STS-124: Rollout and Pad Flow Latest

[Ford Mustang]

.

[psloss]

071 is punched up, as requested.   

[Ford Mustang]

Nice switch, PAO.  Looks like we've still got a bit of the way to get to the PARK position.

[Ford Mustang]

Okay, coming up on the official PARK position.  Movement has slowed now.

[Ford Mustang]

I think we've reached the PARK position!

[Ford Mustang]

The RSS has been retracted to the PARK position.  A short video (about 2 minutes) will be uploaded soon of the retraction.  Will be about an hour or so, though, but it will be uploaded tonight.

[cb6785]

Coming up for the first half of saturday:

Launch Day (Saturday, May 31)

- Resume countdown at T-11 hours (12:37 a.m.)
- Activate the orbiter's fuel cells (1:47 a.m.)
- Clear the blast danger area of all nonessential personnel
- Switch Discovery’s’ purge air to gaseous nitrogen (2:37 a.m.)
- Enter planned 2-hour built-in hold at the T-6 hour mark (5:37 a.m.)
- Launch team verifies no violations of launch commit criteria prior to cryogenic
  loading of the external tank
- Clear pad of all personnel
- Resume countdown (7:37 a.m.)
- Chill down propellant transfer lines (7:37 a.m.)
- Begin loading the external fuel tank with about 500,000 gallons of cryogenic
   propellants (about 7:47 a.m.)
- Complete filling the external tank with its flight load of liquid hydrogen and liquid
   oxygen propellants (about 10:37 a.m.)
- Final Inspection Team proceeds to launch pad
- Enter planned 2-hour, 30-minute built-in hold at T-3 hours (10:37 a.m.)
- Perform inertial measurement unit preflight calibration
- Align Merritt Island Launch Area tracking antennas
- Perform open loop test with Eastern Range

[Chris Bergin]

The RSS has been retracted to the PARK position.  A short video (about 2 minutes) will be uploaded soon of the retraction.  Will be about an hour or so, though, but it will be uploaded tonight.

Nice work sir

Ok, plan is to keep this thread going over the coming hours. I'm going to write up the launch day article and we'll start the new thread with that.

No sleep till MECO! 

[cb6785]

.No sleep till MECO! 

Nice idea, but for me it's 3:45am at the moment and meco's still "a couple of hours" away.... So, good night...I'll be back right in time for tanking operations

[Ford Mustang]

Nice work sir

Ok, plan is to keep this thread going over the coming hours. I'm going to write up the launch day article and we'll start the new thread with that.

No sleep till MECO! 

You changed!  Thought it was 'No Sleep 'till Wheel Stop'!   


RSS Retraction is uploaded in this post!

[Ford Mustang]

And it looks like some of the Xenon lights have been turned on (if not all of them).

[ChrisC]

Envy me, I'm watching all of this in HD.  They've stayed with pad shots all day, except for when KSC briefings were happening.

NASA HDTV thread:
http://forum.nasaspaceflight.com/index.php?topic=11551.new#new
(read the thread before asking "what's the URL?" or "what channel?", it's not that simple)

Hang in there, my fingers are crossed that an official launch of NASA HD can't be too far off now.  Note the Discovery HD agreement that produced the Sunday series starting June 8th ...

[Andrewwski]

You changed!  Thought it was 'No Sleep 'till Wheel Stop'!   


RSS Retraction is uploaded in this post!

That would take one large coffee pot...   

Thanks for the video!

[dember]

I'm gonna fill up on it!

[Captain Kirk]

Envy me, I'm watching all of this in HD.  They've stayed with pad shots all day, except for when KSC briefings were happening.

Okay, consider yourself officially envied.    Seriously, I DO envy you!!

[Chris Bergin]

Ok, I went a bit "long" with the launch day article and turned it into part two of our FRR review So publishing it in about 30 mins and at that time we'll move on to the Launch Day live event thread.

[DaveDoop]

These were taken at 11:30pm... i am excited!!!