Veteran space flier Rick Linnehan, who was born in Lowell, Mass., will fly aboard space shuttle Endeavour during its upcoming STS-123 mission to the International Space Station. Endeavour is targeted to launch from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center, Fla., on March 11 at 2:28 a.m. EDT.
NASA is honoring all 50 states during the remaining flights of the space shuttle, which will be retired in 2010. During the STS-123 mission, Massachusetts, Louisiana, New Hampshire and Ohio will be honored.
Endeavour’s flight is the longest shuttle mission to the space station and will include five spacewalks. As the mission’s lead spacewalker, Linnehan will conduct the first three excursions from the station. He and his six shuttle crewmates will deliver the first section of the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency’s Kibo laboratory and the Canadian Space Agency’s two-armed robotic system, Dextre.
For Linnehan’s biography, visit:
http://www.jsc.nasa.gov/Bios/htmlbios/linnehan.html
Mission news conferences and briefings will air on NASA Television. For NASA TV downlink, streaming video and scheduling information, visit:
For the latest information on the STS-123 mission and crew, visit:
CONTACT: Katherine Trinidad, Headquarters, Washington, +1-202-358-3749, katherine.trinidad@nasa.gov, or Candrea Thomas, Kennedy Space Center, Fla., +1-321-867-2468, candrea.k.thomas@nasa.gov, both of NASA
