NASA prepares for return of Endeavour and STS-118 crew

William Atkins
Tuesday, 21 August 2007 20:47

Science - Space

At about 10:45 am EDT (April 21, 2007), the crew is getting into their entry suits in preparation for their de-orbit burn and their landing at the Kennedy Space Center, now scheduled for 12:32 pm EDT.

The first possible de-orbit burn is scheduled for 11:25 am EDT (Florida time), on its 201st orbit while in space. The three minute, thirty second burn will be sufficient to drop Endeavour out of its orbit and make its approximate one hour re-entry and landing onto the runday in Florida.

Weather around the Kennedy Space Center looks acceptable. NASA just reported that the weather is “fairly conducive” for a landing. Winds, which were predicted to be strong, seem to be less of a concern.

If weather is not acceptable for landing at this time, NASA can wave off the de-orbit burn. Another possible landing time is at 2:06 pm EDT, with a de-orbit burn at 1 pm EDT.

With Hurricane Dean pounding the Mexican coast, the storms further north in Texas are not expected to hinder the return of the shuttle. Earlier, NASA was concerned that flight controllers at the Mission Control Center (Johnson Space Center) in Houston, Texas would be adversely affected by the hurricane and not be able to support the landing. However, those concerns have been eliminated.
 

If a landing is not possible today, NASA can make another attempt tomorrow, on Tuesday, August 22, 2007.

NASA TV is carrying these events as they happen.