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Ground Umbilical Carrier Plate Removal Photo Collection

This photo collection shows the work that was done (Wednesday) on the Ground Umbilical Carrier Plate (GUCP), on space shuttle Endeavour’s external fuel tank.

A hydrogen leak at the location during tanking for the STS-127 mission caused the launch attempts to be scrubbed on June 13 and June 17.

The GUCP will be examined to determine the cause of the hydrogen leak and repaired. The GUCP is the overboard vent to the pad and the flame stack where the vented hydrogen is burned off. Endeavour’s next launch attempt is targeted for July 11 at 7:39 p.m. EDT.

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(Above) On Launch Pad 39A at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida, workers remove the 7-inch quick disconnect on the Ground Umbilical Carrier Plate, or GUCP, on space shuttle Endeavour’s external fuel tank.

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(Above) Workers continue the removing the 7-inch quick disconnect on the Ground Umbilical Carrier Plate, or GUCP, on space shuttle Endeavour’s external fuel tank.

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(Above) Work continues on removing the Ground Umbilical Carrier Plate, or GUCP, on space shuttle Endeavour’s external fuel tank.

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(Above) A worker has removed the seal from the Ground Umbilical Carrier Plate, or GUCP, on space shuttle Endeavour’s external fuel tank.

Posted
June 25th, 2009

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Project Constellation Continues Taking Over Pad 39B

This photo collection shows the work that is being done to convert NASA’s Launch Complex 39B from a Shuttle pad to the future launch site of NASA’s Ares I-X rocket.

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(Above) The slings from a large crane swing the detached orbiter access arm, which ends in the White Room, away from the fixed service structure, or FSS, on Launch Pad 39B at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida.

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The White Room provided entry into space shuttles that were on the pad. The arm is being removed from the FSS for the pad’s conversion as launch site for the Constellation Program’s Ares I-X. The launch of the Ares I-X flight test is targeted for August 2009.

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Posted
June 23rd, 2009

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Endeavour Hydrogen Leak Repair Work Under Way

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NASA engineers now believe they understand why a hydrogen gas vent line has been leaking, causing shuttle Endeavour’s STS-127 mission to be postponed twice. According to Space Shuttle Program Manager John Shannon, a plate that attaches the vent line to Endeavour’s external fuel tank is slightly misaligned, allowing a small leak to happen during the fueling process.

Teams at NASA Kennedy Space Center’s Launch Pad 39A will begin disconnecting the vent line from the Ground Umbilical Carrier Plate. Today, crews re-verified the exact measurements of the plate’s attachment to the external fuel tank and performed a leak check at ambient temperatures.

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Technicians are preparing to test the repair plan by filling Endeavour’s external tank with liquid hydrogen and liquid oxygen in the next week and a half, just as they would for a launch. This “tanking test” will confirm whether the repairs will work before another launch attempt is made. Hydrogen leaks in the vent line postponed Endeavour’s launch attempts June 13 and 17, delaying its 16-day flight to the International Space Station. If the repairs are successful, Endeavour’s next launch attempt is targeted for July 11 at 7:39 p.m. EDT.

Posted
June 22nd, 2009

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Astro Log

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SPACE WALLPAPER: Atlantis STS-125 Launch

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STS-125 Atlantis lifts off from the Kennedy Space Center in Florida on NASA’s final Hubble Space Telescope servicing mission.

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Posted
June 19th, 2009

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KSC
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Space Wallpaper Friday
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Columbia Arrives at KSC after roll over from the Orbiter Maintenance and Refurbishment Facility

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Technicians monitor Columbia as it is towed via its landing gear by a ground handling vehicle. The Orbital maneuvering system (OMS) pods and space shuttle main engines (SSMEs) have been removed. Protective covers are visible on SSME ports and dome heatshield. Note the lack of TPS tiles under the payload bay doors and above the US flag.

Posted
June 19th, 2009

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Second STS-127 Launch Attempt Scrubbed

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(Above) NASA Kennedy Space Center Director Bob Cabana, left, NASA Associate Administrator for Space Operations Bill Gerstenmaier, center, and NASA Acting Administrator Chris Scolese are seen in firing room four of the NASA Kennedy Space Center.

At 1:55 a.m. EDT, launch managers called a scrub, canceling today’s planned launch of space shuttle Endeavour on its STS-127 mission. Despite troubleshooting efforts, engineers were unable to achieve a decrease in the liquid hydrogen leak associated with the external fuel tank’s ground umbilical carrier panel. This is the same location where a similar leak resulted in a launch scrub on June 13.

Posted
June 17th, 2009

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Shuttle Endeavour Looks Skyward After RSS Rollback

Viewed across the Indian River Lagoon, space shuttle Endeavour waits for launch after rollback of the rotating service structure, or RSS, at left.

First motion of the RSS was at 10:15 a.m. EDT. The rollback is in preparation for Endeavour’s liftoff on the STS-127 mission with a crew of seven. This is the second launch attempt for Endeavour after the June 13 launch was scrubbed due to a hydrogen leak at the Ground Umbilical Carrier Plate during tanking June 12.

This launch will be Endeavour’s 23rd flight. The shuttle will carry the Japanese Experiment Module’s Exposed Facility, or JEM-EF, and the Experiment Logistics Module-Exposed Section, or ELM-ES, on STS-127.

The mission is the final of three flights dedicated to the assembly of the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency’s Kibo laboratory complex on the space station.

Posted
June 16th, 2009

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Work continues on the Shuttle’s External Tank GUCP

This photo collection shows the work that is being done on the Ground Umbilical Carrier Plate (GUCP), on space shuttle Endeavour’s external fuel tank. Workers have removed the 7-inch quick disconnect to change out seals in the internal connection points. The GUCP is the overboard vent to the pad and the flare stack where the vented hydrogen is burned off.

A leak of hydrogen at the location during tanking June 12 for the STS-127 mission caused the mission to be scrubbed at 12:26 a.m. June 13.

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(Above) Aworker checks the area on the Ground Umbilical Carrier Plate, or GUCP, where the 7-inch quick disconnect was removed.

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(Above) A KSC worker holds the removed the 7-inch quick disconnect from the Ground Umbilical Carrier Plate, or GUCP, on space shuttle Endeavour’s external fuel tank.

Posted
June 15th, 2009

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GUCP
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STS-127

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SPACE WALLPAPER: Atlantis Lands at KSC

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Space Shuttle Atlantis touches down on Runway 15 of the KSC Shuttle Landing Facility (SLF) to complete the nearly 11-day STS-86 mission. This was the 40th landing of the Shuttle at KSC.

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Posted
June 14th, 2009

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Getting Ready for STS-128

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In Orbiter Processing Facility 3 at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida, STS-128 Pilot Kevin Ford checks out the cockpit windows of space shuttle Discovery.

The crew is at Kennedy for a crew equipment interface test, or CEIT, which provides hands-on training and observation of shuttle and flight hardware.

The STS-128 flight will carry science and storage racks to the International Space Station on Discovery. Launch is targeted for Aug. 7

Posted
June 13th, 2009

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