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Atlantis leaves Edwards

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JUNE 2 UPDATE FROM NASA

Atlantis Ferry Flight Makes Refueling Stop
Tue, 02 Jun 2009 07:30:44 AM PDT

Space shuttle Atlantis, riding atop a modified Boeing 747 Shuttle Carrier Aircraft, landed at Lackland Air Force Base in San Antonio, Texas this morning for a refueling stop.

Next, the piggybacked duo will fly from Lackland to Columbus Air Force Base in Mississippi, continuing the cross-country journey from Edwards Air Force Base in California to NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida.
 

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[See Nick Smirnoff's series of photos of the Monday morning takeoff, shot from 200 feet off the runway.]

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Firmly bolted to its specially modified Boeing 747,  the Space Shuttle Atlantis began its  journey from Edwards Air Force Base back to home base at Kennedy Space Center in Florida at 8:07 a.m. June 1.

The piggyback duo lifted off smoothly to the west in the cool morning air, carving a wide arc to the north, then east, toward its first cross-country destination, Biggs Army Airfield in El Paso, Texas.

It arrived at Biggs at 10:22 pacific time.

The 747 was scheduled to refuel at Biggs and be on its way to the next stop, but it will remain overnight there because of the weather, NASA spokesman Alan Brown said.

"It got a late start and they have detected moisture, convection and humidity," he said. "They don't want to fly into a thunderstorm.

"They don't want to fly into any precipitation. Precipitation acts like rocks. You don't want rocks hitting the soft insulation blankets on top. They are not hard like bricks. They are relatively soft."

There are 16 possible destinations for the next leg, Brown said.

He said the aircraft is expected to reach Kennedy Space Center by the afternoon of Tuesday, June 2.

The aircraft's heavy load and aerodynamic drag keeps the air speed down to a slow 250 knots per hour (280 miles per hour), and a range of 1,000 nautical miles (1,150 statute miles).

Normally, that 747 has a range of 5,500 miles and can fly at 35-38,000 feet.

"It is more efficient at higher altitudes and higher air speed," Brown said. "And it can carry more fuel."

The 747's crew consists of two pilots and three flight engineers from Johnson Space Center in Texas.

Preceding the 747/Atlantis takeoff from Edwards by 20 minutes was the C-9 Pathfinder scout aircraft, which carries scientists and engineers who map out a route with the least rain and turbulence. The Pathfinder aircraft also carries extra pilots and flight engineers.

The 747 initially flies at 10-12,000 feet and as the fuel load burns it goes higher.

"The highest possible altitude is 18,000 feet," Brown said. "They typically keep it to 15,000 feet."

"Flying any higher than 10-12,000 feet would freeze the systems on the orbiter," said Dean Schaaf, Kennedy-based NASA convoy commander and landing recovery manager.

Brown said that the shuttle has no power when it is aboard the 747, and there are sensors to monitor the systems and the fluids.

The lowest temperature the systems and fluids can tolerate is 9 degrees Centigrade (15 degrees Fahrenheit), he said.

A series of wind and rain cells that raced across the Mojave Desert Friday, May 29 caused a delay in the return schedule, and a last-minute problem with a bolt also had to be solved.

The Atlantis landed at Edwards May 24 when foul weather in Florida prevented landing there.

Posted online June 1, 2009; print edition Vol. 110, No. 9, June 10, 2009