STS-79 Delayed
Jim Varney (jvarney@mail2.quiknet.com)
Sat, 13 Jul 1996 10:18:03 -0700
>KENNEDY SPACE CENTER SPACE SHUTTLE STATUS REPORT
>(UPDATED) FRIDAY, JULY 12, 1996 (7:07 PM EDT)
>
>KSC Public Affairs Contact: Bruce Buckingham (fax 407-867-2692)
>E-mail: Bruce.Buckingham-1@kmail.ksc.nasa.gov
>
>MISSION: STS-79 -- 4th MIR DOCKING & SPACEHAB DM
>
>VEHICLE: Atlantis/OV-104
>LOCATION: Vehicle Assembly Building
>TARGET LAUNCH DATE/TIME: mid-September
>LAUNCH WINDOW: 7-10 minutes
>TARGET KSC LANDING DATE/TIME: TBD
>MISSION DURATION: 8 days, 20 hours
>CREW SIZE: 6
>ORBITAL ALTITUDE and INCLINATION: 196-245 statute miles/51.6 degrees
>
>NOTE: Mission managers decided late today to not roll Atlantis back out to
>the pad in order to destack the vehicle from its current set of solid rocket
>boosters and re-stack it to another set. Atlantis has been in the Vehicle
>Assembly Building since Wednesday when it was taken off Pad 39A due to
>threats from Hurricane Bertha.
>
> This decision will delay Atlantis' launch until mid-September.
>
> Atlantis' boosters are being replaced because of hot gas seepage into
>the field joints of the Columbia STS-78 boosters, which was launched on June
>20.
>
> An investigation found that the most probable cause of the seepage was
>related to the use of a new adhesive and cleaning fluid.
Time to switch back to Elmer's glue? :)