STS-120

'STS-120' is the next Space Shuttle mission to the International Space Station (ISS) planned for October 23, 2007. It will deliver the ''Harmony'' module and will reconfigure a portion of the station in preparation for future assembly missions. STS-120 is scheduled to be flown by Space Shuttle ''Discovery'', and will be the 23rd space shuttle mission to ISS. The completion of the mission will leave eleven flights remaining in the Space Shuttle program until its end in 2010, excluding two as-yet-unconfirmed Contingency Logistic Flights.

Contents

Crew

Crew notes

Mission parameters

Mission payloads

Shuttle processing

Mission background

Contingency mission

See also

External links

References

Crew

★ Pamela Melroy (3) - Commander

★ George D. Zamka (1) - Pilot

★ Scott E. Parazynski (5) - Mission Specialist 1

★ Stephanie Wilson (2) - Mission Specialist 2

★ Douglas H. Wheelock (1) - Mission Specialist 3

★ Paolo A. Nespoli (1) - Mission Specialist 4 - ESA
Number in parentheses indicates number of spaceflights by each individual prior to and including this mission.
===Launching ISS Expedition 16 Crew===

★ Daniel M. Tani (2) - ISS Flight Engineer
===Landing ISS Expedition 15 Crew===

★ Clayton Anderson (1) - ISS Flight Engineer

Crew notes

Pamela Melroy will be the second woman to command a space shuttle mission, after Eileen Collins.^[1] The third woman selected as shuttle pilot, Susan Still Kilrain, left NASA without commanding a mission. Additionally, Peggy Whitson, who will be commanding the ISS Expedition 16 crew that will receive STS-120, will be the first female ISS commander. STS-120 will be the first time that two female mission commanders are in orbit at the same time.
The original crew manifest was:

★ James D. Halsell, Commander

★ Alan G. Poindexter, Pilot

★ Wendy Lawrence, Mission Specialist

★ Stephanie Wilson, Mission Specialist

★ Piers Sellers, Mission Specialist

★ Michael Foreman, Mission Specialist
The STS-120 mission patch was designed by Michael Foreman before he was reassigned to STS-123.

Mission parameters

★ 'Mass:' TBD

★ 'Perigee:' TBD

★ 'Apogee:' TBD

★ 'Inclination:' 51.6°

★ 'Period:' TBD

Mission payloads

STS-120 will deliver launch package 10A to the International Space Station (ISS). It consists of the U.S. ''Harmony'' module (formerly known as Node 2), (with four DC-to-DC Converter Unit (DDCU) racks and three Zero-g Storage Racks (ZSR) installed), a Power and Data Grapple Fixture (PDGF) for the station's robot arm, and a Shuttle Power Distribution Unit (SPDU). ''Harmony'' will be the first pressurized habitable module delivered to the station since the Quest Airlock was installed in June of 2001.
By delivering the second connecting node module to the ISS, STS-120 will enable installation of the European ''Columbus'' and Japanese ''Kibō'' research modules. Both of these modules will use ports on ''Harmony'', which will be inserted between the forward port of the U.S. ''Destiny'' laboratory module and the Pressurized Mating Adapter 2 (PMA-2). Since STS-120 will dock to PMA-2, the installation of ''Harmony'' will occur in two stages. Initially it will be installed to the port node of the ''Unity'' module. After STS-120 has un-docked, the Canadarm2 will detach PMA-2 from the ''Destiny'' Laboratory and move it to the forward port of ''Harmony''. Subsequently the arm will move ''Harmony'' from its initial position to its final position on the forward port of ''Destiny''.
Also on this flight, the P6 solar arrays will be moved from the Z1 truss on top of ''Unity'' to its final position at the port end of the truss.
During STS-120, the prop lightsaber used by actor Mark Hamill in the 1983 film "" will be flown to the ISS and then returned to Earth. Stowed on-board Discovery for the length of the mission, the fictional Jedi weapon is being flown to the station in honor of the 30th anniversary of director George Lucas' Star Wars franchise. The 'lightsaber' was delivered on August 28, 2007 from Lucasfilm to officials from Space Center Houston by an actor dressed as Chewbacca from the Star Wars films. It was then flown to Texas, where it was to be put on public display at Space Center Houston both before the mission and after its return from space. ^[2]

Shuttle processing

In Orbiter Processing Facility bay No. 3 during the first week of September, 2007, forward and aft closeout work continued; the mid-body closeouts were completed, closeout of the crew cabin airlock was under way, the main engines were configured for rollover, and workers installed hard covers on the orbiter's windows. On September 5th, the external tank and the solid rocket boosters were mated together. Discovery's rollover to the VAB, for mating to the external tank, is scheduled for September 19, 2007. The rollout to launch pad 39-A is scheduled for September 27, 2007.
The External Tank underwent a last minute, temporary, modification to the liquid oxygen feed-line brackets.^[3] The change involved a new low-density foam application, and thinner gaskets. Shuttle Program Managers decided to do this to reduce the foam loss from the area that had been noted since STS-114's Return to Flight mission in 2005. STS-118 had a small gouge on the belly of the orbiter due to a chunk of foam that impacted during launch in August of 2007. A permanent fix was expected for the external tanks for the later part of 2008. The Terminal Countdown Demonstration Test (TCDT) for STS-120 is scheduled for September 28, 2007.
External Tank 120 was transferred from its checkout cell to high bay No. 1 for mating to the solid rocket boosters the week of September 8, 2007.

Mission background

At the time of the ''Columbia'' disaster, STS-120 was scheduled for early 2004. It was delayed repeatedly and is scheduled to launch October 23, 2007.
Discovery is scheduled to roll out to launch pad 39-A on September 27, 2007 for the STS-120 mission. NASA originally scheduled the launch for October 20, but due to the ISS program requirement, launch was delayed to October 23.^[4]
The mission marks:

★ 151st manned US space launch

★ 120th space shuttle flight

★ 95th post-''Challenger'' mission

★ 7th post-''Columbia'' mission

Contingency mission

'STS-322' is the designation given to the Contingency Shuttle Crew Support mission which would be launched in the event Space Shuttle Discovery becomes disabled during STS-120.^[5] It would be a modified version of the STS-122 mission, which would involve the launch date being brought forward. If it is needed, it would be launched no earlier than December 6, 2007. The crew for this mission would be a four-person subset of the full STS-122 crew.

See also

★ Space Shuttles

★ List of spaceflights (2007)

★ List of space shuttle missions

External links

★ Official STS-120 Mission Page

★ STS-120 Overview

★ NASAspaceflight.com STS 120 forum

References

1. NASA Names Second Female Shuttle Commander Malik, Tariq
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