SPACE SHUTTLE ATLANTIS ON THE WAY HOME, LANDING CANCELLED FRIDAY, SATURDAY, MAY 22,23, 2009

SPACE SHUTTLE ATLANTIS WAS SCHEDULED TO TOUCH DOWN ON FRIDAY IN FLORIDA BUT DUE TO STORMS IN THE AREA THE LANDING WAS SCRUBBED.
It is now rescheduled for today (SATURDAY, MAY 23, 2009 but where is not CLEAR. They always like to land at Kennedy in Florida as it is costly to have to land at Edwards Air Force Base In california.
They have to load it up on top of a huge plance and fly ti back to Florida when it lands there. We will see where it lands today. They are saying there are 3 oportunitys at bothe Edwards and Florida but the weather in Florida does not look much better than it did on Friday.















PHOTO ABOVE: (SCROLL WAY DOWN TO SEE ALL PICTURES)
Atlantis' Window on the World
Solar panels on the Hubble Space Telescope make for unique window shades in this scene photographed from the flight deck of the Earth-orbiting space shuttle Atlantis. This image was taken on flight day 5 of the 11-day mission to repair and upgrade Hubble

















Mission accomplished...Hubble repaired and deployed back into space.

From the Hubble Space Telescope Operations Control Center

Over the course of the mission’s five spacewalks, the crew added two new science instruments, repaired two others and replaced hardware that will extend the telescope's life at least through 2014. The five spacewalks lasted 36 hours and 56 minutes all together. There have been 23 spacewalks devoted to Hubble, totaling 166 hours and six minutes.

The science mission orbital verification work involving detailed checkouts, alignments and focusing of the new instruments is expected to take several months to complete.

Hubble scientists expect the first "new" images to be released in September.

STS-125 Leaves Improved Hubble Behind

The crew of Atlantis bid farewell to the Hubble Space Telescope on behalf of NASA and the rest of the world Tuesday. The telescope was released back into space at 8:57 a.m. EDT. With its upgrades, the telescope should be able to see farther into the universe than ever before.

Atlantis performed a final separation maneuver from the telescope at 9:28 a.m., which took the shuttle out of the vicinity of Hubble. The berthing mechanism to which Hubble has been attached during the mission was stored back down into the payload bay.

The rest of the day was focused on the scheduled inspection of Atlantis’ heat shield, searching for any potential damage from orbital debris. The crew used the shuttle robotic arm to operate the Orbiter Boom Sensor System (OBSS) for the inspection. The crew worked ahead of schedule and returned the OBSS to the payload bay sill Tuesday instead of Wednesday.

Mission Duration: 11 days
Landing Date: May 22
Landing Time: 10:01 a.m. EDT
Landing Site: Kennedy Space Center, Florida
Inclination/Altitude: 28.5 degrees/304 nautical miles

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Atlantis and Crew Set to Return to Earth on Friday

Space shuttle Atlantis and a crew of seven astronauts are scheduled to land on Friday following their successful 11-day mission to service NASA's Hubble Space Telescope. The first landing opportunity at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida will come at 10:01 a.m. EDT.

At Launch Pad 39B, space shuttle Endeavour is on standby in the unlikely event that a rescue mission for the Atlantis crew members would be necessary. Endeavour will be moved to Launch Pad 39A prior to its next mission, STS-127, targeted for a June launch.

Mission: STS-125
Orbiter: Atlantis
Primary Payload: Hubble Space Telescope Servicing Mission 4
Launch Date: May 11
Launch Time: 2:01 p.m. EDT
Launch Pad: 39A

Atlantis Lifts Off!
Under a dry, hot, cloud-washed Florida sky, space shuttle Atlantis roars off Launch Pad 39A at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida with its crew of seven for a rendezvous with NASA's Hubble Space Telescope. The launch was on time at 2:01 p.m. EDT. Atlantis' 11-day flight will include five spacewalks to refurbish and upgrade the telescope with state-of-the-art science instruments that will expand Hubble's capabilities and extend its operational lifespan
















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