The crew of Space Shuttle mission STS-104, the 105th mission in the history
of Shuttle flight, will be at Kennedy Space Center this week for a Terminal
Countdown Demonstration Test (TCDT). The crew arrived at KSC’s Shuttle
Landing Facility on Tuesday, June 26, and will remain through the end of the
test activities Friday.
Media representatives have an opportunity on Thursday, June 28, to speak
informally with and photograph the entire STS-104 crew at Launch Pad 39B.
Media interested in participating in this question-and-answer session should
be at the KSC Press Site by 8:30 a.m. for transport to the pad. This event
will be carried live on NASA TV; however, media must be present in order to
participate.
The TCDT is held at KSC prior to each Space Shuttle flight, providing crews
an opportunity to participate in simulated countdown activities. The TCDT
ends with a mock launch countdown culminating in a simulated main engine
cut-off. The astronauts also spend time undergoing emergency egress training
exercises at the pad and have opportunities to view and inspect the payloads
in the orbiter’s payload bay.
On Friday, the crew will enter the orbiter Atlantis fully suited for the
final hours of the practice countdown, including the simulated Shuttle main
engine ignition and cut-off.
Following TCDT activities Friday, the crew will depart KSC for final mission
preparations in Houston, Texas.
Mission STS-104 is targeted for launch from Kennedy Space Center at 5:04
a.m. July 12. The flight is scheduled to last 11 days and will feature
Atlantis delivering the Joint Airlock to the International Space Station
where it will be attached to the station’s Unity Node. Another priority of
the mission is to transfer supplies and water from Atlantis to the station
to sustain the Expedition Two crew until the next resupply opportunity.
Crew members for mission STS-104 are Commander Steven Lindsey, Pilot Charles
Hobaugh, and Mission Specialists Michael Gernhardt (MS1), Janet Kavandi
(MS2) and James Reilly (MS3).
