
    answering questions from reporters in Florida and Ohio, the home state
    of four out of the five astronauts aboard Discovery.
    
      The crew is wrapping up their day now and preparing to begin an
    eight-hour sleep period at 4:12 p.m. They will awaken for Day 5 of
    STS-70 at 12:12 a.m. CDT Monday.
    
    --end--
    

    MISSION CONTROL CENTER
    STS-70 Status Report #8
    
    Monday, July 17, 1995, 7:30 a.m. CDT
    
      The Space Shuttle Discovery continues to travel smoothly around the
    globe as the five men and women on board began a fourth full day of
    work with biological and materials processing experiments.
    
      The four Ohio natives and one New Yorker were awakened shortly after
    midnight CDT to the fight song for the Cleveland Indians, "Talkin'
    Tribe." Mission Specialist Mary Ellen Weber responded with "Good
    mornin' Houston, how `bout them Indians?"
    
      Mission Specialist Nancy Currie sent down video images of developing
    Medaka fish eggs as part of the Space Tissue Loss experiment and
    filled out responses to a human factors research project looking at
    ways to optimize astronaut performance on orbit.  Weber checked on the
    progress of the Bioreactor Development System, which is growing human
    tissue samples better than Earth-bound methods.
    
      Commander Tom Henricks and Pilot Kevin Kregel continued to work with
    alignment of the HERCULES camera using star sightings. So far, they
    have not succeeded in accomplishing alignment, which is required to
    calibrate the HERCULES geolocation equipment.
    
      The crew also took time to answer questions from CNN reporter John
    Holliman, and to voice down answers to queries posed by Internet
    surfers visiting NASA's Shuttle Web.
    
      Discovery continues to orbit the Earth every 90 minutes in an orbit
    of 194 by 175 miles.
    
    -end-
    

    MISSION CONTROL CENTER
    STS-70 Status Report #9
    
    Monday, July 17, 1995, 4 p.m. CDT
    
      Discovery's crew passed the halfway point of their mission today,
    continuing to encounter minimal problems as they worked on a variety
    of experiments.
    
      The crew again today worked with the HERCULES video camera and the
    WINDEX observations of Shuttle glow.  With HERCULES, the crew
    continued to have difficulty performing star alignments but have
    obtained very good Earth views, gathering 95 percent of the data
    planned for the investigation thus far, according to the experiment's
    sponsors.  For WINDEX, Commander Tom Henricks fired Discovery's
    thrusters to allow the instrument to record the effects of such
    firings on the glow seen around Shuttle surfaces.
    
      The only problem reported by the crew today was a faulty vacuum
    cleaner cord that caused a circuit breaker to trip aboard the
    spacecraft.  While performing some routine cleaning onboard, the
    breaker tripped and the crew found several cuts in the cleaner's
    electric cord.  The crew plans to splice the cord together, removing
    the nicked portions, and test it out after checking with flight
    controllers tomorrow.
    
      The crew's day is shifting earlier to help prepare for the early
    morning landing opportunities at the end of the mission.  The
    eight-hour sleep period for Discovery began at 3:12 p.m. CDT today,
    and the crew will awaken for Day 6 of STS-70 at 11:12 p.m. tonight.
    
                                            -end-
    

    MISSION CONTROL CENTER
    STS-70 Status Report #10
    
    Tuesday, July 18, 1995, 7 a.m. CDT
    
    Discovery's crew downlinked video images of bioreactor tissue cultures
    that were described as better than any seen before by investigators
    who are working to qualify the machinery for use on orbit. The video
    showed orange colon cancer cells coalescing into globules, some of
    which were described by Mission Specialist Mary Ellen Weber as being
    as large as a pea.
    
    Bioreactors are extensively used by researchers on Earth to grow
    three-dimensional cell cultures that cannot be produced by traditional
    culture methods. The Bioreactor Development System is being used to
    determine how effective the equipment is for supporting tissue growth
    with minimal cell damage.
    
    Pilot Kevin Kregel and Mission Specialist Don Thomas spoke with the
    "Good Day, America" radio show out of Boston today, and answered
    several questions posed by visitors to NASA's Shuttle Web site on the
    Internet.
    
    The crew also made HERCULES and WINDEX observations. Although several
    attempts to align the HERCULES Inertial Measurement Unit were
    unsuccessful, a previous alignment continued to allow geolocation of
    targets below with sufficient accuracy. Commander Tom Henricks twice
    fired Discovery's thrusters to allow the instrument to record the
    effects on the glow seen around shuttle surfaces in an effort to
    identify methods for protecting sensitive instruments from the
    phenomenon.
    
    The crew repaired a faulty vacuum cleaner cord that had tripped a
    circuit breaker, although it will not be necessary to use the vacuum
    again during the flight. For most flights, the vacuum is used only
    three times -- early in the flight, at the midway point and just
    before landing -- to clean dust and debris from air circulation
    filters. The crew will use the sticky side of multipurpose gray tape
    available on board to clean the filters if necessary.
    
    The crew's day is shifting earlier to help prepare for the early
    morning landing opportunities at the end of the mission. The next
    eight-hour sleep period begins at 2:42 p.m. CDT today, and ends at
    10:42 p.m. tonight.
    
                                            -end-
    
    

RE: <<< Note 926.31 >>>

>    The crew will use the sticky side of multipurpose gray tape
>    available on board to clean the filters if necessary.

Heaven forbid that it be called duct tape :-)
						-- Tom

Should call it Lithium Hydroxide Canister Adaptor tape.

Burns

    
    After we saw "Appolo 13", my sons and I all had the same second
    reaction: Why did they have duct tape on board? The answer would seem
    to be that "multipurpose gray tape" (aka "The Force"�) has been standard
    equipment on manned space flights for at least 25 years. Did it also
    fly on Mercury and Gemini?
    
    
       � See also 33.11, 333.14, 710.78, 844.63 and 917.1
    
    

    MISSION CONTROL CENTER 
    STS-70 Status Report #11 
     
    Tuesday, July 18, 1995, 5 p.m. CDT 
     
      Discovery completed another trouble-free day on orbit as the crew
    continued to tend a host of experiments ranging from optical studies
    to biological investigations.
     
      Today the crew activated one study for the first time thus far, the
    Microencapsulation in Space experiment, a device that will attempt to
    produce a timed-release antibiotic medication in weightlessness. The
    lack of gravity allows the encapsulation process to be performed with
    much greater purity than can be achieved on the ground, according to
    experimenters. The automated investigation will operate while the crew
    sleeps.
     
      Earlier, the crew downlinked video images of bioreactor tissue
    cultures that were described as better than any seen before by
    investigators who are working to qualify the machinery for use on
    orbit. The video showed orange colon cancer cells coalescing into
    globules, some of which were described by Mission Specialist Mary
    Ellen Weber as being as large as a pea. The bioreactor is a rotating
    cylinder in which cells can be grown suspended in weightlessness
    aboard the shuttle thus making them more perfect than ground-grown
    cultures. The bioreactor experiment has now moved to its second phase,
    an observation of the currents created in the fluid inside the device
    that uses colored plastic beads to record the movements.
     
      Also this morning, the crew noted a small nick on the outside of one
    of the shuttle's exterior window panes apparently caused by the impact
    of a micrometeorite sometime during the sleep period. The tiny crater
    is estimated to be only a sixteenth of an inch in diameter and one
    thirty-second of an inch deep, posing no problems for the spacecraft.
    The exterior window pane alone is more than half an inch thick, and
    several more window panes -- together almost two inches thick -- are
    located between the exterior and the interior of the cabin.
     
      In other work, the astronauts continued observations of Earth using
    the HERCULES video camera and of the shuttle itself using the Windex
    experiment. Windex observed the environment around the shuttle during
    a simultaneous waste and excess drinking water dump from the
    spacecraft.
     
      Mission Control put the crew to bed for the day with the theme from
    the movie Starman.  The eight-hour sleep period began at 2:42 p.m. CDT
    today. The crew will awaken at 10:42 p.m. tonight.
     
    -end-
    

    MISSION CONTROL CENTER
    STS-70 Status Report #12
    
    Wednesday, July 19, 1995,  7 a.m. CDT
    
      Discovery began what promised to be another trouble-free day on
    orbit,
    obtaining a successful alignment of the HERCULES geolocating camera
    and evaluating the manual setup procedures for the rotating wall
    bioreactor.
    
      Pilot Kevin Kregel downlinked both live and videotaped images from
    the HERCULES camera following the successful alignment of the camera's
    navigation equipment, which earlier in the flight had been
    troublesome. The crew kept the camera out longer than planned in an
    effort to record additional images.
    
      Mission Specialist Don Thomas activated and deactivated the
    Microencapsulation in Space experiment, a device that will attempt to
    produce a timed-release antibiotic medication in weightlessness. The
    lack of gravity allows the encapsulation process to be performed with
    much greater purity than can be achieved on the ground, according to
    experimenters. Thomas also made contacts with ham radio operators on
    the ground with the Shuttle Amateur Radio Experiment.
    
      Mission Specialist Nancy Currie checked on the status of the
    Commercial Protein Crystal Growth Experiment, helped Commander Tom
    Henricks and Kregel operate HERCULES and conducted a photo survey of a
    debris impact on one of the Shuttle's windows. The film was tucked way
    in a bag marked for return to Houston after the flight. The debris
    impact poses no hazard for the Shuttle.
    
      Mission Specialist Mary Ellen Weber continued her work with the
    Bioreactor Development System and reported no problems with the manual
    setup procedures.
    
      The crew will continue its workday until 2:42 p.m. CDT before
    beginning an eight- hour sleep period that will end with a wake-up
    call at 10:42 tonight.
    
    -end-
    

    MISSION CONTROL CENTER
    STS-70 Status Report #13
    
    Wednesday, July 19, 1995, 4 p.m. CDT
    
    The crew of Discovery, continuing a near-perfect flight, began to wrap
    up their experiment work today, after a week of gathering a host of
    data ranging from Earth observations to biological studies.
    
    After final sessions with the HERCULES camera and the WINDEX
    experiment, the crew has stowed them away for the trip home Friday.
    Early today, the crew successfully aligned the HERCULES camera's
    navigation equipment and sent the ground both live and videotaped
    images of regions from the device.  Also, Commander Tom Henricks fired
    Discovery's steering thrusters several times for a final observation
    by the WINDEX experiment, which shares a camera with HERCULES.  WINDEX
    records the environment around the spacecraft in low orbit and the
    effects of a variety of events, including water dumps and larger
    engine firings earlier in the flight.
    
    Mission Specialist Don Thomas also reported success with the SAREX
    amateur radio aboard the Shuttle, counting around 50 contacts with
    ground radio operators a day for several days of the mission.  The
    crew also spoke with students at 10 schools scattered around the
    globe.
    
    Several experiments continue on Discovery--including the evaluation
    phase of the Bioreactor device, a cell culture growth experiment that
    already has successfully grown colon cancer cells during the early
    days of the flight.  The current portion of the study characterizes
    the currents and environment inside the rotating cylinder that serves
    as the cell growth chamber.
    
    The crew began an eight-hour sleep period at 2:42 p.m. CDT and will
    awaken for their eighth day in space at 10:42 p.m. CDT.  Attention
    will then be turned toward the return home as the crew performs checks
    of Discovery's equipment to be used during landing and starts packing
    up its gear.  Discovery is scheduled to land Friday at the Kennedy
    Space Center in Florida, with a touchdown at 6:54 a.m. CDT.
    
    
    -end-
    

    MISSION CONTROL CENTER
    STS-70 Status Report #14
    
    Thursday, July 20, 1995, 7 a.m. CDT
    
      The crew of Discovery overnight wrapped up its experiment work and
    checked out the systems that will be used for landing at Kennedy Space
    Center Friday.
    
      Discovery's orbital maneuvering system engines are currently
    scheduled to be fired for the deorbit burn at 5:54 a.m. CDT Friday,
    resulting in a touchdown in Florida at 6:54 a.m. CDT. The weather
    forecast was favorable enough for mission managers to decide not to
    call up landing support at Edwards Air Force Base in California and to
    press for landing in Florida on either Friday or Saturday.
    
      The second half of the crew's last full day on orbit will be spent
    packing up the experiments and stowing gear in preparation for
    landing. Earlier, Mission Specialists Don Thomas, Nancy Currie and
    Mary Ellen Weber completed the final data takes on the middeck
    experiments, and Commander Tom Henricks and Pilot Kevin Kregel
    successfully checked out the flight control surfaces and hot-fired the
    reaction control system steering jets they will use to pilot Discovery
    to a safe touchdown.
    
      The crew is scheduled to begin its sleep shift at 2:42 p.m. CDT, and
    awaken at 10:42 p.m. CDT.
    
      Flight controllers are once again working out of the old Mission
    Control Center following an orderly midnight transition from the new
    control center so that it can be used for a simulation. Launches and
    landings are scheduled to be controlled out of the old MCC for the
    next several flights until the new facility can be certified for the
    most dynamic flight phases.
    
    -end-
    

    MISSION CONTROL CENTER
    STS-70 Status Report #15
    
    Thursday, July 20, 1995, 5 p.m. CDT
    
      With their experiments stowed and the orbiter prepared for landing,
    Discovery's five crew members are ready to come home Friday and
    conclude their successful eight-day mission.
    
      The STS-70 crew has two opportunities to land at the Kennedy Space
    Center on Friday.  For the first opportunity, Discovery's orbital
    maneuvering system engines would be fired for the deorbit burn at 5:53
    a.m. CDT, resulting in a touchdown in Florida at 6:54 a.m.  CDT. The
    deorbit burn for the second opportunity would occur at 7:28 a.m. CDT,
    with landing at 8:31 a.m. CDT. The weather predictions do look
    favorable, but forecasters will be watching for the formation of
    scattered cloud layers and ground fog that could hinder landing
    operations.
    
      The crew began its eight-hour sleep shift at 2:42 p.m. CDT, and will
    awaken at 10:42 p.m.  CDT.
    
    -end-
    

>    The weather predictions do look
>    favorable, but forecasters will be watching for the formation of
>    scattered cloud layers and ground fog that could hinder landing
>    operations.


They weren't.  It did.

The landing is off until Saturday (6something EST)


- dave

    MISSION CONTROL CENTER
    STS-70 STATUS REPORT # 16
    
    Friday, July 21, 1995, 8:00 a.m. CDT
    
      Low clouds and fog at the Kennedy Space Center have caused mission
    managers and flight controllers to postpone Discovery's landing 24
    hours until early Saturday morning.
    
      Flight Director Rich Jackson directed the five STS-70 astronauts to
    remain aloft for another day after poor visibility prevented
    Discovery's homecoming on two consecutive landing
    opportunities. Landing support was not called up at the backup landing
    site at California's Edwards Air Force Base for today.
    
      Discovery's astronauts were informed that their landing had been
    waved off for the day at 7:10 AM CDT after astronaut Steve Oswald,
    flying weather reconnaissance in a Shuttle Training Aircraft over the
    landing strip, reported that he could not see the 3- mile long runway
    from his vantage point.
    
      Commander Tom Henricks, Pilot Kevin Kregel and Mission Specialists
    Don Thomas, Nancy Currie and Mary Ellen Weber climbed out of their
    launch and entry suits after the wave-off was declared and prepared to
    begin another eight-hour sleep period at 1:42 p.m. CDT. They'll be
    awakened at 9:42 p.m. to resume preparations for another try at coming
    home tomorrow.
    
      Two landing opportunities are available at the Kennedy Space Center
    Saturday. The first calls for a deorbit burn at 4:26 a.m. CDT with a
    landing at 5:26 a.m. CDT. the second opportunity calls for a deorbit
    burn at 6 a.m. CDT with a landing at 7:02 a.m.  If the weather does
    not cooperate at KSC, Discovery will be directed to land at
    California's Edwards Air Force Base. The one Edwards opportunity
    tomorrow will start with a deorbit burn at 7:28 a.m. CDT with a
    landing at 8:29 a.m. CDT.
    
      Discovery continues to orbit the Earth in excellent condition,
    flying at an altitude of 167 nautical miles as it completes a
    revolution of the planet every 90 minutes.
    
    -- end -- 
    
    

    MISSION CONTROL CENTER
    STS-70 STATUS REPORT # 17
    
    Friday, July 21, 1995, 2:30 p.m. CDT
    
      Discovery's crew spent a quiet extra day aloft after canceling
    efforts
    toward a landing this morning due to fog and low clouds at Florida's
    Kennedy Space Center shuttle runway.
    
      The crew began an eight-hour sleep period at 1:42 p.m. CDT and will
    awaken at 9:42 p.m. to refocus landing efforts toward a Saturday
    morning touchdown in either Florida or at Edwards Air Force Base,
    California.
    
      Discovery has a total of three landing opportunities Saturday, two
    to Florida and one to California. The first opportunity would have the
    shuttle fire its engines at 4:25 a.m. CDT to descend to a Florida
    landing at 5:26 a.m. CDT. A second opportunity would begin with an
    engine firing at 6 a.m. CDT culminating in a Florida touchdown at 7:02
    a.m. CDT.
    
      The third opportunity, to California, would begin with an engine
    firing at 7:26 a.m. CDT and result in an 8:29 a.m. CDT touchdown at
    Edwards.
    
      The forecast for Florida tomorrow morning again calls for a
    possibility of fog and low clouds that could prohibit landing. The
    forecast for California calls for excellent landing weather, with only
    high, scattered clouds and light westerly winds.
    
      Discovery remains in excellent condition with no mechanical
    problems.
    
    --end--
    

Discovery landed just fine Saturday morning about 8:02 AM Eastern time. It was
carried live by the Boston Mass CBS TV affiliate, WBZ channel 4. 
						-- Tom

    MISSION CONTROL CENTER
    STS-70 STATUS REPORT # 18
    
    Saturday, July 22, 1995, 7:30 a.m. CDT
    
      After almost nine days in space, the STS-70 crew returned home to
    Florida this morning to complete a mission that included a successful
    satellite deployment and work with a variety of middeck experiments.
    
      STS-70 Commander Tom Henricks brought Discovery smoothly down on
    Runway 33 at the Kennedy Space Center at 7:02 a.m. CDT, ending the
    70th flight of the Space Shuttle system at a mission elapsed time of
    eight days, 22 hours and 21 minutes. The landing occurred on the
    second Florida deorbit and landing opportunity of the day. Even though
    weather looked good for the first opportunity, flight controllers
    opted to pass on it to allow weather conditions to improve even more.
    
      Discovery performed flawlessly during its descent to Earth, as has
    been the case throughout its 21st flight. Discovery will now be
    prepared to be transported to California for a routine inspection and
    maintenance period.
    
      The STS-70 crew will return to Houston later today. The five
    astronauts are expected to arrive at Ellington Field at about 5
    p.m. today. The public is invited to attend the traditional welcoming
    ceremonies at NASA's Hangar 990 at the north end of the airfield.
    
    

>      Discovery performed flawlessly during its descent to Earth, as has
>    been the case throughout its 21st flight. Discovery will now be
>    prepared to be transported to California for a routine inspection and
>    maintenance period.

     They're getting better at landing in Florida and saving the cost of a
     cross-country piggyback of the shuttle.  Now they're landing at the Cape
     and flying the shuttle back to California!  Why didn't they land at
     Edwards?

     ---Phil

Edwards doesn't have the facilities for removing the payloads and
other things needed before they send the orbiter back to the factory.


- dave

    >They're getting better at landing in Florida and saving the cost of a
    >cross-country piggyback of the shuttle. 
    
    As Dave alluded to, the KSC facility is the *only* place where they can 
    remove from the orbiter (safely & correctly), the hypergolic fuels, and 
    other liquids not safe for humans. Had they landed Discovery in California, 
    they would have had to piggy-back it to Florida just to unload these, 
    and then had to piggy-back it to the refurbish center in Palmdale Calif.
    *That* would have been the uncecessary handling & extra piggy-back flight.
    
    Bob

About the shuttle ferry flights, I can see the payload off-loading being done
only at the KSC. However:

RE: <<< Note 926.47 by NETCAD::BATTERSBY >>>

>    ...the KSC facility is the *only* place where they can 
>    remove from the orbiter (safely & correctly), the hypergolic fuels, and 
>    other liquids not safe for humans.

In the past when a shuttle has landed somewhere other than KCS, it has been
ferried back to the KSC with such fluids on board for the ferry flight? That
surprises me.
						-- Tom

    I'm just passing on what I heard Brewster Shaw say when asked 
    this same question at the post-landing press conference of STS-70.
    That is, I believe he was implying that the refurb folks at Palmdale
    don't have any experience nor the equipment to handl these caustic 
    chemicals. 
    I don't think Shaw was saying or implying that the shuttle couldn't
    be ferried with some small quantity of these fuels etc. from Edwards
    back to KSC.
    Somehow, in all this though, I had the impression that the folks
    at the Dryden Research site had the equipment etc. to unload these
    chemicals.
    
    Bob