Image: A technician applies foam insulation to a portion of the external tank that space shuttle Atlantis will use at launch. Photo credit: NASA
Teams of technicians will spend the weekend working on foam insulation applied to small sections of space shuttle Atlantis’ external fuel tank and making standard launch preparations at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida.
Some foam was removed from around an external wiring connector on the tank so technicians could replace it with a modified connector, which is part of the tank’s low fuel-level engine cutoff sensor system. Problems with the system lead to two launch delays for Atlantis in December. All the foam work is expected to be finished on Jan. 24.
Space Shuttle Program managers are targeting Feb. 7 for Atlantis’ launch on the STS-122 mission to install the European-built Columbus laboratory on the International Space Station.
