LIVE: STS-135 Flight Day 3 - RNDZ, RPM, ISS Docking

• #380 by Chris Bergin on 10 Jul, 2011 16:19
• Per L2 MMT coverage, Atlantis now has 1 day 3 hours of margin, so the mission extension looks very much on now. And per L2 DAT coverage, they have cleared the orbiter from the FD2 inspection standpoint.
  
  Very good!
  
  RPM image dump will head off the ISS and down into L2 asap
• #381 by robertross on 10 Jul, 2011 16:19
• Quote from: Chris Bergin on 10 Jul, 2011 16:19

  Per L2 MMT coverage, Atlantis now has 1 day 3 hours of margin, so the mission extension looks very much on now. And per L2 DAT coverage, they have cleared the orbiter from the FD2 inspection standpoint.
  
  Very good!
  

  
  Stellar 
• #382 by robertross on 10 Jul, 2011 16:20

• ---

  

  
• #383 by robertross on 10 Jul, 2011 16:25
• PMA hatch is open, go for equalization with ISS

  ---

  
• #384 by Longhorn John on 10 Jul, 2011 16:26
• Quote from: Chris Bergin on 10 Jul, 2011 16:19

  
  
  RPM image dump will head off the ISS and down into L2 asap
  

  
  OMG, 100s of megabytes of RPM photos already going into L2, they look stunning. I can't believe they are arriving so fast
• #385 by robertross on 10 Jul, 2011 16:26
• crew running ~1hour ahead of time
• #386 by robertross on 10 Jul, 2011 16:27
• Quote from: Longhorn John on 10 Jul, 2011 16:26

  Quote from: Chris Bergin on 10 Jul, 2011 16:19

  
  
  RPM image dump will head off the ISS and down into L2 asap
  

  
  OMG, 100s of megabytes of RPM photos already going into L2, they look stunning. I can't believe they are arriving so fast
  

  
  I saw it, I saw it!!
  
  Greetings first...
• #387 by robertross on 10 Jul, 2011 16:30
• Quite a few hot pixels on that camera

  ---

  

  
• #388 by robertross on 10 Jul, 2011 16:33

• ---

  
• #389 by robertross on 10 Jul, 2011 16:36
• Now passsing just south of Australia/NZ
• #390 by psloss on 10 Jul, 2011 16:37

• ---

  
• #391 by robertross on 10 Jul, 2011 16:39

• ---

  

  
• #392 by psloss on 10 Jul, 2011 16:41

• ---

  
• #393 by robertross on 10 Jul, 2011 16:41
• Coming up on hatch opening now
• #394 by NavySpaceFan on 10 Jul, 2011 16:42
• Quote from: Chris Bergin on 10 Jul, 2011 15:09

  Four Bells (?)
  
  "Atlantis arriving".
  

  
  Just watched my recording of the docking, bells did my old SWO heart good. Well deserved for CAPT Ferguson, even if it sounded like 8 bells vice 4 
• #395 by MadameConcorde on 10 Jul, 2011 16:42
• What are these white pads for, strapped to the astronauts legs above their knees?
• #396 by LendMeYourYears on 10 Jul, 2011 16:43
• Methinks that there's a risk -since they're going so fast - that they might finish a day early, and not need that mission extension, and actually come down a day earlier Personally, I think they should be given an extra day off in orbit just so that they land on the 20th.
  
  
  Btw, just wondering what the arc of numbers (towards bottom right) from the shuttle's PMA are?
  
  Image from: http://forum.nasaspaceflight.com/index.php?topic=25915.msg771283#msg771283
  
  Also - just talking parents through docking- was asked what science research payoffs we've had from the station. That question just gets me exasperated these days, so I was going to hunt for a link to send off. I know NASA's got their spinoff data-base, but is there a station specific list/ page somewhere?
• #397 by robertross on 10 Jul, 2011 16:43
• Quote from: MadameConcorde on 10 Jul, 2011 16:42

  What are these white pads for, strapped to the astronauts legs above their knees?
  

  
  procedural notes
• #398 by robertross on 10 Jul, 2011 16:44
• slight pause as they load the cameras up with data cards/ect
• #399 by robertross on 10 Jul, 2011 16:46

• ---