President Obama Meets Final Shuttle Crew

From left, Space Shuttle Atlantis STS-135 Pilot Doug Hurley, Mission Specialist Sandy Magnus, Commander Chris Ferguson and Mission Specialist Rex Walheim watch from the background as Janet Kavandi, Director of Flight Crew Operations at Johnson Space Center, Texas, presents President Obama with a coat from Space Shuttle Atlantis's final mission, in the Oval Office, Nov. 1, 2011.
 
Official White House Photo by Pete Souza

NASA's Space Shuttle Crew Members Host Tweetup in Washington

Stephanie Schierholz

Headquarters, Washington                                   

WASHINGTON -- NASA invites its Twitter followers to a special Tweetup with Sandy Magnus and Chris Ferguson at 4 p.m. EDT on Thursday, Oct. 13. The event will be in the James E. Webb Memorial Auditorium at NASA Headquarters, 300 E St. SW, Washington.

Commander Chris Ferguson, Pilot Doug Hurley, Mission Specialists Sandra Magnus and Rex Walheim were the crew of the space shuttle Atlantis for the 13-day STS-135 mission. Atlantis launched July 8 and landed July 21, completing NASA's final space shuttle mission, after a journey of more than five million miles.

The crew delivered more than 9,400 pounds of spare parts, equipment and other supplies in the Raffaello multi-purpose logistics module -- including 2,677 pounds of food -- that will sustain space station operations for the next year.

The 21-foot long, 15-foot diameter Raffaello brought back nearly 5,700 pounds of unneeded materials from the station. STS-135 was the 135th and final shuttle flight.

A Tweetup is an informal meeting of people who use the social messaging medium Twitter. This NASA Tweetup is an opportunity to meet and speak with STS-135 crew members, the people behind NASA's Twitter account and other space-exploration-minded participants.

Registration for the event is open from 10 a.m. EDT, Thursday, Sept. 29, until 5 p.m. on Friday, Sept. 30. NASA randomly will select 150 participants from online registrants. For more NASA Tweetup information and to sign up, visit http://www.nasa.gov/tweetup.

To connect with NASA on Twitter and other social networking sites, visit http://www.nasa.gov/connect.

All four of Atlantis' crew members are posting updates to Twitter. You can follow Commander Chris Ferguson, Pilot Doug Hurley, and Mission Specialists Sandy Magnus and Rex Walheim at http://www.twitter.com/Astro_Ferg , http://www.twitter.com/Astro_Doug ,  http://www.twitter.com/Astro_Sandy ,  http://www.twitter.com/Astro_Rex.

For more information about shuttle Atlantis' STS-135 mission, visit http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/shuttle/shuttlemissions/sts135.

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Saluting the STS-135 Crew

Stephen Colbert, celebrity host of The Colbert Report, salutes the crew of STS-135 during their appearance for a taping of his television show, Tuesday evening, Aug. 16, 2011, in New York. The astronauts from STS-135 are in New York for a three-day visit. Seated from lower left are Commander Chris Ferguson, pilot Doug Hurley, and mission specialists Sandy Magnus and Rex Walheim.

Image Credit: NASA/Paul E. Alers

NASA Astronauts To Visit Intrepid Sea, Air & Space Museum

Joshua Buck

Headquarters, Washington     

 

Luke Sacks

Intrepid Sea, Air & Space Museum, New York

WASHINGTON -- The last crew to fly aboard a space shuttle will visit New York City's Intrepid Sea, Air & Space Museum from 10 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. EDT on Thursday, Aug. 18.

Commander Christopher Ferguson, Pilot Doug Hurley and Mission Specialists Sandra Magnus and Rex Walheim completed a 13-day mission to the International Space Station in July. The STS-135 flight marked the end of NASA's 30-year-old shuttle program.

The STS-135 crew's events are open to news media representatives.

-- 10 to 11:30 a.m.: Presentation to more than 200 students from Intrepid's educational programs (ages 7 - 15) inside the museum's Allison & Howard Lutnick Theater

-- 12:30 to 2:30 p.m.: Meeting with public at two museum exhibits:

     - Journey to Tomorrow traveling exhibit, a 53-foot long, walk-through trailer packed with exciting interactive learning stations on the museum's pier

     - Project Kewl exhibit located in the museum's Exploreum Hall. Project Kewl is an interactive educational game using the Xbox 360 and Kinect sensor that allows visitors to explore the space station, walk on Mars and take control of NASA's coolest robots.

In April, NASA selected the Intrepid as one of four museums to receive a space shuttle. It will be the new home for the Enterprise, currently on display at the Smithsonian's National Air and Space Museum Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center in Virginia.

During the STS-135 mission, the crew delivered more than 9,400 pounds of spare parts, spare equipment and other supplies in the Raffaello multi-purpose logistics module --including 2,677 pounds of food -- that will sustain station operations for the next year.

For more information about the STS-135 mission and crew, visit http://go.nasa.gov/STS-135.

For more information about the Intrepid Museum, visit http://www.intrepidmuseum.org.

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Crew Heads Home After Final Shuttle Mission

The four STS-135 astronauts and their family members who came to NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida for yesterday's landing and completion of the Space Shuttle Program's final mission will return home to Houston this afternoon. The public is invited to attend a welcome home ceremony at 4 p.m. CDT in NASA's Hangar 990 at Ellington Field. Gates to Ellington Field will open at 3:30 p.m. The ceremony will be broadcast live on NASA TV and online at nasa.gov/ntv.

Space shuttle Atlantis was towed into Kennedy's Orbiter Processing Facility-2 following yesterday's employee appreciation event. Technicians will spend the next few weeks reconfiguring Atlantis after its final flight. Today, they will finish readying the shuttle and its hangar for the normal post-flight processing and begin draining residual cryogenic reactants. They'll continue deservicing work through the weekend.

Atlantis touched down yesterday on the Shuttle Landing Facility's Runway 15 at 5:57 a.m. EDT. The landing brought to a close 30 years of space shuttle flights.

"Although we got to take the ride," said Commander Chris Ferguson on behalf of his crew, " we sure hope that everybody who has ever worked on, or touched, or looked at, or envied or admired a space shuttle was able to take just a little part of the journey with us."

The STS-135 crew consisted of Ferguson, Pilot Doug Hurley, Mission Specialists Sandra Magnus and Rex Walheim.

"I really want to thank the space shuttle team and the Space Shuttle Program for just a tremendous effort today and throughout the entire history of the program. We gave them a tremendous challenge to fly and execute these missions and to finish strong and I can tell you today that the team accomplished every one of those objectives," said Associate Administrator for Space Operations Bill Gerstenmaier as he addressed the media at the post-landing news conference. "I'd also like to thank the nation for allowing us to have these thirty years to go use the shuttle system."

On the 13-day mission, the STS-135 crew delivered to the International Space Station more than 9,400 pounds of spare parts, spare equipment and other supplies in the Raffaello multi-purpose logistics module, including 2,677 pounds of food. The supplies will sustain space station operations for the next year. The 21-foot long, 15-foot diameter Raffaello brought back nearly 5,700 pounds of unneeded materials from the station.

The Voyage Home

Space shuttle Atlantis' bright-white, iconic frame illuminates the darkness as it touches down on the Shuttle Landing Facility's Runway 15 at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida for the final time. Securing the space shuttle fleet's place in history, Atlantis marked the 26th nighttime landing of NASA's Space Shuttle Program and the 78th landing at Kennedy. Main gear touchdown was at 5:57:00 a.m. EDT, followed by nose gear touchdown at 5:57:20 a.m., and wheelstop at 5:57:54 a.m.

On board are STS-135 Commander Chris Ferguson, Pilot Doug Hurley, and Mission Specialists Sandra Magnus and Rex Walheim. On the 37th shuttle mission to the International Space Station, STS-135 delivered more than 9,400 pounds of spare parts, equipment and supplies in the Raffaello multi-purpose logistics module that will sustain station operations for the next year. STS-135 was the 33rd and final flight for Atlantis, which has spent 307 days in space, orbited Earth 4,848 times and traveled 125,935,769 miles.

Image Credit: NASA/Kim Shiflett

NASA's Proud Space Shuttle Program Ends With Atlantis Landing Agency Ushers in Next Era of Exploration

Michael Curie

Headquarters, Washington     

 

Kyle Herring

Johnson Space Center, Houston

Candrea Thomas

Kennedy Space Center, Fla.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. -- Wrapping up 30 years of unmatched achievements and blazing a trail for the next era of U.S. human spaceflight, NASA's storied Space Shuttle Program came to a "wheels stop" on Thursday at the conclusion of its 135th mission.

Shuttle Atlantis and its four-astronaut crew glided home for the final time, ending a 13-day journey of more than five million miles with a landing at 5:57 a.m. EDT at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida. It was the 26th night landing (20th night and 78th total landings at Kennedy) and the 133rd landing in shuttle history.

"The brave astronauts of STS-135 are emblematic of the shuttle program -- skilled professionals from diverse backgrounds who propelled America to continued leadership in space with the shuttle's many successes," NASA Administrator Charles Bolden said. "This final shuttle flight marks the end of an era, but today, we recommit ourselves to continuing human spaceflight and taking the necessary- and difficult - steps to ensure America's leadership in human spaceflight for years to come."

Since STS-1 launched on April 12, 1981, 355 individuals from 16 countries flew 852 times aboard the shuttle. The five shuttles traveled more than 542 million miles and hosted more than 2,000 experiments in the fields of Earth, astronomy, biological and materials sciences.

The shuttles docked with two space stations, the Russian Mir and the International Space Station. Shuttles deployed 180 payloads, including satellites, returned 52 from space and retrieved, repaired and redeployed seven spacecraft.

The STS-135 crew consisted of Commander Chris Ferguson, Pilot Doug Hurley, Mission Specialists Sandra Magnus and Rex Walheim. They delivered more than 9,400 pounds of spare parts, spare equipment and other supplies in the Raffaello multi-purpose logistics module - including 2,677 pounds of food - that will sustain space station operations for the next year. The 21-foot long, 15-foot diameter Raffaello brought back nearly 5,700 pounds of unneeded materials from the station.

A welcome home ceremony for the astronauts will be held Friday, July 22, in Houston. The public is invited to attend the 4 p.m. CDT event at NASA's Hangar 990 at Ellington Field. Gates to Ellington Field will open at 3:30 p.m. The ceremony will be broadcast live on NASA Television. For NASA TV downlink information, schedules and links to streaming video, visit http://www.nasa.gov/ntv.

STS-135 was the 135th and final shuttle flight, Atlantis' 33rd flight and the 37th shuttle mission dedicated to station assembly and maintenance.

For more information about the STS-135 mission, visit http://www.nasa.gov/shuttle.

For information about the space station, visit http://www.nasa.gov/station.

For information on NASA's future exploration activities, visit http://www.nasa.gov/next.

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Landing Preparations on Last Full Day in Space for Atlantis

Commander Chris Ferguson, Pilot Doug Hurley and Mission Specialists Sandy Magnus and Rex Walheim woke up at 9:32 p.m. EDT to Aaron Copland’s “Fanfare for the Common Man.” It was followed by a prerecorded message from Kennedy Space Center employees.

“Three … two … one … Good morning, Atlantis!” the group said. “Kennedy salutes you. See you back at wheels stop!”

The STS-135 crew will spend the day checking out the shuttle’s flight control surfaces and hot firing its reaction control system jets, making sure everything is ready for deorbit. They’ll also pause in their work for one last round of interviews with reporters back home – at 4:44 a.m., the crew will be talking with ABC News, CBS News, CNN, FoxNews and NBC News.

Houston Welcomes Home Final Space Shuttle Crew

Joshua Buck

Headquarters, Washington     

 

Kylie Clem

Johnson Space Center, Houston

HOUSTON -- After space shuttle Atlantis' scheduled landing Thursday, July 21, a welcome home ceremony for the STS-135 astronauts is planned for Friday, July 22. Journalists and the public are invited to attend the 4 p.m. CDT event at Ellington Field's NASA Hangar 990. Gates to Ellington Field will open at 3:30 p.m.

Reporters planning to attend must contact NASA's Johnson Space Center in Houston at 281-483-5111 by 5 p.m. on Wednesday, July 20. Arrangements will be made for live television satellite trucks upon request. News media representatives planning to set up live TV equipment should plan to arrive at the event site no later than 3 p.m.

The ceremony will be broadcast live on NASA Television. For NASA TV downlink information, schedules and links to streaming video, visit http://www.nasa.gov/ntv.

Shuttle Commander Chris Ferguson, Pilot Doug Hurley and Mission Specialists Sandra Magnus and Rex Walheim are wrapping up a 13-day mission to deliver supplies to the International Space Station that will help sustain its operation in the post-shuttle era.

To follow the status of the landing and for more information on the STS-135 mission, visit http://go.nasa.gov/STS-135.

For information about NASA and agency programs, visit http://www.nasa.gov.

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Spacewalk Begins

At 9:22 a.m. EDT, Expedition 28 spacewalkers Mike Fossum and Ron Garan switched their suits to battery power, signifying the start of today's six-hour, 30-minute excursion.

This is Fossum's seventh spacewalk and Garan's fourth. Fossum and Garan collaborated on three spacewalks during the STS-124 space shuttle mission in June 2008.

Fossum, EV-1, is the lead spacewalker and is wearing a suit with red stripes, while Garan, EV-2, wears an all-white spacesuit. Fossum's helmet camera displays the number 20 and Garan's the number 18.

Atlantis Mission Specialist Rex Walheim is at the rear flight deck of Atlantis, choreographing the activities and coordinating communications between the spacewalkers and Mission Control in Houston. Shuttle Pilot Doug Hurley and Mission Specialist Sandy Magnus will operate the station's 58-foot-long robotic arm to maneuver the spacewalkers around during the spacewalk.

Once outside, the spacewalkers will retrieve a pump module (PM) from an external stowage platform and store it in Atlantis' cargo bay for return to Earth. Garan will climb aboard the station's robotic arm and grab the pump module while Fossum releases a bolt that holds the PM in place. Grasping the 1400-pound module, Garan then will ride the arm from the stowage platform near the Quest airlock to a carrier in Atlantis' cargo bay. He will place the PM into the carrier and Fossum will bolt it in place. The pump module failed in 2010, shutting down half of the space station's cooling system. Engineers will evaluate the PM to determine the cause of the failure and plan to refurbish it for use as a spare.

Next, Fossum will trade places with Garan and climb onto the station arm. He will grab the Robotic Refueling Mission (RRM) experiment from the shuttle bay and ride the arm to Dextre, the Special Purpose Dexterous Manipulator. The spacewalkers will dock the RRM to a platform on Dextre that is used to hold equipment for the robot to use. The RRM will demonstrate and test tools, technologies and techniques that could be used to robotically refuel and repair satellites in space. Data from the tests could help reduce the cost and risk of future robotic refueling missions.

Fossum and Garan will deploy the Optical Reflector Materials Experiment, a portion of the Materials International Space Station Experiment (MISSE) 8 that was installed on the External Logistics Carrier 2 during STS-134. They also will take photos of the material samples. MISSE 8 will be retrieved late next year.

Next, the pair will troubleshoot a protruding grounding wire on a Zarya module payload data grapple fixture that was installed on STS-134. The multi-layer insulation (MLI) grounding wire is stuck in a latch door, where power and data connectors mate with connectors behind the door. With the wire extending out, there is concern the door could interfere with the robotic arm. The spacewalkers will pull back the MLI, insert a hook into the latch door to free the wire, then pull it back to the outside of the grapple fixture where it belongs. They will tuck the wire under Velcro tabs and put the MLI back in place. Fossum and Garan will perform the same operation on a second latch door and check the remaining two latch doors.

The spacewalkers will install a cover on the end of pressurized mating adaptor 3, which receives a great deal of sun.

This is the 160th spacewalk supporting assembly and maintenance of the space station and the 249th excursion conducted by U.S. astronauts.

STS-135 Arrives, Crew Begins Work at Station

Space shuttle Atlantis docked with the International Space Station at 11:07 a.m. EDT Sunday with a cargo-carrying module in its payload bay filled with equipment and supplies for the orbiting laboratory. Hatches separating crews were opened at 12:47 p.m. Shuttle crew members, Commander Chris Ferguson, Pilot Doug Hurley and Mission Specialists Sandra Magnus and Rex Walheim, entered the station moments later to begin their week-plus stay.

Ferguson and Hurley used the shuttle arm to take its 50-foot extension boom from the station’s Canadarm2 operated by station Flight Engineers Ron Garan and Satoshi Furukawa. The station arm had plucked the boom from its stowage position on the shuttle cargo bay sill. The handoff was to prepare to use the boom for any needed shuttle heat shield inspection later this week. Magnus worked with TV setup and Walheim transferred spacewalk gear.

Docking had gone just as planned. Ferguson and the crew of space shuttle Atlantis began their final approach to the station from about eight miles distance with the terminal initiation burn at 8:29 a.m.

About 600 feet below the station, Atlantis did a backflip to enable station crew members to photograph the shuttle’s heat shield. The photos were sent to mission control to be evaluated by experts on the ground to look for any damage.

Flight controllers began monitoring reports from the Department of Defense’s U.S. Strategic Command that a piece of orbital debris may come near the station and shuttle complex about noon on Tuesday. The debris, part of satellite COSMOS 375, is one of more than 500,000 pieces of debris tracked in Earth’s orbit. The team expected updated tracking information following today’s docking to help determine if a maneuver using the shuttle’s thrusters is necessary to avoid the debris.

The crew sleep period is scheduled to begin at 6:59 p.m. Flight Day 4 begins with crew wake up at 2:59 a.m. Monday.

Docking Day Arrives for STS-135 Crew

The crew of space shuttle Atlantis awoke at 3:29 a.m. EDT to “Mr. Blue Sky” by the Electric Light Orchestra, played for Commander Chris Ferguson.

Today is docking day in space. The terminal initiation burn at 8:29 a.m. will put the shuttle on the final course to link up with the International Space Station at about 11:07 a.m.

Ferguson will fly Atlantis through an intricate approach for docking. After a series of jet firings to fine-tune the shuttle’s path, Atlantis will arrive at a point about 600 feet directly below the station at about 10:06 a.m. Ferguson then will perform the rendezvous pitch maneuver, a one-degree-per-second rotational “backflip” to enable Expedition 28 crew members to snap hundreds of high resolution photographs of the shuttle’s heat shield and other areas of potential interest. Imagery analysts will pore over the photos to determine the health of the shuttle’s thermal protection system.

Once the rotation is completed, Ferguson will fly Atlantis upward and in front of the station before slowly backing in for docking. At 1:19 p.m., hatches will be opened between the two spacecraft. Along with Ferguson, Pilot Doug Hurley, shuttle Mission Specialists Sandy Magnus and Rex Walheim will join the Expedition 28 crew: Commander Andrey Borisenko and Flight Engineers Alexander Samokutyaev and Sergei Volkov of Russian, Satoshi Furukawa from Japan, and NASA’s Ron Garan and Mike Fossum.

The combined crew of 10 will begin more than a week of docked operations, transferring supplies and equipment to the station from Atlantis’ middeck and the Raffaello multi-purpose logistics module, which will be transferred from the cargo bay and installed on the station’s Harmony node early Monday. Once 8,000 pounds of cargo are unloaded from Raffaello, it will be packed with waste items from the station and placed back in the cargo bay for return to Earth.

Ready for Launch

The STS-135 crew ride in the Astrovan to Launch Pad 39A to board space shuttle Atlantis on the morning of Friday, July 8. The launch of Atlantis on the STS-135 mission is the final flight of the Space Shuttle Program. Clockwise from the left are: Sandra Magnus, Rex Walheim, commander Chris Ferguson and pilot Doug Hurley. In the back of the van in white is a member of the closeout crew, whose members assist the astronauts with final preparations for launch.

Image Credit: NASA/Jerry Ross

NASA Sets Launch Date For Final Space Shuttle Mission

Stephanie Schierholz

Headquarters, Washington

Candrea Thomas

Kennedy Space Center, Fla.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. -- Space shuttle Atlantis' Commander Chris Ferguson and his three crewmates are scheduled to begin a 12-day mission to the International Space Station with a launch at 11:26 a.m. EDT on July 8, from NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida. The STS-135 mission is the final flight of the Space Shuttle Program.

The launch date was announced Tuesday at the conclusion of a flight readiness review at Kennedy. During the meeting, senior NASA and contractor managers assessed the risks associated with the mission and determined the shuttle and station's equipment, support systems and personnel are ready.

Atlantis' STS-135 mission will deliver the Raffaello multi-purpose logistics module filled with supplies and spare parts to sustain space station operations after the shuttles are retired.

The mission also will fly the Robotic Refueling Mission (RRM), an experiment designed to demonstrate and test the tools, technologies and techniques needed to robotically refuel satellites in space - even satellites not designed to be serviced. The crew also will return an ammonia pump that recently failed on the station. Engineers want to understand why the pump failed and improve designs for future spacecraft.

The crew consists of Commander Ferguson, Pilot Doug Hurley, and Mission Specialists Sandy Magnus and Rex Walheim. They are scheduled to arrive at Kennedy on Monday, July 4, for final launch preparations. STS-135 is the 135th shuttle mission, Atlantis' 33rd flight and the 37th shuttle mission to the station.

For more information about the STS-135 mission, visit http://www.nasa.gov/shuttle.

For more information about the space station, visit http://www.nasa.gov/station.

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Astronauts Continue Prelaunch Training in Florida

At NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, the four Atlantis astronauts are training at Launch Pad 39A this morning as they practice emergency escape procedures and inspect the payloads inside Atlantis' cargo bay. Later they'll receive operations and payload briefings inside Kennedy's Launch Control Center.

Before beginning their training this morning, the crew members -- Commander Chris Ferguson, Pilot Doug Hurley, and Mission Specialists Sandy Magnus and Rex Walheim -- answered questions from the news media during a live NASA TV broadcast from the launch pad.

Reflecting on the significance of this final space shuttle mission, Commander Ferguson said, "I don't think that the full magnitude of the moment will really hit us until the wheels have stopped on the runway. I'm not sure words will really be able to capture for the crew and for the entire shuttle workforce just how much the shuttle program has meant to us for the last 30 years."

Yesterday the Space Shuttle Program held its program-level Flight Readiness Review at NASA's Johnson Space Center in Houston. The team recommended a "go" to proceed to the agency-level review next Tuesday, with a targeted July 8 launch date for the STS-135 mission to the International Space Station.

Technicians at the pad have completed their high-tech X-ray scans of the tops Atlantis' external fuel tank stringer support beams. They'll now scan the bottoms of those 21-foot long beams. Other technicians replaced the main fuel valve in space shuttle main engine No. 3 yesterday. Retesting of the valve is up next.

STS-135 Crew Arrives in Florida for Countdown Rehearsal

The four veteran astronauts for space shuttle Atlantis' STS-135 mission arrived Monday evening at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida for their prelaunch countdown rehearsal.

"I speak on behalf of the crew, everyone in the astronaut office, and I'm sure everybody here at KSC in saying that we are just trying to savor the moment," said STS-135 Commander Chris Ferguson upon arrival. "As our children and our children's children ask us, we want to be able to say, 'We remember when there was a space shuttle.'" As crewmates Pilot Doug Hurley, and Mission Specialists Sandy Magnus and Rex Walheim looked on, Ferguson also thanked the gathered media representatives for taking the message of the space program to the public.

Their T-38 jets touched down at Kennedy's Shuttle Landing Facility at about 5:30 p.m. EDT. The crew will participate in the Terminal Countdown Demonstration Test and related training. The countdown full dress rehearsal is scheduled for Thursday morning.

Meanwhile, at Kennedy's Launch Pad 39A, technicians are performing high-tech X-ray scans of the tops and bottoms of 50 support beams, called stringers, on the shuttle-facing side of space shuttle Atlantis' external fuel tank. The scans should take about a week to complete and are expected to confirm there are no problems with the tank's stringers. Scans began Sunday due to strong storms on Saturday, which caused no damage to the shuttle and pad. Technicians are also replacing a suspected leaky valve in Atlantis' space shuttle main engine No. 3.

Atlantis is being prepared for the STS-135 mission, the final flight of the Space Shuttle Program, targeted for launch July 8.

NASA Gives News Media Access To Final Shuttle Simulations

Joshua Buck

Headquarters, Washington                                   

Kylie Clem

Johnson Space Center, Houston

HOUSTON -- As the final space shuttle training simulations take place at NASA's Johnson Space Center in Houston, the agency is giving journalists an unprecedented view of the crew and Mission Control team training for the upcoming STS-135 mission.

On Thursday, June 16, news media representatives can witness one of the final launch and ascent simulations conducted by the STS-135 crew, flight controllers and simulation and training teams. The Johnson badging office opens at 6 a.m. CDT and journalists should arrive early to be ready for transportation to the training site at 7 a.m.

Reporters will be able to photograph the crew getting into the motion-based shuttle simulator and gather behind-the-scenes interviews and footage with the teams that train the astronauts before launch. Flight controllers who oversee the shuttle's performance from the ground also will be available.

Filming and photographs will be allowed using only available light inside both the simulation control rooms and the space shuttle flight control room in the Mission Control Center. Reporters also will be able to listen to and record conversations between the crew and mission control, as well as between the flight director and his team as they work through mock shuttle launches.

Following the simulation, STS-135 Commander Chris Ferguson, Pilot Doug Hurley and Mission Specialists Sandra Magnus and Rex Walheim and STS-135 Ascent Flight Director Richard Jones will be available for a question-and-answer session in mission control. NASA Television will air the event live at 1 p.m. The training team will be available for interviews afterward.

On Friday, June 17, the space shuttle and space station flight controllers will practice the shuttle's final rendezvous and docking with the International Space Station. Reporters should arrive at Johnson's badging office by 10:30 a.m. for transportation to the training facility.

Journalists will have access to Johnson's fixed-based shuttle simulator and can witness the STS-135 crew preparing for a mock terminal initiation burn and getting the shuttle ready for docking with the station. At noon, news media representatives will be escorted to mission control to tour the space shuttle flight control room and the space station training version. The flight control team will be practicing the shuttle's backflip as it approaches the station and the docking. Reporters will have access to the front of the room and can listen to the flight director's audio and the air-to-ground transmissions from the shuttle crew. The simulated docking is expected to begin at 2 p.m.

Both training events will be recorded for broadcast on NASA TV. The schedule is below.

June 16

1 p.m. - Question-and-answer session with STS-135 crew and flight control team in space shuttle flight control room

2 p.m. - Replay of STS-135 ascent simulation

June 17

3:30 p.m. - Replay of STS-135 rendezvous simulation with shuttle and station flight control teams

For NASA TV downlink, schedule and streaming video information, visit http://www.nasa.gov/ntv.

For more information about the mission and crew, visit http://go.nasa.gov/STS-135.

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NASA Announces Final Shuttle Mission Preview Events

Joshua Buck

Headquarters, Washington     

 

Kylie Clem

Johnson Space Center, Houston

 

HOUSTON -- NASA's Johnson Space Center in Houston has scheduled briefings, interview opportunities and demonstrations to highlight the final space shuttle mission, targeted to launch on July 8.

On June 30, NASA will hold news media briefings to preview the STS-135 mission and a news conference with the shuttle crew: Commander Chris Ferguson, Pilot Doug Hurley and Mission Specialists Sandra Magnus and Rex Walheim. NASA Television and the agency's website will carry the news briefings live.

Round-robin interview opportunities will be available with each crew member on June 30, but direct participation may be limited to networks, wire services and other major news outlets. Decisions regarding participation in the interviews will be based on the number of requests received and finalized about one week before the event. Remote participation in news briefings and round-robin interviews is permitted; however, priority will be given to reporters in attendance at Johnson.

On July 1, journalists can tour the shuttle simulators and mockups that are being used to train the astronauts for the shuttle's final flight to the International Space Station. Journalists also can tour a mockup of NASA's Multi-Purpose Crew Vehicle, the spacecraft that is being developed to carry humans into deep space. The deadline to participate in the June 30 and July 1 events, and to request a round-robin crew interview, is 5 p.m. June 20. For credentials, reporters must call the Johnson newsroom at 281-483-5111.

On June 16 and 17, news outlets can document the shuttle crew and mission control teams during their training exercises. To attend, U.S. reporters must apply by 5 p.m. CDT on Monday, June 13. International journalists must apply for credentials and return all required paperwork by 5 p.m. on Wednesday, June 8.

The schedule of activities includes (all times CDT):

-- June 16: STS-135 crew and ascent flight control team training

Journalists will have a behind-the-scenes look at the crew and Mission Control Center team training. There will be a photo opportunity of the crew getting into the motion-based simulator in launch and entry suits. Broadcast outlets can film on the floor of mission control for two launch simulations, with access to air-to-ground and flight director loop audio feeds. The training will be followed by a question-and-answer session with the crew, flight director, mission control team and trainers. Accredited journalists must be at the badging office, bldg. 110, by 7 a.m. for transportation to the event. The badging office opens at 6 a.m.

-- June 17: STS-135 crew; shuttle and station flight control team rendezvous training

Journalists will be allowed into the shuttle flight control room and the training version of the space station control room during a simulation of the shuttle's final docking to the International Space Station. Limited opportunities will be available to film the crew in the stationary shuttle simulator. Media representatives again will have access to air-to-ground and flight director loop audio feeds. Accredited journalists must be at the badging office, bldg. 110, by 11 a.m. for transportation to the event.

-- June 30: Mission overview, crew news conference, interviews

7 a.m. STS-135 video b-roll feed on NASA TV

8 a.m. Shuttle Program Overview

9:30 a.m. STS-135 Mission Overview

12 p.m. STS-135 Spacewalk Overview

1 p.m. STS-135 Crew News Conference

2-6 p.m. Individual crew round robin interviews (not on NASA TV)

-- July 1: Hands-on experience with shuttle mockups

Journalists can tour shuttle mockups and simulators and meet mission support and training team members. Journalists will have access to the Space Vehicle Mockup Facility, motion and fixed based trainers at the Jake Garn Training Facility, Shuttle Engineering Simulator dome, Shuttle Avionics Integration Laboratory and Virtual Reality Lab. Activities will be available throughout the day. The Multi-Purpose Crew Vehicle mockup will again be available for touring.

A switched video and audio feed of the training events, including video inside the simulator and mission control, will air on NASA TV. For downlink, schedule and streaming video information, visit http://www.nasa.gov/ntv.

For more information about the mission and crew, visit http://go.nasa.gov/STS-135.

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Last Female Shuttle Astronaut Available For Interviews

Michael Curie

Headquarters, Washington

 

Kylie Clem

Johnson Space Center, Houston

HOUSTON -- NASA astronaut Sandra Magnus, who will fly on the last space shuttle mission next month, is available for live satellite interviews from 7 to 9 a.m. CDT on Monday, June 6. Shuttle Atlantis is targeted to launch July 8 with Magnus, Commander Chris Ferguson, Pilot Doug Hurley and Mission Specialist Rex Walheim to deliver supplies and spare equipment to the International Space Station.

After her first spaceflight in 2002, Magnus became the 34th out of 47 women to fly aboard the shuttle, which launched the first American woman into space, Sally Ride, in 1983. With the upcoming STS-135 launch, Magnus will be the last female astronaut to fly on the storied vehicle.

Magnus is a native of Belleville, Ill. She earned a bachelor's and a master's from the University of Missouri-Rolla and a doctorate from the Georgia Institute of Technology. She is a veteran of two shuttle flights and a 4.5-month stay aboard the station as a member of the Expedition 18 crew. Her first spaceflight was aboard shuttle Atlantis on the STS-112 mission in October 2002. She later flew to the station aboard shuttle Endeavour on STS-126 in November 2008 and returned to Earth aboard shuttle Discovery on STS-119 in March 2009.

To arrange an interview, news media representatives must contact Karen Svetaka at 281-483-8684, no later than 4 p.m. on Friday, June 3. Participating media must tune into NASA Television's Live Interview Media Outlet channel. The channel is a digital satellite C-band downlink by uplink provider Americom.

It is on satellite AMC 3, transponder 9C, located at 87 degrees west, downlink frequency 3865.5 MHz based on a standard C-band, horizontal downlink polarity. FEC is 3/4, data rate is 6.0 Mbps, symbol rate is 4.3404 Msps, transmission DVB-S, 4:2:0. NASA TV will air the Magnus interviews live. Video b-roll of STS-135 flight preparations will air June 6 at 6:30 a.m. For NASA TV streaming video, downlink and scheduling information, visit http://www.nasa.gov/ntv.

For Magnus' complete biography, visit http://www.jsc.nasa.gov/Bios/htmlbios/magnus.html.

To follow Magnus on Twitter, visit http://www.twitter.com/astro_sandy.

For more information about the STS-135 mission and crew, visit http://go.nasa.gov/STS-135.

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NASA's STS-135 Crew Available To Media At Final Shuttle Rollout

Joshua Buck

Headquarters, Washington     

 

Candrea Thomas

Kennedy Space Center, Fla.

 

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. -- The four astronauts for the final space shuttle mission, STS-135, will answer reporters' questions at 8:30 p.m. EDT on Tuesday, May 31, as shuttle Atlantis is moved to its launch pad at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida. The question-and-answer session will air live on NASA Television and the agency's website.

STS-135 Commander Chris Ferguson, Pilot Doug Hurley and Mission Specialists Sandy Magnus and Rex Walheim will take questions outside Kennedy's news center while Atlantis moves in the background from the Vehicle Assembly Building (VAB) to Launch Pad 39A.

Atlantis' first motion out of the VAB is scheduled for 8 p.m. NASA TV will provide live video of the start of the move, known as rollout, and then switch to the crew media event. NASA TV's Video File will broadcast highlights of the entire rollout. For NASA TV downlink information, schedules and links to streaming video, visit http://www.nasa.gov/ntv.

STS-134 mission badges are valid for all rollout activities, including an 8 p.m. photo opportunity of the move, the STS-135 crew event and an interview availability with Atlantis Flow Director Angie Brewer at about 9 p.m., which will not be shown on NASA TV. News media representatives must arrive at Kennedy's news center by 7:30 p.m. for the rollout photo opportunity.

NASA also will provide a sunrise photo opportunity at the launch pad on June 1, after Atlantis' early morning arrival. Reporters must be at the news center by 6 a.m. for transportation to the pad viewing areas. Updates for events are available at 321-867-2525.

Journalists who applied only for STS-135 rollout events, may begin picking up their badges starting at 6 a.m. on May 31 at the Kennedy Space Center Badging Office on State Road 405. Journalists who have been approved for STS-134 mission badges, but have not picked them up yet, may do so at NASA's Pass and Identification Building on State Road 3 on May 31 from 4 - 6 p.m. and 10:30 p.m. to 12:30 a.m. on June 1.

Atlantis' astronauts are targeted to launch to the International Space Station on July 8. For more information about the mission and crew, visit http://go.nasa.gov/STS-135.

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