Space Shuttle Discovery and the STS-121 crew continue their pursuit of the International Space Station. Discovery is slated to dock with the station at 10:52 a.m. EDT Thursday.
In addition to preparing for Discovery’s linkup with the station, the STS-121 crewmembers are using the shuttle’s robotic arm today to inspect the heat shield. Other activities for today include configuring spacesuits for the mission’s spacewalks.
STS-121 will also deliver a new Expedition 13 crew member, Thomas Reiter, to the station and replace critical hardware needed for future assembly of the complex. Reiter is a member of the European Space Agency who will spend the next six months on the station.
Much of the cargo heading to the station is inside Leonardo multi-purpose logistics module, which is located inside the shuttle payload bay.
Meanwhile on the ground, engineers continue to review launch imagery and radar and sensor data. The data collected on launch day and by the crew in orbit will be used to determine if re-entry into Earth’s atmosphere will be safe for Discovery.
At an evening press conference Tuesday at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida, Space Shuttle Program Manager Wayne Hale reported that the external tank’s performance was greatly improved during the Independence Day launch of Space Shuttle Discovery.
Wayne Hale Press Conference Imagery
