Atlantis fuels up; weather may scuttle launch

As astronaunts prepare to take off, NASA says all systems are go for the launch of shuttle "Atlantis" at the Kennedy Space Center

In this story: Lightning strikes twice Farthest shuttle spacewalk RELATED STORIES, SITES

By Richard Stenger
CNN.com Writer

(CNN) -- All systems were 'go' for this morning's scheduled liftoff of the space shuttle Atlantis, as scientists kept a watchful eye on the weather.

Workers began the three-hour process of fueling the shuttle shortly after midnight. Weather conditions threatened to force mission controllers to scrub the launch, however. Preliminary forecasts indicated only a 60 percent chance of favorable weather.

The crew of the shuttle Atlantis is scheduled to take tons of equipment to the International Space Station and prepare the fledgling orbital outpost for its first residents, expected to arrive in early November.

During a severe storm Tuesday evening, a lightning bolt struck the shuttle launch pad at Kennedy Space Center. A tall lightning pole carried most of the electrical current to the ground, preventing damage to shuttle and launch equipment, a NASA spokesman said.

VIDEO CNN's Miles O'Brien reports on space shuttle Atlantis' latest mission Play video (QuickTime, Real or Windows Media)     INTERACTIVE GUIDE All about STS-106     WEATHER FORECAST Cape Canaveral, Florida     INTERACTIVE Cult 3-D model of the Space shuttle Columbia A 360° stroll through the International Space Station Cult 3-D model of the International Space Station     MESSAGE BOARD Human spaceflight

The storm temporarily delayed preparations, as did another one the night before. A lightning bolt hit a navigation system on the shuttle runway, but shuttle technicians soon repaired the equipment, NASA said.

Cape Canaveral experienced mostly clear skies Thursday. A 40 percent chance of rain or clouds could interfere with the planned 8:45 a.m. EDT launch.

The forecast for acceptable flight weather was extremely conservative because of an unusually brief launch opportunity of just under four minutes.

"We don't have time to wait out any clouds or rain that might be passing through," said NASA spokesman George Diller.

The tight launch window allows the shuttle to conserve its limited fuel supply, some of which will be used to boost the orbit of the station, currently more than 200 miles (320 km) above Earth.

If shuttle managers cancel the Friday launch, they will attempt another flight Saturday morning.

The seven-member crew will have plenty to do during an 11-day mission. They will move 2.5 tons of supplies from the shuttle and a Russian cargo ship already docked to the station, including a toilet for the first long-term residents.

Astronaut Ed Lu and cosmonaut Yuri Malenchenko will go outside to install cables between two Russian modules including Zvezda, which will provide power, flight guidance and living quarters for the station.

The Atlantis crew will be the first to enter the Zvezda in orbit. The control module docked automatically to the station in July.

During their spacewalk Lu and Malenchenko should move as far away as 110 feet (34 m) from Atlantis, the farthest anyone has floated with tethers from a shuttle.

The mission kicks off the busiest shuttle flight schedule ever. After Atlantis returns, shuttle Discovery is expected to take off two weeks later.

Planning to double the annual number of launches, NASA scheduled nine missions over the next year, a pace the agency plans to sustain for some years in order to build and service the new space station.

Atlantis weathers lightning strikes before Friday flight
September 7, 2000
Report: Worker shortage threatens space shuttle safety
August 30, 2000
Atlantis back after successful mission
May 30, 2000
Atlantis returns to Earth; NASA calls mission success
May 29, 2000
Atlantis lifts off on fourth try
May 19, 2000

NASA: Human spaceflight
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