[sarex] STS-115 LAUNCH DELAYED

[Arthur Rowe <azrowe80@xxxxxxxxxxx>]

SUBMITTED BY ARTHUR N1ORC - AMSAT A/C #31468

Aug. 28, 2006

Allard Beutel/Bruce Buckingham 
Kennedy Space Center, Fla.
321-867-2468 

RELEASE: 06-302

TROPICAL STORM ERNESTO FORCES SHUTTLE ATLANTIS' LAUNCH DELAY

Tuesday's scheduled launch of Space Shuttle Atlantis on its STS-115 
mission to the International Space Station is being postponed because 
of Tropical Storm Ernesto. A new launch date has not been set. 

Although no final decision has been made, shuttle managers meeting at 
NASA's Kennedy Space Center instructed launch teams Monday to 
continue preliminary preparations to roll Atlantis off its launch pad 
and back inside the protection of the Vehicle Assembly Building. 
Managers will follow developments in Tropical Storm Ernesto's track. 
A decision on whether to roll back is expected by midday Tuesday.

Ernesto is forecast to pass near Kennedy on Wednesday afternoon.

The STS-115 crew will remain in Florida until a roll back decision is 
made. Commander Brent Jett, Pilot Chris Ferguson, and mission 
specialists Joe Tanner, Dan Burbank, Heide Stefanyshyn-Piper and 
Canadian astronaut Steve MacLean will study flight plans and spend 
time with their families.

During STS-115, Atlantis' astronauts will deliver and install the 
17.5-ton, bus-sized P3/P4 integrated truss segment on the station. 
The girder-like truss includes a set of giant solar arrays, batteries 
and associated electronics. The P3/P4 truss segment will provide 
one-fourth of the total power-generation capability for the completed 
station. 

For information about the STS-115 crew and its mission to the 
International Space Station, visit: 

http://www.nasa.gov/shuttle 

	
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