This is planned to be a mission to rescue the crew members of Atlantis in case it is hit by flying debris either at launch or during the mission
Two space shuttles are currently simultaneously on launch pads at the Kennedy Launch Center. Atlantis is on launch pad 39A for a long-awaited mission to upgrade the Hubble Space Telescope, which is scheduled for launch in 12 years. Well, the second launch, 39B, is standing by Endeavor, which arrived there in mid-April, for the STS-400 LON mission - where the initials Lon mean Launch On Need - launch by Tzuch, a task that no one hopes will be carried out.
This is planned to be a mission to rescue the crew members of Atlantis in case it is hit by flying debris either at launch or during the mission. If STS-400 is required to take off we checked for you what its schedule should be.
If this is a situation where Atlantis and its crew members are not in immediate danger, but for example, Atlantis' heat protection system (the heat tiles) were damaged by fractures from the insulating foam of the external fuel tank as in the case of Columbia, or space fragments in orbit that do not endanger the shuttle as long as it is In space but could jeopardize the landing process, Endeavor could be launched at the right time and angle of inclination to rendezvous with Atlantis. The rescue flight will last eight days and will be carried out as follows:
As soon as Endeavor and its four crew members reach orbit, preparations will begin for the meeting between the two spacecraft. Unlike all post-Columbia re-entry flights, the crew will not perform the thermal protection system test on the second day but will postpone it until after the rescue of the STS-125 crew members.
Endeavor will rendezvous with Atletnis the day after launch from the Kennedy Space Center. The two spaceships will bring their cargo decks closer to each other at a 90 degree angle, and at a distance of about 15 meters from each other. Endeavour's robotic arm will tow the extension system of Atlantis' robotic arm. After Endeavor successfully tows Atlantis she will take command of the combined array of the two spacecraft.
After that, the interesting and dangerous part will come - a spacewalk from Endeavor will take place on the third day of the flight to connect the TEHTER between the two shuttles. On the fourth day, two spacewalks will be carried out in order to transfer the members from Atlantis.
Once the crew members are safely aboard the shuttle, the Endeavor crew will maneuver the two spacecraft into proper separation in daylight so that the crew members can observe in case of any problems.
Atlantis will be released for command from the ground to perform atmospheric entry as well as landing maneuvers and will almost certainly crash in a controlled manner in the Pacific Ocean.
On the fifth day of the flight, members of both teams will scan Endeavor for damage, and if all goes well, they will land on the eighth day for the operation.
Astronaut John Grosfeld, one of the four spacewalkers who will fly on Atlantis, says that keeping the Hubble Space Telescope functioning properly is worth the risk.
"When you think about the risk, everything is of course relative to the benefit and I think that in the big picture, grief is something that I feel is worth risking my life for because it is something bigger than all of us" Grunsfeld said. "It's about science, inspiration and discoveries. These are children who will look at the pictures sent by the mourner and dream."
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I just want to say (write) that this is a great site and I update it at least once a day.
It's good to have such a website about science updates in Israel and around the world.
Pine:
You were right.
This is not my response.
Obviously - this is also not a point response because he does not usually impersonate himself.
This is just another impostor that I hope will be blocked.
I don't know, I was looking for additional materials and couldn't find them at the moment.
A question for my father-
The mission described in the article is intended for the case that "if it comes to a situation where Atlantis and its crew members are not in immediate danger, but for example, the heat protection system of Atlantis (the heat tiles) were damaged by breaks from the insulation foam of the external fuel tank as in the case of Columbia".
My question is, what will the mission be if the members of Atlantis are in a serious and urgent problem - such as an oxygen leak?
Michael, is that you? Sounds like a sarcastic comment that fits the "point" better 🙂
Willing to exchange with him at risk.
I am an expert in space walking.