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\u201cProcessing will continue at KSC at a steady clip,\u201d noted KSC Launch Integration on the latest Shuttle Standup\/Integration report (L2). \u201cThe ET Mate for STS-131\/19A is scheduled for the end of January; the ET Mate Review will be held prior to this.\u201d<\/p>\n
Stacking of Discovery\u2019s boosters has already begun inside High Bay 3 of the VAB, next door to the stacked \u2013 and now powered down \u2013 Endeavour\/STS-130 stack. Stacking will continue throughout the opening part of this Christmas week.<\/p>\n
\u201cSRB BI-142 \/ RSRM 110 (VAB HB-3) Right Aft Center segment has been lifted into HB-3 and mated,\u201d noted NASA Test Director processing information (L2). \u201cMonday Left Aft Booster will be transferred to VAB and mated 2nd shift.\u201d<\/p>\n
Space Shuttle
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![\"A2\"](\"https:\/\/www.nasaspaceflight.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2009\/12\/A210.jpg\" "\\"A2\\"")
A slight issue has been reported as an Interim Problem Report (IPR) during stacking, relating to an extra shim on the Hold Down Posts, which has resulted in the stack being slightly \u2013 by fractions of an inch \u2013 higher than expected.<\/p>\n\u201cSuspect Condition \u2013 All eight SRB Hold Down Posts have a 0.063 Extra Shim making the stack too high. Initial indications are that the delta is within acceptable margin and that the IPR may be closed as MR (Material Review) or as an explained condition,\u201d noted a Monday evening processing update.<\/p>\n
\u201cAs a result, SRB stacking continues; Engineering evaluation continues. Currently, the constraint is S0004, Orbiter\/ET Mate.\u201d<\/p>\n
Over in Discovery\u2019s Orbiter Processing Facility (OPF-3), work has been completed on the reinstallation of her FRCS, following the decision to remove the large unit of thrusters \u2013 which sits in the nose section of the vehicle \u2013 for repairs to its bolts and seals, shortly after it was initially reinstalled after servicing work.<\/p>\n
\u201cIn OPF Bay 3, repairs are complete on the FRCS, and reinstallation is complete. FRCS interface verification and checks is scheduled to complete on Monday. This will be followed by system testing and installation of BRI tile on the MLGD (Main Landing Gear Door),\u201d added NTD processing, with the entire operation causing no adverse effects on the STS-130 flow \u2013 as engineers continue other processing requirements in parallel.<\/p>\n
\u201cWCS (Waste Collection System) installation is complete. Functional testing picks up on Monday. Ammonia servicing preparations are complete. Pick up with QD (Quick Disconnect) connects. Servicing is in work. PLBD (Payload Bay Door) closure for the holidays is scheduled for Monday. Hatch closure is scheduled for Tuesday.\u201d<\/p>\n
STS-131 Specific Articles: http:\/\/www.nasaspaceflight.com\/tag\/sts-131\/<\/p>\n
Further work will be carried out with ammonia servicing and waterproofing continuing through the week, along with final work to closeout the vehicle for the holidays.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe vehicle was powered up Tuesday supporting stowage of the KU Band Antenna and Payload Bay Door closure; both were secured to support and vehicle power-down is in-work,\u201d added Monday night processing information (L2).<\/p>\n
\u201cDuring the latching operations on the right-hand door, Motor #2 stalled before Centerline Latches 1-4 reached their limit switches. The team got real-time concurrence to cycle the latches to unlatch and try to latch again; all worked nominally using Motor #2; the UA (Unexplained Anomaly) will be updated to document the additional work.\u201d<\/p>\n
![\"A3\"](\"https:\/\/www.nasaspaceflight.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2009\/12\/A38.jpg\" "\\"A3\\"")
Ahead of rollover to the VAB early next year \u2013 currently targeting February 9, just two days after Endeavour launches on STS-130 \u2013 Discovery will receive her three Flow Control Valves (FCVs) from their Californian vendor \u201cVacco\u201d.<\/p>\n\u201cFor OV-103 (Discovery), the FCVs at the vendor are in paper closure. These are expected to ship ahead of schedule and be at KSC after the beginning of January,\u201d noted the Standup report, confirming that the current plan continues to be one of using \u201cgood\u201d flight valves that are then sent for inspection prior to reuse.<\/p>\n
These inspections check for signs of cracking on the poppet area of the valve, called for after one of Endeavour\u2019s FCVs cracked and liberated a small piece during STS-126\u2019s ascent \u2013 which in turn kicked off an impressive engineering effort to both understand the cause and protect against worst case scenarios.<\/p>\n
Click here for NASASpaceflight.com articles on the FCV issue since STS-126.<\/p>\n
External Tank (ET-135) has left the Michoud Assembly Facility (MAF) in New Orleans, enroute to the Kennedy Space Center (KSC). The latest standup noted the tank should have been ready for shipping on Sunday, giving it a chance to arrive before Christmas Day.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe tank (was) processing nominally in Building 420. All PDL (Foam) pours are done, except for the double IFRs (Ice Frost Ramps),\u201d noted Lockheed Martin on the Standup report. \u201cRoughly half a day of production was lost due to the heavy rains the area has been receiving. Work should be completed by December 19, and the tank will be ready to roll December 20.\u201d<\/p>\n
However, a slight delay saw the tank eventually leave on Monday \u2013 with an update on its expected arrival time due on Wednesday.<\/p>\n
\u201cET-135, aboard Pegasus\/Freedom Star, departed Gulfport this morning and are heading for Port Canaveral,\u201d noted a Monday update. \u201cAs of now, their exact ETA is TBD \u2013 we will likely know a fairly accurate schedule by Wednesday.\u201d<\/p>\n
L2 members<\/em><\/em>: Documentation \u2013 from which the above article has quoted snippets \u2013 is available in full in the related L2 sections, now over 4000 gbs in size<\/em><\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
With work complete for the year on Endeavour in the Vehicle Assembly Building (VAB), her older sister is in the final stages of processing, ahead of the Christmas holidays. With the External Tank now enroute to Florida, Discovery\u2019s Forward Reaction Control System (FRCS) has been successfully reinstalled \u2013 following a few issues during its original […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"inline_featured_image":false,"footnotes":"","_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[9184],"class_list":["post-40908","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-news","tag-sts-131"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/40908"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=40908"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/40908\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=40908"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=40908"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=40908"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}