Atlantis Moves Forward; Endeavor Launch Delayed
As the next space shuttle mission completed a step forward over the weekend, the final mission in the program’s history took a step backwards on Monday.
On Saturday, Commander Ken Hamm and the rest of the Atlantis crew completed a countdown rehearsal in preparation for the upcoming STS-132 mission, currently scheduled to begin on May 14.
Then, on Sunday, the shuttle mission’s payload, consisting of an Integrated Cargo Carrier and a Russian-built Mini Research Module, were placed in Atlantis’s cargo bay. Finally, on Monday, NASA technicians hooked up disconnects for the craft’s solid rocket boosters.
"I don’t think we’re getting too many things that are brand new, but we are getting a refresher," Pilot Tony Antonelli said, according to the official NASA website. "It brings it home that, hey, you’re going into space in a couple weeks," added Mission Specialist Michael Good.
Also on Monday, it was revealed that the shuttle program would not come to an end on September 30, as initially planned. Instead, a scheduled July mission by space shuttle Endeavor has been delayed until November so that NASA scientists can make changes designed to extend the lifespan of the onboard Alpha Magnetic Spectometer (AMS).
As a result, the September 30 mission, which will see the Discovery return to the International Space Station (ISS) with supplies, will now directly follow the Atlantis mission. Endeavor will then close out the shuttle program by delivering the $6 billion AMS particle detector to the ISS.
According to Irene Klotz of Reuters, "AMS, which is designed to look for antimatter particles and other exotic forms of matter in space, had been set to fly in July. But with the Obama administration’s proposal to extend the space station program until at least 2020, scientists decided to switch the detector’s cryogenically cooled superconducting magnet, estimated to last three years, to a permanent magnet that would last 10 to 18 years."
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