Space Shuttle Atlantis, STS-125 Astronauts En Route to Hubble
Space shuttle Atlantis lifted off from NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida Monday, rising on twin columns of fire to embark on STS-125, the final shuttle mission to service NASA's Hubble Space Telescope.
Liftoff was right on time at 2:01 p.m. EDT following a countdown that proceeded relatively smoothly throughout the day. Late in the countdown, launch managers had to evaluate an unexpected ice formation on the liquid hydrogen umbilical, and a buildup of cumulus clouds threatened the favorable weather forecast. But those issues were quickly resolved, and in a post-launch press conference, NASA managers praised the launch team for its expertise and efficiency.
"The teams here at (Kennedy Space Center) gave us a great vehicle, and ascent was good," said Bill Gerstenmaier, NASA's associate administrator for Space Operations. "It was a great start to a very challenging mission."
During the 11-day mission's five spacewalks, astronauts will install two new instruments, repair two inactive ones and perform the component replacements that will keep the telescope functioning into at least 2014.
Veteran astronaut Scott Altman is serving as Atlantis' commander, and retired Navy Capt. Gregory C. Johnson will serve as pilot. Mission specialists rounding out the crew are: veteran spacewalkers John Grunsfeld and Mike Massimino, and first-time space fliers Andrew Feustel, Michael Good and Megan McArthur.
In addition to the originally scheduled work, Atlantis also will carry a replacement Science Instrument Command and Data Handling Unit for Hubble. Astronauts will install the unit on the telescope, removing the one that stopped working on Sept. 27, 2008, delaying the servicing mission until the replacement was ready.
NASA
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