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Shuttle Discovery moved to VAB ahead of May launch

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Saturday, April 26, 2008

STS-124 mission patch

Today at 11:07 GMT (07:07 local time), US Space Shuttle Discovery departed its hangar at the Kennedy Space Center Orbiter Processing Facility (OPF), and was towed into the Vehicle Assembly Building (VAB), arriving at 12:05 GMT (08:05 local time). Its next scheduled launch, STS-124, is currently targeted for the end of May.

This procedure, known as a rollover, occurs around five to six weeks ahead of launch, and is followed by stacking, or attachment of Discovery to an external tank and a pair of solid rocket boosters, which are waiting in the VAB. Once this has been completed, electrical tests will be conducted on the Shuttle, and then it will be rolled out to Launch Complex 39A in a week's time.

Discovery's next mission, STS-124, will carry seven astronauts to the International Space Station (ISS), and deliver the main component of the Japanese Experiment Module. The crew who are scheduled to fly aboard Discovery are mission commander Mark E. Kelly, pilot Kenneth Ham, mission specialists Karen L. Nyberg, Ronald J. Garan, Michael E. Fossum and Akihiko Hoshide, and Expedition 17 ISS crew member Gregory Chamitoff.


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This page is archived, and is no longer publicly editable.
Articles presented on Wikinews reflect the specific time at which they were written and published, and do not attempt to encompass events or knowledge which occur or become known after their publication.

Got a correction? Add the template {{editprotected}} to the talk page along with your corrections, and it will be brought to the attention of the administrators.

Please note that due to our archival policy, we will not alter or update the content of articles that are archived, but will only accept requests to make grammatical and formatting corrections.

Note that some listed sources or external links may no longer be available online due to age.
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