STS-132
Encyclopedia
STS-132 was a NASA
Space Shuttle
mission, during which Space Shuttle Atlantis
docked with the International Space Station
on 16 May 2010. STS-132 was launched from the Kennedy Space Center
on 14 May 2010. The primary payload was the Russian Rassvet Mini-Research Module
, along with an Integrated Cargo Carrier-Vertical Light Deployable (ICC-VLD). Atlantis landed at the Kennedy Space Center on 26 May 2010.
STS-132 was initially scheduled to be the final flight of Atlantis, provided that the STS-335
/STS-135
Launch On Need rescue mission was not flown. However, in February 2011, NASA declared that the final mission of Atlantis and of the Space Shuttle program
, STS-135
, would be flown regardless of the funding situation.
to the International Space Station. Rassvet means "dawn" in Russian. The module was built by Russian aerospace company Energia
. Rassvet arrived at the Kennedy Space Center (KSC) aboard an Antonov 124 cargo plane on 17 December 2009 at about 13:00 EST
. After it was unloaded from the Antonov, the module was transported to an Astrotech processing bay in Cape Canaveral to undergo preparations for launch.
An airlock and radiation heat exchanger to be used for outfitting the Russian Nauka Module (to be launched in 2012), a spare elbow part of the European Robotic Arm
(ERA) and a portable work platform for science hardware for performing experiments in outer space were externally mounted on Rassvet in its launch configuration. Russian and US cargo to be delivered will also be accommodated inside the module. The volume for cargo and science inside MRM1 is 5 cubic meters. Rassvet was outfitted with ISS standard grapple fixtures that allowed the module to be unloaded from the payload bay of Atlantis using the station's robotic arm.
-Vertical Light Deployable (ICC-VLD2) pallet, holding a Ku-band Space to Ground Antenna (SGANT), the SGANT boom assembly, an Enhanced Orbital replacement Unit (ORU) Temporary Platform (EOTP) for the Canadian Dextre robotic arm extension, Video and Power Grapple fixtures (PVGF) and six new battery ORUs. The six new batteries replaced older ones on the P6 truss of the ISS. The old batteries were placed on the ICC-VLD pallet for return to Earth. The EOTP was built by MacDonald, Dettwiler and Associates
Ltd. (MDA) of Brampton, Ontario, Canada, for NASA
.
The ICC pallet is constructed of aluminum. It is approximately 8 feet (2.4 m) long, 13 feet (4 m) wide and 10 inches thick. The empty weight of the pallet is 2,645 pounds. The total weight of ICC–VLD and the ORUs is approximately 8,330 pounds. ICC-VLD return mass is 2933 kilograms (6,466.2 lb).
The ICC-VLD was berthed in the center of the shuttle's payload bay for both launch and reentry.
' airlock in the shuttle's payload bay.
A compact disk (CD) containing the digital copies of all entries submitted to NASA's Space Shuttle Program Commemorative Patch Contest was also flown aboard Atlantis. The contest was organized by the Space Shuttle Program to mark the end of the shuttle era. The winning patch was designed by Mr. Blake Dumesnil of Hamilton Sundstrand
, Johnson Space Center. A panel of NASA judges, including shuttle program manager John Shannon, Leroy Cain, and three other shuttle program managers including former astronaut John Casper
, selected the winning patch from a pool of 85 entries by NASA employees and contractors.
Seventeen handcrafted beads made by nine different artists across North America were also on board Atlantis during the STS-132 mission. NASA teamed up with Beads of Courage, Inc., an approved public charity, to bring hope and inspiration to children coping with serious illnesses through the Beads in Space project. The Beads in Space project is the brainchild of Jamie Newton, an employee at the Marshall Space Flight Center
in Huntsville, Alabama. The 17 beads weigh eight ounces and were selected after a contest organized by Beads of Courage that attracted 54 beads.
Also on board Atlantis was a 4-inch long wood sample of Sir Isaac Newton
's apple tree. The piece from the original tree that supposedly inspired Newton's theory of gravity, along with a picture of Newton, were taken into orbit by astronaut Piers Sellers. The wood is part of the collection of the Royal Society
archives in London, and was returned there following the flight.
Additionally, a flag from Clarkson University
, Potsdam, New York
, flew on board shuttle Atlantis. It was there in honor of STS-132 lead shuttle flight director, Michael L. Sarafin, who is an alumnus of the Clarkson University.
A comprehensive list of STS-132 items that were carried aboard Atlantis and their descriptions can be found in the Official Flight Kit.
NASA arranged a Tweetup
to cover the launch of the STS-132 mission. 150 people attended the event from more than 30 US states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, Belgium, the Netherlands, New Zealand and the United Kingdom. The Tweetup participants met with shuttle technicians, managers, engineers and astronauts, took a tour of the Kennedy Space Center and viewed the launch of Atlantis.
s to the ISS. At the end of the mission, Atlantis returned some of the completed experiments from the ISS.
Short-term experiments included:
, ET-136, began its 900 miles (1,448.4 km), six-day journey across the Gulf of Mexico
from NASA's Michoud Assembly Facility
in New Orleans, Louisiana, on 24 February 2010. ET-136 measured 154 feet (46.9 m) long and 28 feet (8.5 m) in diameter. The solid rocket booster retrieval ship Liberty Star
towed the ET in the enclosed barge Pegasus. After docking in the turn basin at the Kennedy Space Center, the tank was offloaded and driven to the Vehicle Assembly Building
(VAB) on 1 March 2010.
On 29 March 2010, workers attached ET-136 to its solid rocket booster
s. A crane lifted the ET into high bay No. 1 inside the VAB. The day-long process was completed around 18:00 EDT, as the tank was bolted to Atlantis' s twin solid rocket boosters.
Atlantis rolled out of its processing bay (OPF-1) around 07:00 EDT on 13 April 2010. The shuttle entered the VAB around 11:00 EDT for attachment to its external tank and solid rocket boosters. Given that this was at the time believed to be Atlantis' final rollover for a mission, the shuttle stopped for several hours en route to the VAB, allowing engineers and technicians to pose for photographs with the orbiter. The rollover occurred exactly 25 years after Atlantis first arrived at the Kennedy Space Center, after a cross-country trip from the shuttle factory in Palmdale, California
. The path to the rollover was without any incidents of major concern, with only 22 Interim Problem Reports (IPRs) noted during Atlantis flow since its return from the STS-129
mission in November 2009.
The transport canister containing the STS-132 payload arrived at Pad 39A on 15 April 2010 ahead of Atlantis rollover to the launch pad. The canister was shaped like the shuttle's 60 feet (18.3 m)-long payload bay. Packed inside it were the MRM-1 module and the cargo-carrying pallet ICC-VLD.
Space Shuttle Atlantis began its rollout to launch pad 39A at 23:31 EDT on 21 April 2010. The complete shuttle stack and mobile launch platform were secured to the launch pad's structure at 6:03 EDT on 22 April 2010. The 3.4 mi trek took 6 hours and 32 minutes to complete. The rollout was originally planned for the evening of 19 April 2010, but wet weather and thunderstorms on the Space Coast caused several delays.
STS-132's payload was installed in the shuttle's cargo bay on 25 April 2010.
Pad engineers preparing Atlantis had noticed paint peeling from shuttle's main payload, the MRM-1 module. Although the problem was declared to have no impact on the operation of MRM-1, it holds a potential threat of releasing debris on orbit. Engineers also noted MRM-1 cycled its Fire and Smoke detector self test several times. Similar events occurred during Atlantis STS-129
mission in November 2009 when Shuttle and Station crew were awakened consecutive nights by false depressurization and fire alarms that originated from the MRM-2 (Poisk) module.
An agency-wide Flight Readiness Review (FRR) was held at KSC in Florida on 5 May 2010 to discuss Atlantis' launch preparations. At the end of the review, top NASA managers made the decision to officially set the launch for 14 May 2010 at 14:20 EDT. NASA held a post news conference to brief about the results of the FRR. The briefing was broadcasted on NASA TV and was attended by NASA's Associate Administrator for Space Operations, William Gerstenmaier, Space Shuttle Program Manager John Shannon and Space Shuttle Launch Director, Michael Leinbach. Mr. Shannon mentioned that, firstly, ceramic inserts around Atlantis' windows and forward rocket pod were tested after an insert loosened during Discovery's re-entry on STS-131
, posing a potential impact threat. The inserts had been re-installed on to Atlantis using a thicker braided cord to reduce the chances of a backing out. Secondly, it was mentioned that engineers had reviewed work to confirm that all systems on Atlantis' Ku band antenna were in place. The testing had been provoked after the failure of that communication system during STS-131. Mr. Leinbach also acknowledged the skills and experience of the engineering teams and thanked the engineers who had successfully resolved hypergolic loading issues. Hypergolics are chemicals that ignite when they come in contact with each other. The propellants are used in the reaction control system that steers the shuttle in space.
A booster rocket segment that had first flown 25 years before on Atlantis' maiden flight (STS-51-J) was used to help fly STS-132. The aft dome on the left solid rocket booster that lifted off to support Atlantis' STS-132 mission first launched STS-51-J on 3 October 1985. Including STS-132, 18 of Atlantis' 32 flights were represented by the boosters' segments.
The official countdown to liftoff started on 11 May 2010 after the countdown clocks at KSC were activated at 16:00 EDT, ticking backward from the T-43 hour mark.
Program managers completed the L-2 Mission Management Team (MMT) meeting on 12 May 2010. At the end of the 18 minute long meeting management team officially cleared Atlantis for launch. NASA held a pre-launch news conference to reveal the outcomes of the MMT and to brief the press on the upcoming launch. The news conference was attended by Chair, pre-launch mission management team, Mike Moses, Mike Leinbach and STS-132 weather officer, Todd McNamara. The weather officer spoke of a favorable launch weather forecast due to a high pressure weather pattern and despite a low cloud ceiling, calling a 70 percent chance of favorable conditions at launch time. He further elaborated on the predicted weather conditions at the Transoceanic Abort Landing
(TAL) sites: Zaragoza
and Moron
in Spain, and Istres, France, in case of an emergency.
The Space Shuttle Program MMT met at 04:15 EDT on 14 May 2010 and gave a go to begin loading Atlantis ET with liquid oxygen and liquid hydrogen. The fuel tanking operation began on time at 04:55 EDT and was completed within three hours at 07:56 EDT, with replenishment fuel being added throughout the countdown.
Crew preparations for the launch day began at 05:00 EDT following an eight hour overnight sleep. An hour later they completed their final medical check ups. Crew suiting began around 10:00 EDT and the astronauts departed for the launch pad at 10:30 EDT. At around 11:00 EDT, first Commander Ham ingressed the shuttle first and strapped into his seat, followed by pilot Antonelli, Mission Specialists Bowen, Sellers, Reisman and Good in order. Inside the orbiter, all six astronauts performed checks with ground controllers to verify that communications links work properly. With all astronauts onboard, Atlantis hatch was closed and latched for the flight. Inside the White Room, the closeout crew finished their job by pressurizing the crew cabin and checking for leaks before leaving the pad.
Launch day countdown procedures went without any major problems; however, Atlantis encountered two minor issues. The Final Inspection Team looking for ice and frost buildup on the ET had spotted a small stress fracture
on an umbilical strut. Later, during the post-launch news conference, the chair of NASA's pre-launch mission management team, Mike Moses, said that this was not unusual. Engineers also resolved any concerns about a loose ball bearing
found near the shuttle's payload bay days earlier. The bearing was determined to likely be from a camera system, and was ultimately ruled out as a concern.
saying that the shuttle was "reaching the crest of its historic achievements in space". Powered flight conformed to the standard timeline, with main engine cutoff (MECO) occurring at 8 minutes and 32 seconds Mission Elapsed Time (MET). The External Tank, ET-136, separated from the shuttle 15 seconds later at 8:47 MET. A further boost from the Orbital Maneuvering System (OMS) engines was not required due to the nominal MECO, and Atlantis settled into its planned preliminary orbit. A subsequent NC-1 engine firing of about 26 seconds adjusted the orbital path of the shuttle to match that of the International Space Station (ISS), by altering the shuttle's velocity by about 41 ft/s (12.5 m/s).
NASA held a post-launch news conference with Bill Gerstenmaier, Alexey Krasnov (chief of the Piloted Programs Directorate at the Russian Federal Space Agency
), Mike Moses and Mike Leinbach. During the conference, Gerstenmaier made mention of a piece of space junk that could potentially have impacted Atlantis' planned arrival at the ISS.
More than 39,000 guests, including television host David Letterman
, ex-Apollo astronaut Buzz Aldrin
, and former NASA administrator Michael Griffin
, witnessed the launch. The Russian deputy prime minister, Sergei Ivanov
, and the head of the Russian Space Federal Agency, Anatoly Perminov
, were also present at KSC.
Once in orbit, the crew opened the shuttle's payload bay doors, activated the radiators and deployed the Ku band antenna successfully. They also completed a checkout of the orbiter's Shuttle Remote Manipulator System (SRMS). The crew was also successful in downlinking all imagery from Atlantis' umbilical well cameras, along with crew video of ET-136, for review by imagery experts in the ground. Preliminary inspections showed that ET-136 was very clean and had performed well during the ascent, with only a few foam liberation incidents visible.
It is worth noting that the launch of Atlantis on STS-132 was supposed to be its last. The mission patch depicted Atlantis flying into the sunset as she retired, and the Space Shuttle Program patches on sale at the Kennedy Space Center for the launch showed the years 1981-2010 for the program. The programme guide magazine to the launch also cited the launch as the final flight of Space Shuttle Atlantis. However, on its return Atlantis was readied as a rescue shuttle for the (at that time) two remaining missions of STS-133 and STS-134. It could be launched on need if there was a problem and if not, it would be stood down. Then, later in 2010, NASA decided to fly the previously provision STS-135 mission and chose Atlantis for the flight given that Discover and Endeavour were earmarked for STS-133 and STS-134 respectively. The funding was found and a decision was taken to fly STS-135 as the final Space Shuttle mission, with Atlantis as the orbiter. The STS-135 mission is currently scheduled for launch in July 2011, just over a year after Atlantis's launch on the STS-132 mission.
, using the shuttle's robotic arm and the Orbiter Boom Sensor System
(OBSS) to look for any signs of launch damage. Before the thermal protection checkout began, the crew encountered a problem with the Laser Dynamic Range Imager (LDRI) and the Intensified TV Camera (ITVC), due to a snagged cable in that system's pan and tilt unit. As a result, Mission Control decided to switch to the less-capable backup sensor system: sensor package 2, a laser camera and a digital camera mounted near the end of the OBSS. Sensor package 2 required an additional light source (such as daylight), had a resolution of a few millimeters and could scan at about 2.5 inches per second. The crew followed "late inspection" procedures for surveying, and images of the right wing, the nose cap and much of the left wing were sent to the ground for detailed analysis.
Commander Kenneth Ham installed the center-line camera in the Orbiter Docking System (ODS) to help him during Atlantis' approach to the ISS. Down on the shuttle's middeck, Good and Bowen spent several hours checking out spacesuits and preparing them for transfer to the station. Reisman spent much of his day working with Antonelli and Ham on the TPS survey. He also assisted with the suit and spacewalk equipment checkouts. The crew furthermore performed the ODS ring extension that would connect the shuttle's docking port to the station's Harmony module. The last portion of the crew's day was spent preparing and checking out all of the tools to be used during the rendezvous.
Two course correction burns were also performed on Flight Day 2. The first 10-second burn, dubbed NC-2, was performed using the right-hand OMS engine, changing the shuttle's speed by 8 ft/s (2.4 m/s). The burn raised both the apogee and perigee
of the shuttle's orbit by 1 miles (1.6 km). Atlantis' reaction control jets were again fired for a second time to execute the 8-second NC-3 burn, which changed the shuttle's velocity by about 2 ft/s (0.6096 m/s).
Meanwhile, Mission Control managers determined that the ISS would not need an avoidance maneuver to avoid a piece of orbital debris. Updated tracking information showed that the ISS and the debris would not pass close enough the following day to require any action.
' velocity by 132 feet per second, and placed the shuttle into a new 212-by-145 miles (233.4 km) orbit. A 63-second circularization burn, known as NC4, boosted Atlantis into a 214-by-210 miles (338 km) orbit. At 11:40 UTC, with about 9 miles (14.5 km) separating the shuttle and the ISS, commander Ken Ham performed the final 12-second terminal initiation (TI) burn, firing the left OMS engine of Atlantis.
By 13:26 UTC, with Ken Ham flying the shuttle from the aft flight deck, Atlantis positioned itself beneath the ISS and began the 360-degree flip rendezvous pitch maneuver (RPM). As the shuttle's underside rotated into view, three ISS crew members – Oleg Kotov using a camera with a 400mm lens, and Timothy Creamer and Soichi Noguchi using two 800mm-lens cameras – took 398 photographs of Atlantis' belly, as part of post-launch inspections of the thermal protection system.
Atlantis docked with the ISS Pressurized Mating Adapter-2 at 14:28 UTC as the two orbited 220 miles (354.1 km) over the South Pacific Ocean. After docking, the ISS was reoriented by the small vernier thrusters on Atlantis to minimize the risk of Micro-Meteoroid Orbital Debris (MMOD) impacts upon the shuttle. A series of leak checks were done on both sides of the hatch by the shuttle and station crews, before the hatches were opened at 16:18 UTC. After a brief welcoming ceremony by the station crew, Atlantis astronauts received the standard station safety briefing. The crew then got to work with initial transfers of equipment and supplies. Spacesuits were among the first items to go to the ISS. Station crew member Noguchi also transferred high-priority JAXA experiments to the Kibo module.
Sellers and Expedition 23
/24
astronaut Tracy Caldwell Dyson got to work on their joint task to relocate the ICC-VLD cargo pallet. The duo used the station's robotic arm to transfer the pallet from Atlantis to the station's mobile base system to prepare for the spacewalks.
In preparation for the following day's spacewalk, all Atlantis' crew members gathered for an hour-long spacewalk procedure review. Mission Specialists Reisman and Bowen spent the night in the Quest airlock as part of the overnight campout procedure to help them get prepared for the spacewalk. The crewlock was depressurized from 14.7 to 10.2 psi. The depressurization was required to avoid the formation of nitrogen
bubbles in the astronauts' blood, which could result in decompression sickness
.
informed the shuttle crew that no detailed flight inspection would be required on the next day. However, the crew were requested to utilize that time to do inspections on various sections of Atlantis that were not inspected on flight day 2.
Flight day 4 saw Mission Specialists Garret Reisman and Steve Bowen perform the first of three planned spacewalks. The pair installed a spare Space To Ground Antenna (SGANT), a new enhanced tool platform for the Special Purpose Dexterous Manipulator (SPDM, also known as Dextre) and released torque on the six new batteries for the Port 6 (P6) truss segment.
Expedition 23 Flight Engineer Creamer helped the duo with their suit-up preparations. Mike Good joined STS-132 Pilot Antonelli, the intravehicular officer, to assist during the spacewalk. Mission Specialist Sellers and station Flight Engineer Caldwell Dyson operated the robotic arm. Throughout EVA 1, Commander Ken Ham oversaw the extravehicular activities.
During the spacewalk, several problems were encountered, the first of which was during installation of the SGANT. A slight gap was observed between the antenna dish and its mounting pole. The spacewalkers loosened the bolts and used a higher torque setting, which managed to close the gap to a smaller width. The launch locks were left on the SGANT to allow engineers on the ground to determine if the gap was acceptable, or if more troubleshooting would be needed. The second problem occurred during the installation of the SGANT, and was related to the Command and Control (CNC) computers. During installation, when Steve Bowen removed a cover from a connector, the prime CNC computer detected an error and shut down. The cap was a special cap which allowed the circuit for that connector to be closed, so when it was opened the sensor detected an error. The shut down of the CNC caused a 2-minute loss of communications. The safeing of the computer also stopped the Canadarm2 for a reconfiguration of the cameras being used during the spacewalk by both the robotic arm operators and observers on the ground.
The spacewalk ended at 19:19 UTC, after Reisman and Bowen made an inventory of the tools they brought with them and made their way back into the Quest airlock. STS-132's EVA 1 was the 237th conducted by U.S. astronauts, the second for Reisman and the fourth for Bowen. It was also the 144th in support of ISS assembly and maintenance. For EVA 1, lead spacewalker Reisman had a spacesuit with no stripes. Bowen' spacesuit was marked with a red stripe.
The shuttle's robotic arm also successfully grappled the MRM-1 module in Atlantis' cargo bay in preparation for its berthing to the Zarya service module the following day.
' robotic arm to unberth MRM-1 from the shuttle's payload bay at 09:49 UTC, and handed it off to the station's Canadarm2 at 10:14 UTC. Mission Specialists Garrett Reisman and Piers Sellers, working from inside the station's Cupola, then maneuvered the Canadarm2 arm to deliver MRM-1 to its new position, the Earth-facing port of the Zarya service module. The docking occurred at 12:20 UTC when the shuttle-station stack was flying above Argentina. Following the successful docking, Sellers reported to Mission Control that, during the docking, he did not see the expected "capture 1" confirmation signal appear on his laptop, to which CAPCOM Steve Swanson replied "And station, that error's expected. The reason you didn't get 'contact 1' is because Garrett did too good of a job flying. He went right down the middle and got a hole in one."
Expedition 23 Commander Oleg Kotov also monitored the activities from the Russian segment, as the MRM-1 began its automated docking sequence for the final attachment to the Zarya module. The berthing marked the first time that the Russian automated docking system has been used along with the station's robotic arm.
At 17:20 UTC, shuttle crew members Ham, Reisman, Sellers, along with station crew members Kotov, Skvortsov and Caldwell Dyson, gathered in the space station's Harmony module to talk with reporters from MSNBC
, Fox News and CNN
. The two crews answered questions related to their stay in orbit, medical experiments being conducted on the ISS, spacewalking experiences and the Gulf of Mexico oil spill
.
After midday, Reisman and Sellers used Canadarm2 to unberth the OBSS from the sill of Atlantis' cargo bay and handed it off to the shuttle's robotic arm, operated by Ham and Antonelli.
Mission Specialists Bowen and Good prepared for next day's EVA 2, configuring their tools and preparing their spacesuits. At the end of the workday, Atlantis' crew, along with three station crew members, met for an hour-long spacewalk procedure review.
At 21:45 UTC, Good and Bowen began their campout inside the Quest airlock, with pressure reduced to 10.2 psi to reduce the risk of decompression sickness
.
File:S132e008114.jpg|Canadarm2 transfers MRM-1 to the Earth-facing port of the Zarya module.
Image:Iss023e047527.jpg|Canadarm2 attaches MRM-1 to the Zarya module.
Image:STS132_Reisman_inside_Cupola.jpg|Garrett Reisman inside the Cupola.
Lead spacewalker Bowen's first task was to remove a cable snag in the OBSS's pan and tilt mechanism. Bowen looped a tie wrap on two cables to relieve the snag and completed the task in less than 30 minutes, while Good began work with the batteries. Although the initial plan was to replace three batteries, the two astronauts managed to replace an additional fourth battery during EVA 2. The batteries Bowen and Good replaced had originally been launched in November 2000. After the battery work and cleanup of the area, Bowen and Good moved on to the new backup Ku band antenna on the Z1 truss. They tightened bolts holding the antenna's dish to its boom, closing a gap left there after EVA 1. Good performed a wiggle test and confirmed that two spacewalkers did not see any signs of motion in the antenna-mast interface. They then removed the antenna's launch locks, leaving the antenna ready to operate.
During EVA 2, commander Ken Ham provided photo and television support, and pilot Tony Antonelli served as the spacewalk choreographer. ISS crew member Tracy Caldwell Dyson also assisted with spacewalk preparations. EVA 2 marked the 238th conducted by U.S. astronauts, the fifth for Bowen and the third for Good. It was also the 145th in support of International Space Station assembly and maintenance.
At 12:25 UTC, shuttle crew members Ken Ham, Tony Antonelli, Piers Sellers, and ISS flight engineer Tracy Caldwell Dyson, talked with the Associated Press
, Fox News Radio
, and CBS News
. Ham also joined in with past and present members of Mission Control to recognize Lonnie J. Schmitt as the first flight controller to reach his 100th shuttle mission.
During the day, Ham, Antonelli and Sellers transferred equipment, supplies and experiments between Atlantis and the ISS. Mission Specialists Mike Good and Garrett Reisman prepared for EVA 3, configuring tools and preparing suits and the Quest airlock. Ham, Antonelli and Sellers also joined them to review the procedures. As part of the campout procedure, the two spacewalkers spent the night in the Quest airlock, with its air pressure reduced to 10.2 psi.
Image:STS132_fd7_ISS_view1.jpg|View of a section of ISS as photographed by a STS-132 crew member.
Image:STS132_Reisman_inside_Quest_Airlock.jpg|Garrett Reisman inside the Quest airlock.
Image:Atlantis Aft While Docked With ISS STS-132.jpg|The aft section of Atlantis while docked with the Station.
jumpers on the P4/P5 truss segment, before continuing on out to the end of the P6 truss. Once at the P6 truss, Good and Reisman completed the battery swap by removing and replacing the final two batteries and retrieving the temporarily stowed old battery on the truss. Once that task was complete, Good and Reisman moved to Atlantis' s payload bay, where they removed a grapple fixture and took it to the Quest airlock. The pair then moved on to fix some insulation on the Dextre robot, and stowed some tools in an external toolbox on the Z1 truss. Pilot Tony Antonelli choreographed the spacewalk from inside the shuttle.
While the spacewalk was going on, Commander Ken Ham and Mission Specialist Steve Bowen completed some more of the transfer work for the mission.
' payload bay, having completed its tasks for this mission. The Canadarm2 was used to return the ICC-VLD to the bay, and was operated by Mission Specialists Piers Sellers and Garrett Reisman and space station flight engineer Tracy Caldwell Dyson
. The ICC-VLD re-installation operation began just after 4:30 am EDT, and was completed at 5:50 am EDT. The shuttle crew and Caldwell Dyson also answered some questions from elementary- and middle-school students from around the U.S. Students from 12 NASA Explorer Schools had submitted their questions earlier by video. The combined shuttle-station crew also shared a joint meal before the shuttle crew enjoyed two and a half hours of off-duty time starting at 11:05 am EDT.
crews awoke to begin the final hours of the joint docked mission. The crews completed the final time-sensitive transfers of the mission, which included scientific research samples that need to be kept cold. Once these transfers were completed, the two crews held a joint crew news conference and took a crew photo, and later, prior to hatch closure, held a mutual farewell ceremony. After the ceremony, the hatches between Atlantis and the International Space Station were closed, and a leak check was performed to ensure all the hatches were sealed properly. The shuttle undocked from the ISS at 15:22 UTC, a little more than 2 hours after the hatches were closed. At the time of the undocking, the two spacecraft were orbiting 220 miles (354.1 km) above the Southern Ocean
southwest of Perth, Australia
. The shuttle, guided by pilot Tony Antonelli
, backed away from the ISS to a distance of about 400 feet (121.9 m), at which time Antonelli began conducting a fly-around of the space station, so that crew members on both the ISS and shuttle could get photos of both vehicles. Once the fly-around was complete, the shuttle crew conducted two separation burns to move Atlantis away from the space station.
File:STS132_ISS_Shuttle_Photo1.jpg|STS-132 (blue shirts) and Expedition 23 crew members pose for a group portrait on the ISS.
File:STS132_Ham_Kotov.jpg|Ham and Kotov shake hands at the farewell ceremony.
File:STS132_Atlantis_Undocking1.jpg|Atlantis separates from the ISS after undocking.
File:STS132_Atlantis_undocking2.jpg|Departing Atlantis, as photographed by a station crew member.
' astronauts devoted flight day 12 to preparing for the shuttle's landing. The crew executed standard day-before-landing activities. Commander Ham, Pilot Antonelli and Mission Specialist Good began the flight control system (FCS) hot-fire checkout at about 1:40 am EDT, operating the rudder and flaps that would control Atlantis' flight through the atmosphere to the KSC runway. That complete, Ham and Antonelli fired each of the shuttle's 44 attitude control thrusters, which were designed to orient Atlantis in space as it descended from orbit and through the upper atmosphere. Both these tests were completed successfully.
All STS-132 crew members worked at various times throughout the day to stow items in the cabin to prepare for landing. They also gathered for a 30-minute deorbit briefing at 5:40 am EDT. Immediately afterward, the crew talked with representatives of the Colbert Report, ABC Radio Network, and WEWS-TV
of Cleveland, Ohio
.
Late in the day, Mission Specialists Reisman and Sellers stowed the Ku band antenna in Atlantis' cargo bay.
, and terminated at 11:45. At an altitude of 400000 feet (121,920 m) and a speed of Mach
25, Atlantis began re-entry at 12:16. At about 12:23 UTC, Atlantis began its s-rolls, to bleed off speed and energy during re-entry. At about 12:29, the shuttle was more than 40 miles (64.4 km) above the Earth and 2000 miles (3,218.7 km) from KSC, traveling at Mach 22. At 12:34, Atlantis was about 180000 feet (54,864 m) up, traveling at about 9,200 mph, and was 600 miles (965.6 km) from the runway. At about the same time, the shuttle was experiencing maximum re-entry heating conditions, peaking at about 2,900 degrees Fahrenheit
, lasting about two minutes. At 12:39, long-range cameras at KSC spotted the shuttle gliding towards the runway at an altitude of 16 miles (25.7 km) and a distance of 77 miles (123.9 km) from KSC. At 12:44, commander Ken Ham took manual control of the orbiter for landing as it glided below the 50000 feet (15,240 m) mark.
Atlantis landed on its main wheels on runway 33 of Kennedy Space Center's Shuttle Landing Facility at 08:48:11 EDT (12:48:11 UTC). The nose wheel touched down 10 seconds later, at 08:48:21 EDT (12:48:11 UTC), with the vehicle coming to a stop at 08:49:18 EDT (12:49:18 UTC). The entire mission lasted 11 days, 18 hours, 29 minutes, and 9 seconds, during which time the space shuttle traveled a total of 7724851 kilometres (4,800,011.8 mi).
The six astronauts headed to Houston on 27 May. A welcome ceremony for the crew was held at 5 pm EDT that same day at Ellington Field's NASA Hangar 276.
was designed by NASA artist Sean Collins, working with astronaut Garrett Reisman. The patch shows Atlantis flying towards a sunset landing, with the names of the STS-132 astronauts around the border.
At the time the note was written, STS-132 was indeed the last planned mission of Atlantis. However, one further mission was ultimately approved for the shuttle: STS-135
, which will be the last flight of both Atlantis and the Space Shuttle program
.
.
Each track is specially chosen, often by the astronauts' families, and usually has a special meaning to an individual member of the crew, or is applicable to their daily activities.
NASA
The National Aeronautics and Space Administration is the agency of the United States government that is responsible for the nation's civilian space program and for aeronautics and aerospace research...
Space Shuttle
Space Shuttle
The Space Shuttle was a manned orbital rocket and spacecraft system operated by NASA on 135 missions from 1981 to 2011. The system combined rocket launch, orbital spacecraft, and re-entry spaceplane with modular add-ons...
mission, during which Space Shuttle Atlantis
Space Shuttle Atlantis
The Space Shuttle Atlantis is a retired Space Shuttle orbiter in the Space Shuttle fleet belonging to the National Aeronautics and Space Administration , the spaceflight and space exploration agency of the United States...
docked with the International Space Station
International Space Station
The International Space Station is a habitable, artificial satellite in low Earth orbit. The ISS follows the Salyut, Almaz, Cosmos, Skylab, and Mir space stations, as the 11th space station launched, not including the Genesis I and II prototypes...
on 16 May 2010. STS-132 was launched from the Kennedy Space Center
Kennedy Space Center
The John F. Kennedy Space Center is the NASA installation that has been the launch site for every United States human space flight since 1968. Although such flights are currently on hiatus, KSC continues to manage and operate unmanned rocket launch facilities for America's civilian space program...
on 14 May 2010. The primary payload was the Russian Rassvet Mini-Research Module
Rassvet (ISS module)
Rassvet , also known as the Mini-Research Module 1 and formerly known as the Docking Cargo Module , is a component of the International Space Station . The module's design is similar to the Mir Docking Module launched on STS-74 in 1995. Rassvet is primarily used for cargo storage and as a docking...
, along with an Integrated Cargo Carrier-Vertical Light Deployable (ICC-VLD). Atlantis landed at the Kennedy Space Center on 26 May 2010.
STS-132 was initially scheduled to be the final flight of Atlantis, provided that the STS-335
STS-3xx
Space Shuttle missions designated STS-3xx were rescue missions which would have been mounted to rescue the crew of a Space Shuttle if their vehicle was damaged and deemed unable to make a successful reentry...
/STS-135
STS-135
STS-135 was the final mission of the American Space Shuttle program. It used the orbiter Atlantis and hardware originally processed for the STS-335 contingency mission, which was not flown. STS-135 launched on 8 July and was originally scheduled to land on 20 July 2011, but the mission was...
Launch On Need rescue mission was not flown. However, in February 2011, NASA declared that the final mission of Atlantis and of the Space Shuttle program
Space Shuttle program
NASA's Space Shuttle program, officially called Space Transportation System , was the United States government's manned launch vehicle program from 1981 to 2011...
, STS-135
STS-135
STS-135 was the final mission of the American Space Shuttle program. It used the orbiter Atlantis and hardware originally processed for the STS-335 contingency mission, which was not flown. STS-135 launched on 8 July and was originally scheduled to land on 20 July 2011, but the mission was...
, would be flown regardless of the funding situation.
Crew
Crew seat assignments
| Seat | Launch | Landing | Seats 1–4 are on the Flight Deck. Seats 5–7 are on the Middeck. |
|---|---|---|---|
| S1 | Kenneth Ham | Kenneth Ham | |
| S2 | Dominic Antonelli | Dominic Antonelli | |
| S3 | Garrett Reisman | Piers Sellers | |
| S4 | Michael Good | Michael Good | |
| S5 | Stephen Bowen | Stephen Bowen | |
| S6 | Piers Sellers | Garrett Reisman |
Mission parameters
- MassMassMass can be defined as a quantitive measure of the resistance an object has to change in its velocity.In physics, mass commonly refers to any of the following three properties of matter, which have been shown experimentally to be equivalent:...
: - Shuttle liftoff weight: 4519769 lbs
- Orbiter/payload liftoff weight: 263100 lbs
- Orbiter/payload landing weight: 209491 lbs
- Payload weight: 26615 lbs
- PerigeePerigeePerigee is the point at which an object makes its closest approach to the Earth.. Often the term is used in a broader sense to define the point in an orbit where the orbiting body is closest to the body it orbits. The opposite is the apogee, the farthest or highest point.The Greek prefix "peri"...
: 208 miles (334.7 km) - Apogee: 223 miles (358.9 km)
- InclinationInclinationInclination in general is the angle between a reference plane and another plane or axis of direction.-Orbits:The inclination is one of the six orbital parameters describing the shape and orientation of a celestial orbit...
: 51.6° - PeriodOrbital periodThe orbital period is the time taken for a given object to make one complete orbit about another object.When mentioned without further qualification in astronomy this refers to the sidereal period of an astronomical object, which is calculated with respect to the stars.There are several kinds of...
: 91 min
Mission payload
| Location | Cargo | Mass |
|---|---|---|
| Bays 1–2 | Orbiter Docking System EMU Extravehicular Mobility Unit The Space Shuttle/International Space Station Extravehicular Mobility Unit is an independent anthropomorphic system that provides environmental protection, mobility, life support, and communications for a Space Shuttle or International Space Station crew member to perform extra-vehicular activity... 3004 / EMU 3011 / EMU 3018 |
1800 kilograms (3,968.3 lb) ~390 kilograms (859.8 lb) |
| Bay 3P | Shuttle Power Distribution Unit (SPDU) |
~17 kilograms (37.5 lb) |
| Bay 5P | Power & Data Grapple Fixture (PDGF) |
~71 kilograms (156.5 lb) |
| Bays 6–7 | ICC-VLD carrier −6 Battery ORUs -SGANT antenna -EOTP platform |
1913 kilograms (4,217.4 lb) 1020 kilograms (2,248.7 lb) 293 kilograms (646 lb) 191 kilograms (421.1 lb) |
| Bay 10P | ROEU 755 umbilical | 90 kilograms (198.4 lb) |
| Bays 9–13 | Rassvet Mini-Research Module 1 Rassvet (ISS module) Rassvet , also known as the Mini-Research Module 1 and formerly known as the Docking Cargo Module , is a component of the International Space Station . The module's design is similar to the Mir Docking Module launched on STS-74 in 1995. Rassvet is primarily used for cargo storage and as a docking... -Nauka Airlock -Nauka Radiator -ERA Elbow Joint European Robotic Arm The European Robotic Arm is a robotic arm to be attached to the Russian Segment of the International Space Station. It will be the first robot arm able to work on the Russian space station segments, and will supplement the two Russian Strela cargo cranes that are already installed on the Pirs... -ERA Work Platform |
6295 kilograms (13,878.1 lb) 900 kilograms (1,984.2 lb) 570 kilograms (1,256.6 lb) 150 kilograms (330.7 lb) 100 kilograms (220.5 lb) |
| Starboard Sill | Orbiter Boom Sensor System Orbiter Boom Sensor System The Orbiter Boom Sensor System is a 50-foot boom carried on board NASA's Space Shuttles. The boom can be grappled by the Canadarm and serves as an extension of the arm, doubling its length to a combined total of 100 feet... |
382 kilograms (842.2 lb) |
| Port Sill | Canadarm | 410 kilograms (903.9 lb) |
| Total: | 14592 kilograms (32,169.9 lb) |
Mini-Research Module 1 (MRM 1)
STS-132 carried the Russian Rassvet Mini-Research Module 1Rassvet (ISS module)
Rassvet , also known as the Mini-Research Module 1 and formerly known as the Docking Cargo Module , is a component of the International Space Station . The module's design is similar to the Mir Docking Module launched on STS-74 in 1995. Rassvet is primarily used for cargo storage and as a docking...
to the International Space Station. Rassvet means "dawn" in Russian. The module was built by Russian aerospace company Energia
S.P. Korolev Rocket and Space Corporation Energia
OAO S.P. Korolev Rocket and Space Corporation Energia , also known as RKK Energiya, is a Russian manufacturer of spacecraft and space station components...
. Rassvet arrived at the Kennedy Space Center (KSC) aboard an Antonov 124 cargo plane on 17 December 2009 at about 13:00 EST
EST
-Places:* Est , a town in Gelderland* Estonia, a nation in northern Europe** Estonian language, the Estonian language in ISO 639.2 or ISO 639–3 language codes* Est Region , one of Burkina Faso's 13 administrative regions...
. After it was unloaded from the Antonov, the module was transported to an Astrotech processing bay in Cape Canaveral to undergo preparations for launch.
An airlock and radiation heat exchanger to be used for outfitting the Russian Nauka Module (to be launched in 2012), a spare elbow part of the European Robotic Arm
European Robotic Arm
The European Robotic Arm is a robotic arm to be attached to the Russian Segment of the International Space Station. It will be the first robot arm able to work on the Russian space station segments, and will supplement the two Russian Strela cargo cranes that are already installed on the Pirs...
(ERA) and a portable work platform for science hardware for performing experiments in outer space were externally mounted on Rassvet in its launch configuration. Russian and US cargo to be delivered will also be accommodated inside the module. The volume for cargo and science inside MRM1 is 5 cubic meters. Rassvet was outfitted with ISS standard grapple fixtures that allowed the module to be unloaded from the payload bay of Atlantis using the station's robotic arm.
Integrated Cargo Carrier-Vertical Light Deployable (ICC-VLD2)
Also on board Atlantis was the Integrated Cargo CarrierIntegrated cargo carrier
Integrated Cargo Carriers were unpressurized flat bed pallet and keel yoke assemblies carried in the Space Shuttle payload bay, but were never removed during flight. Note that External Stowage Platforms 1 thru 3 and ExPRESS Logistics Carriers 1 thru 4 were of similar construction but were intended...
-Vertical Light Deployable (ICC-VLD2) pallet, holding a Ku-band Space to Ground Antenna (SGANT), the SGANT boom assembly, an Enhanced Orbital replacement Unit (ORU) Temporary Platform (EOTP) for the Canadian Dextre robotic arm extension, Video and Power Grapple fixtures (PVGF) and six new battery ORUs. The six new batteries replaced older ones on the P6 truss of the ISS. The old batteries were placed on the ICC-VLD pallet for return to Earth. The EOTP was built by MacDonald, Dettwiler and Associates
MacDonald Dettwiler
MacDonald, Dettwiler and Associates Ltd. is a Richmond, British Columbia-based Canadian aerospace, information services and products company, employing over 3000 people throughout Canada, the United States and the United Kingdom, under the MDA brand name....
Ltd. (MDA) of Brampton, Ontario, Canada, for NASA
NASA
The National Aeronautics and Space Administration is the agency of the United States government that is responsible for the nation's civilian space program and for aeronautics and aerospace research...
.
The ICC pallet is constructed of aluminum. It is approximately 8 feet (2.4 m) long, 13 feet (4 m) wide and 10 inches thick. The empty weight of the pallet is 2,645 pounds. The total weight of ICC–VLD and the ORUs is approximately 8,330 pounds. ICC-VLD return mass is 2933 kilograms (6,466.2 lb).
The ICC-VLD was berthed in the center of the shuttle's payload bay for both launch and reentry.
Other items
In addition to the standard Official Flight Kit (OFK) flown inside a locker on the mid-deck, two Light Weight Tool Stowage Assemblies were modified to fly memorabilia and then were stowed to the left and right of AtlantisA compact disk (CD) containing the digital copies of all entries submitted to NASA's Space Shuttle Program Commemorative Patch Contest was also flown aboard Atlantis. The contest was organized by the Space Shuttle Program to mark the end of the shuttle era. The winning patch was designed by Mr. Blake Dumesnil of Hamilton Sundstrand
Hamilton Sundstrand
Hamilton Sundstrand, is a global corporation that manufactures and supports aerospace and industrial products for worldwide markets. It was formed from the merger of Hamilton Standard and Sundstrand Corporation in 1999. A subsidiary of United Technologies Corporation, HS is headquartered in Windsor...
, Johnson Space Center. A panel of NASA judges, including shuttle program manager John Shannon, Leroy Cain, and three other shuttle program managers including former astronaut John Casper
John Casper
John Howard Casper is an American astronaut. Although born in South Carolina, he considers Gainesville, Georgia to be his hometown. He was active in the Boy Scouts of America where he achieved its second highest rank, Life Scout...
, selected the winning patch from a pool of 85 entries by NASA employees and contractors.
Seventeen handcrafted beads made by nine different artists across North America were also on board Atlantis during the STS-132 mission. NASA teamed up with Beads of Courage, Inc., an approved public charity, to bring hope and inspiration to children coping with serious illnesses through the Beads in Space project. The Beads in Space project is the brainchild of Jamie Newton, an employee at the Marshall Space Flight Center
Marshall Space Flight Center
The George C. Marshall Space Flight Center is the U.S. government's civilian rocketry and spacecraft propulsion research center. The largest center of NASA, MSFC's first mission was developing the Saturn launch vehicles for the Apollo moon program...
in Huntsville, Alabama. The 17 beads weigh eight ounces and were selected after a contest organized by Beads of Courage that attracted 54 beads.
Also on board Atlantis was a 4-inch long wood sample of Sir Isaac Newton
Isaac Newton
Sir Isaac Newton PRS was an English physicist, mathematician, astronomer, natural philosopher, alchemist, and theologian, who has been "considered by many to be the greatest and most influential scientist who ever lived."...
's apple tree. The piece from the original tree that supposedly inspired Newton's theory of gravity, along with a picture of Newton, were taken into orbit by astronaut Piers Sellers. The wood is part of the collection of the Royal Society
Royal Society
The Royal Society of London for Improving Natural Knowledge, known simply as the Royal Society, is a learned society for science, and is possibly the oldest such society in existence. Founded in November 1660, it was granted a Royal Charter by King Charles II as the "Royal Society of London"...
archives in London, and was returned there following the flight.
Additionally, a flag from Clarkson University
Clarkson University
-The Clarkson School:The Clarkson School, a special division of Clarkson University, was founded in 1978 as a unique educational opportunity. The School offers students an early entrance opportunity into college, replacing the typical senior year of high school with a year of college...
, Potsdam, New York
Potsdam, New York
Potsdam, New York relates to two locations in Saint Lawrence County, New York:*Potsdam , New York*Potsdam , New York, in the town of Potsdam; site of the State University of New York at Potsdam...
, flew on board shuttle Atlantis. It was there in honor of STS-132 lead shuttle flight director, Michael L. Sarafin, who is an alumnus of the Clarkson University.
A comprehensive list of STS-132 items that were carried aboard Atlantis and their descriptions can be found in the Official Flight Kit.
Mission background and milestones
The mission marked:- 163rd NASA manned space flight
- 132nd shuttle mission since STS-1STS-1STS-1 was the first orbital flight of NASA's Space Shuttle program. Space Shuttle Columbia launched on 12 April 1981, and returned to Earth on 14 April, having orbited the Earth 37 times during the 54.5-hour mission. It was the first American manned space flight since the Apollo-Soyuz Test Project...
- 32nd flight of Atlantis
- 34th shuttle mission to the ISS
- 11th flight of Atlantis to the ISS
- 3rd shuttle flight in 2010
- 107th post-ChallengerSpace Shuttle Challenger disasterThe Space Shuttle Challenger disaster occurred on January 28, 1986, when Space Shuttle Challenger broke apart 73 seconds into its flight, leading to the deaths of its seven crew members. The spacecraft disintegrated over the Atlantic Ocean, off the coast of central Florida at 11:38 am EST...
mission - 19th post-ColumbiaSpace Shuttle Columbia disasterThe Space Shuttle Columbia disaster occurred on February 1, 2003, when shortly before it was scheduled to conclude its 28th mission, STS-107, the Space Shuttle Columbia disintegrated over Texas and Louisiana during re-entry into the Earth's atmosphere, resulting in the death of all seven crew members...
mission
NASA arranged a Tweetup
NASA Tweetup
NASA has hosted many events for its Twitter enthusiasts called NASA Tweetups. These events provide guests with VIP access to NASA facilities and speakers with the goal of leveraging participants' social networks to further the outreach requirements of NASA as laid out in the National Aeronautics...
to cover the launch of the STS-132 mission. 150 people attended the event from more than 30 US states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, Belgium, the Netherlands, New Zealand and the United Kingdom. The Tweetup participants met with shuttle technicians, managers, engineers and astronauts, took a tour of the Kennedy Space Center and viewed the launch of Atlantis.
Mission experiments
Atlantis crew worked with several short-term experiments during their mission. The shuttle transported new long-term experimentLong-term experiment
A long-term experiment is an experimental procedure that runs through a long period of time, in order to test a hypothesis or observe a phenomenon that takes place at an extremely slow rate....
s to the ISS. At the end of the mission, Atlantis returned some of the completed experiments from the ISS.
Short-term experiments included:
- Micro-2: Researchers from Rensselaer Polytechnic InstituteRensselaer Polytechnic InstituteStephen Van Rensselaer established the Rensselaer School on November 5, 1824 with a letter to the Rev. Dr. Samuel Blatchford, in which van Rensselaer asked Blatchford to serve as the first president. Within the letter he set down several orders of business. He appointed Amos Eaton as the school's...
sent microorganisms to investigate new ways of preventing the formation and spread of clusters of bacteria (biofilms), that could pose a threat to the health of astronauts. After the shuttle landed, the resulting biofilms were examined to see how their growth and development were impacted by microgravity. - Hypersole: Hypersole is a Canadian research project that plans to investigate sudden changes in skin sensitivity experienced by some astronauts in space. The researchers hope to understand more about how the skin sensitivity of the soles of the feet affect the human balance. Three STS-132 crew members participated in identical trials before the launch and immediately upon landing. The trials were also repeated on five astronauts scheduled to fly on the STS-133STS-133STS-133 was the 133rd mission in NASA's Space Shuttle program; during the mission, Space Shuttle Discovery docked with the International Space Station. It was Discoverys 39th and final mission. The mission launched on 24 February 2011, and landed on 9 March 2011...
and STS-134STS-134STS-134 was the penultimate mission of NASA's Space Shuttle program. The mission marked the 25th and final flight of . This flight delivered the Alpha Magnetic Spectrometer and an ExPRESS Logistics Carrier to the International Space Station. Mark Kelly served as the mission commander...
missions. Project findings are expected to add significant knowledge to existing studies of aging and to be beneficial for the elderly and people who suffer from balance problems. - Shuttle Ionospheric Modification with Pulsed Localized Exhaust Experiments (SIMPLEX) – STS-132 crew performed the SIMPLEX burn on Flight Day 12. The experiment investigates plasma turbulence driven by shuttle exhaust in the ionosphere using ground-based radars. The processes by which chemical releases can produce plasma turbulence are quantified with the SIMPLEX measurements. Plasma turbulence can affect military navigation and communications using radio systems. They can also be used to promote communications by opening radio channels at abnormally high frequencies.
Shuttle processing
The mission's external tankSpace Shuttle external tank
A Space Shuttle External Tank is the component of the Space Shuttle launch vehicle that contains the liquid hydrogen fuel and liquid oxygen oxidizer. During lift-off and ascent it supplies the fuel and oxidizer under pressure to the three Space Shuttle Main Engines in the orbiter...
, ET-136, began its 900 miles (1,448.4 km), six-day journey across the Gulf of Mexico
Gulf of Mexico
The Gulf of Mexico is a partially landlocked ocean basin largely surrounded by the North American continent and the island of Cuba. It is bounded on the northeast, north and northwest by the Gulf Coast of the United States, on the southwest and south by Mexico, and on the southeast by Cuba. In...
from NASA's Michoud Assembly Facility
Michoud Assembly Facility
The Michoud Assembly Facility is an 832-acre site owned by NASA and located in New Orleans East, a large district within the city of New Orleans, Louisiana, United States. Organizationally, it is part of NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center...
in New Orleans, Louisiana, on 24 February 2010. ET-136 measured 154 feet (46.9 m) long and 28 feet (8.5 m) in diameter. The solid rocket booster retrieval ship Liberty Star
MV Liberty Star
-References:*-External links:*...
towed the ET in the enclosed barge Pegasus. After docking in the turn basin at the Kennedy Space Center, the tank was offloaded and driven to the Vehicle Assembly Building
Vehicle Assembly Building
The Vehicle Assembly Building, or VAB, at NASA's Kennedy Space Center was used to assemble and house American manned launch vehicles from 1968-2011. It is the fourth largest building in the world by volume...
(VAB) on 1 March 2010.
On 29 March 2010, workers attached ET-136 to its solid rocket booster
Solid rocket booster
Solid rocket boosters or Solid Rocket Motors, SRM, are used to provide thrust in spacecraft launches from the launchpad up to burnout of the SRBs. Many launch vehicles include SRBs, including the Ariane 5, Atlas V , and the NASA Space Shuttle...
s. A crane lifted the ET into high bay No. 1 inside the VAB. The day-long process was completed around 18:00 EDT, as the tank was bolted to Atlantis
Atlantis rolled out of its processing bay (OPF-1) around 07:00 EDT on 13 April 2010. The shuttle entered the VAB around 11:00 EDT for attachment to its external tank and solid rocket boosters. Given that this was at the time believed to be Atlantis
Palmdale, California
Palmdale is a city located in the center of northern Los Angeles County, California, United States.Palmdale was the first community within the Antelope Valley to incorporate as a city on August 24, 1962; 47 years later, voters approved creating a charter city in November, 2009. Palmdale is...
. The path to the rollover was without any incidents of major concern, with only 22 Interim Problem Reports (IPRs) noted during Atlantis flow since its return from the STS-129
STS-129
-Crew seat assignments:-Mission payload:-ExPRESS Logistics Carriers 1 and 2:The primary payload of STS-129 was the ExPRESS Logistics Carrier and the ELC-2. The mass capacity of each ELC is with a volume of 30 meters cubed...
mission in November 2009.
The transport canister containing the STS-132 payload arrived at Pad 39A on 15 April 2010 ahead of Atlantis rollover to the launch pad. The canister was shaped like the shuttle's 60 feet (18.3 m)-long payload bay. Packed inside it were the MRM-1 module and the cargo-carrying pallet ICC-VLD.
Space Shuttle Atlantis began its rollout to launch pad 39A at 23:31 EDT on 21 April 2010. The complete shuttle stack and mobile launch platform were secured to the launch pad's structure at 6:03 EDT on 22 April 2010. The 3.4 mi trek took 6 hours and 32 minutes to complete. The rollout was originally planned for the evening of 19 April 2010, but wet weather and thunderstorms on the Space Coast caused several delays.
STS-132's payload was installed in the shuttle's cargo bay on 25 April 2010.
Pad engineers preparing Atlantis had noticed paint peeling from shuttle's main payload, the MRM-1 module. Although the problem was declared to have no impact on the operation of MRM-1, it holds a potential threat of releasing debris on orbit. Engineers also noted MRM-1 cycled its Fire and Smoke detector self test several times. Similar events occurred during Atlantis STS-129
STS-129
-Crew seat assignments:-Mission payload:-ExPRESS Logistics Carriers 1 and 2:The primary payload of STS-129 was the ExPRESS Logistics Carrier and the ELC-2. The mass capacity of each ELC is with a volume of 30 meters cubed...
mission in November 2009 when Shuttle and Station crew were awakened consecutive nights by false depressurization and fire alarms that originated from the MRM-2 (Poisk) module.
An agency-wide Flight Readiness Review (FRR) was held at KSC in Florida on 5 May 2010 to discuss Atlantis' launch preparations. At the end of the review, top NASA managers made the decision to officially set the launch for 14 May 2010 at 14:20 EDT. NASA held a post news conference to brief about the results of the FRR. The briefing was broadcasted on NASA TV and was attended by NASA's Associate Administrator for Space Operations, William Gerstenmaier, Space Shuttle Program Manager John Shannon and Space Shuttle Launch Director, Michael Leinbach. Mr. Shannon mentioned that, firstly, ceramic inserts around Atlantis
STS-131
STS-131 was a NASA Space Shuttle mission to the International Space Station . launched on 5 April 2010 at 6:22 am from Kennedy Space Center's launch pad 39A, and landed at 9:08 am on 20 April 2010 on runway 33 at the Kennedy Space Center's Shuttle Landing Facility...
, posing a potential impact threat. The inserts had been re-installed on to Atlantis using a thicker braided cord to reduce the chances of a backing out. Secondly, it was mentioned that engineers had reviewed work to confirm that all systems on Atlantis
A booster rocket segment that had first flown 25 years before on Atlantis
Launch preparations
Atlantis astronauts traveled from Johnson Space Center, Houston to the KSC launch site on 10 May 2010 to prepare for the launch. The crew, arriving in four Northrop T-38 Talon jets, landed on the Shuttle Landing Facility around 18:49 EDT.The official countdown to liftoff started on 11 May 2010 after the countdown clocks at KSC were activated at 16:00 EDT, ticking backward from the T-43 hour mark.
Program managers completed the L-2 Mission Management Team (MMT) meeting on 12 May 2010. At the end of the 18 minute long meeting management team officially cleared Atlantis for launch. NASA held a pre-launch news conference to reveal the outcomes of the MMT and to brief the press on the upcoming launch. The news conference was attended by Chair, pre-launch mission management team, Mike Moses, Mike Leinbach and STS-132 weather officer, Todd McNamara. The weather officer spoke of a favorable launch weather forecast due to a high pressure weather pattern and despite a low cloud ceiling, calling a 70 percent chance of favorable conditions at launch time. He further elaborated on the predicted weather conditions at the Transoceanic Abort Landing
Space Shuttle abort modes
A Space Shuttle abort was an emergency procedure due to equipment failure on NASA's Space Shuttle, most commonly during ascent. A main engine failure is a typical abort scenario. There are fewer abort options during reentry and descent...
(TAL) sites: Zaragoza
Zaragoza Air Base
Zaragoza Air Base was a NATO military airbase located near Zaragoza, Spain. It was located west of Zaragoza, west of Barcelona, and northeast of Madrid.It was closed as a NATO base in in April 1992...
and Moron
Morón Air Base
Morón Air Base is located at in southern Spain, approximately southeast of the city of Seville and northeast of Naval Station Rota. The base gets its name from the nearby town of Morón de la Frontera - although its is actually located in the municipality of Arahal.Morón's massive flight line,...
in Spain, and Istres, France, in case of an emergency.
The Space Shuttle Program MMT met at 04:15 EDT on 14 May 2010 and gave a go to begin loading Atlantis ET with liquid oxygen and liquid hydrogen. The fuel tanking operation began on time at 04:55 EDT and was completed within three hours at 07:56 EDT, with replenishment fuel being added throughout the countdown.
Crew preparations for the launch day began at 05:00 EDT following an eight hour overnight sleep. An hour later they completed their final medical check ups. Crew suiting began around 10:00 EDT and the astronauts departed for the launch pad at 10:30 EDT. At around 11:00 EDT, first Commander Ham ingressed the shuttle first and strapped into his seat, followed by pilot Antonelli, Mission Specialists Bowen, Sellers, Reisman and Good in order. Inside the orbiter, all six astronauts performed checks with ground controllers to verify that communications links work properly. With all astronauts onboard, Atlantis hatch was closed and latched for the flight. Inside the White Room, the closeout crew finished their job by pressurizing the crew cabin and checking for leaks before leaving the pad.
Launch day countdown procedures went without any major problems; however, Atlantis encountered two minor issues. The Final Inspection Team looking for ice and frost buildup on the ET had spotted a small stress fracture
Stress fracture
A stress fracture is one type of incomplete fracture in bones. It is caused by "unusual or repeated stress" and also heavy continuous weight on the ankle or leg...
on an umbilical strut. Later, during the post-launch news conference, the chair of NASA's pre-launch mission management team, Mike Moses, said that this was not unusual. Engineers also resolved any concerns about a loose ball bearing
Ball bearing
A ball bearing is a type of rolling-element bearing that uses balls to maintain the separation between the bearing races.The purpose of a ball bearing is to reduce rotational friction and support radial and axial loads. It achieves this by using at least two races to contain the balls and transmit...
found near the shuttle's payload bay days earlier. The bearing was determined to likely be from a camera system, and was ultimately ruled out as a concern.
14 May (Flight Day 1 – Launch)
The launch of Space Shuttle Atlantis occurred on time at 18:20 UTC, with launch commentator George DillerGeorge Diller
George Diller is a specialist in the NASA public affairs office at the Kennedy Space Center. He provides public announcements and commentary before and during launches from the Kennedy Space Center, including the space shuttle and unmanned spacecraft such as the Mars rovers Spirit and Opportunity...
saying that the shuttle was "reaching the crest of its historic achievements in space". Powered flight conformed to the standard timeline, with main engine cutoff (MECO) occurring at 8 minutes and 32 seconds Mission Elapsed Time (MET). The External Tank, ET-136, separated from the shuttle 15 seconds later at 8:47 MET. A further boost from the Orbital Maneuvering System (OMS) engines was not required due to the nominal MECO, and Atlantis settled into its planned preliminary orbit. A subsequent NC-1 engine firing of about 26 seconds adjusted the orbital path of the shuttle to match that of the International Space Station (ISS), by altering the shuttle's velocity by about 41 ft/s (12.5 m/s).
NASA held a post-launch news conference with Bill Gerstenmaier, Alexey Krasnov (chief of the Piloted Programs Directorate at the Russian Federal Space Agency
Russian Federal Space Agency
The Russian Federal Space Agency , commonly called Roscosmos and abbreviated as FKA and RKA , is the government agency responsible for the Russian space science program and general aerospace research. It was previously the Russian Aviation and Space Agency .Headquarters of Roscosmos are located...
), Mike Moses and Mike Leinbach. During the conference, Gerstenmaier made mention of a piece of space junk that could potentially have impacted Atlantis
More than 39,000 guests, including television host David Letterman
David Letterman
David Michael Letterman is an American television host and comedian. He hosts the late night television talk show, Late Show with David Letterman, broadcast on CBS. Letterman has been a fixture on late night television since the 1982 debut of Late Night with David Letterman on NBC...
, ex-Apollo astronaut Buzz Aldrin
Buzz Aldrin
Buzz Aldrin is an American mechanical engineer, retired United States Air Force pilot and astronaut who was the Lunar Module pilot on Apollo 11, the first manned lunar landing in history...
, and former NASA administrator Michael Griffin
Michael D. Griffin
Michael Douglas Griffin is an American physicist and aerospace engineer. From April 13, 2005 to January 20, 2009 he served as Administrator of NASA, the space agency of the United States...
, witnessed the launch. The Russian deputy prime minister, Sergei Ivanov
Sergei Ivanov
Sergei Borisovich Ivanov is a Russian senior official and statesman. He was Minister of Defence from March 2001 to February 2007, Deputy Prime Minister from November 2005 to February 2007, and the First Deputy Prime Minister from February 2007 to May 2008...
, and the head of the Russian Space Federal Agency, Anatoly Perminov
Anatoly Perminov
Dr. Prof. Anatoly Nikolayevich Perminov is a Russian rocket scientist and a mechanical engineer. He served as the General Director of Russian Federal Space Agency in 2004–2011.-Career:...
, were also present at KSC.
Once in orbit, the crew opened the shuttle's payload bay doors, activated the radiators and deployed the Ku band antenna successfully. They also completed a checkout of the orbiter's Shuttle Remote Manipulator System (SRMS). The crew was also successful in downlinking all imagery from Atlantis' umbilical well cameras, along with crew video of ET-136, for review by imagery experts in the ground. Preliminary inspections showed that ET-136 was very clean and had performed well during the ascent, with only a few foam liberation incidents visible.
It is worth noting that the launch of Atlantis on STS-132 was supposed to be its last. The mission patch depicted Atlantis flying into the sunset as she retired, and the Space Shuttle Program patches on sale at the Kennedy Space Center for the launch showed the years 1981-2010 for the program. The programme guide magazine to the launch also cited the launch as the final flight of Space Shuttle Atlantis. However, on its return Atlantis was readied as a rescue shuttle for the (at that time) two remaining missions of STS-133 and STS-134. It could be launched on need if there was a problem and if not, it would be stood down. Then, later in 2010, NASA decided to fly the previously provision STS-135 mission and chose Atlantis for the flight given that Discover and Endeavour were earmarked for STS-133 and STS-134 respectively. The funding was found and a decision was taken to fly STS-135 as the final Space Shuttle mission, with Atlantis as the orbiter. The STS-135 mission is currently scheduled for launch in July 2011, just over a year after Atlantis's launch on the STS-132 mission.
15 May (Flight Day 2 – TPS survey)
The crew members aboard Atlantis began their first full day in space at 08:20 UTC. The day was primarily devoted to inspecting Atlantis's thermal protection systemSpace Shuttle thermal protection system
The Space Shuttle thermal protection system is the barrier that protects the Space Shuttle Orbiter during the searing heat of atmospheric reentry...
, using the shuttle's robotic arm and the Orbiter Boom Sensor System
Orbiter Boom Sensor System
The Orbiter Boom Sensor System is a 50-foot boom carried on board NASA's Space Shuttles. The boom can be grappled by the Canadarm and serves as an extension of the arm, doubling its length to a combined total of 100 feet...
(OBSS) to look for any signs of launch damage. Before the thermal protection checkout began, the crew encountered a problem with the Laser Dynamic Range Imager (LDRI) and the Intensified TV Camera (ITVC), due to a snagged cable in that system's pan and tilt unit. As a result, Mission Control decided to switch to the less-capable backup sensor system: sensor package 2, a laser camera and a digital camera mounted near the end of the OBSS. Sensor package 2 required an additional light source (such as daylight), had a resolution of a few millimeters and could scan at about 2.5 inches per second. The crew followed "late inspection" procedures for surveying, and images of the right wing, the nose cap and much of the left wing were sent to the ground for detailed analysis.
Commander Kenneth Ham installed the center-line camera in the Orbiter Docking System (ODS) to help him during Atlantis' approach to the ISS. Down on the shuttle's middeck, Good and Bowen spent several hours checking out spacesuits and preparing them for transfer to the station. Reisman spent much of his day working with Antonelli and Ham on the TPS survey. He also assisted with the suit and spacewalk equipment checkouts. The crew furthermore performed the ODS ring extension that would connect the shuttle's docking port to the station's Harmony module. The last portion of the crew's day was spent preparing and checking out all of the tools to be used during the rendezvous.
Two course correction burns were also performed on Flight Day 2. The first 10-second burn, dubbed NC-2, was performed using the right-hand OMS engine, changing the shuttle's speed by 8 ft/s (2.4 m/s). The burn raised both the apogee and perigee
Perigee
Perigee is the point at which an object makes its closest approach to the Earth.. Often the term is used in a broader sense to define the point in an orbit where the orbiting body is closest to the body it orbits. The opposite is the apogee, the farthest or highest point.The Greek prefix "peri"...
of the shuttle's orbit by 1 miles (1.6 km). Atlantis
Meanwhile, Mission Control managers determined that the ISS would not need an avoidance maneuver to avoid a piece of orbital debris. Updated tracking information showed that the ISS and the debris would not pass close enough the following day to require any action.
16 May (Flight Day 3 – Docking)
The STS-132 crew began their day at 07:20 UTC and prepared to dock with the ISS. Commander Ken Ham performed a series of rendezvous burns (NH, NC4 and TI) to boost the orbit of Atlantis to match with that of the ISS. The longest of these, the 1-minute-24-second-long orbit raising maneuver or NH burn, changed AtlantisBy 13:26 UTC, with Ken Ham flying the shuttle from the aft flight deck, Atlantis positioned itself beneath the ISS and began the 360-degree flip rendezvous pitch maneuver (RPM). As the shuttle's underside rotated into view, three ISS crew members – Oleg Kotov using a camera with a 400mm lens, and Timothy Creamer and Soichi Noguchi using two 800mm-lens cameras – took 398 photographs of Atlantis' belly, as part of post-launch inspections of the thermal protection system.
Atlantis docked with the ISS Pressurized Mating Adapter-2 at 14:28 UTC as the two orbited 220 miles (354.1 km) over the South Pacific Ocean. After docking, the ISS was reoriented by the small vernier thrusters on Atlantis to minimize the risk of Micro-Meteoroid Orbital Debris (MMOD) impacts upon the shuttle. A series of leak checks were done on both sides of the hatch by the shuttle and station crews, before the hatches were opened at 16:18 UTC. After a brief welcoming ceremony by the station crew, Atlantis astronauts received the standard station safety briefing. The crew then got to work with initial transfers of equipment and supplies. Spacesuits were among the first items to go to the ISS. Station crew member Noguchi also transferred high-priority JAXA experiments to the Kibo module.
Sellers and Expedition 23
Expedition 23
Expedition 23 was the twenty-third long-duration mission to the International Space Station . Expedition 23 began with the Soyuz TMA-16 undocking on 18 March 2010. Shortly thereafter cosmonauts Aleksandr Skvortsov and Mikhail Korniyenko and astronaut Tracy Caldwell Dyson arrived at the Space...
/24
Expedition 24
Expedition 24 was the twenty-fourth long-duration mission to the International Space Station . Expedition 24 initially had 2 planned spacewalks, one Russian and one American Extra-vehicular Activity . The U.S. EVA was re-planned and a second U.S. EVA was added.- Crew :Source: NASA- Backup crew :*...
astronaut Tracy Caldwell Dyson got to work on their joint task to relocate the ICC-VLD cargo pallet. The duo used the station's robotic arm to transfer the pallet from Atlantis to the station's mobile base system to prepare for the spacewalks.
In preparation for the following day's spacewalk, all Atlantis
Nitrogen
Nitrogen is a chemical element that has the symbol N, atomic number of 7 and atomic mass 14.00674 u. Elemental nitrogen is a colorless, odorless, tasteless, and mostly inert diatomic gas at standard conditions, constituting 78.08% by volume of Earth's atmosphere...
bubbles in the astronauts' blood, which could result in decompression sickness
Decompression sickness
Decompression sickness describes a condition arising from dissolved gases coming out of solution into bubbles inside the body on depressurization...
.
17 May (Flight Day 4 – EVA 1)
After the morning wakeup call, Mission Control CAPCOM Shannon LucidShannon Lucid
Shannon Matilda Wells Lucid is an American biochemist and a NASA astronaut. At one time, she held the record for the longest duration stay in space by an American, as well as by a woman...
informed the shuttle crew that no detailed flight inspection would be required on the next day. However, the crew were requested to utilize that time to do inspections on various sections of Atlantis that were not inspected on flight day 2.
Flight day 4 saw Mission Specialists Garret Reisman and Steve Bowen perform the first of three planned spacewalks. The pair installed a spare Space To Ground Antenna (SGANT), a new enhanced tool platform for the Special Purpose Dexterous Manipulator (SPDM, also known as Dextre) and released torque on the six new batteries for the Port 6 (P6) truss segment.
Expedition 23 Flight Engineer Creamer helped the duo with their suit-up preparations. Mike Good joined STS-132 Pilot Antonelli, the intravehicular officer, to assist during the spacewalk. Mission Specialist Sellers and station Flight Engineer Caldwell Dyson operated the robotic arm. Throughout EVA 1, Commander Ken Ham oversaw the extravehicular activities.
During the spacewalk, several problems were encountered, the first of which was during installation of the SGANT. A slight gap was observed between the antenna dish and its mounting pole. The spacewalkers loosened the bolts and used a higher torque setting, which managed to close the gap to a smaller width. The launch locks were left on the SGANT to allow engineers on the ground to determine if the gap was acceptable, or if more troubleshooting would be needed. The second problem occurred during the installation of the SGANT, and was related to the Command and Control (CNC) computers. During installation, when Steve Bowen removed a cover from a connector, the prime CNC computer detected an error and shut down. The cap was a special cap which allowed the circuit for that connector to be closed, so when it was opened the sensor detected an error. The shut down of the CNC caused a 2-minute loss of communications. The safeing of the computer also stopped the Canadarm2 for a reconfiguration of the cameras being used during the spacewalk by both the robotic arm operators and observers on the ground.
The spacewalk ended at 19:19 UTC, after Reisman and Bowen made an inventory of the tools they brought with them and made their way back into the Quest airlock. STS-132's EVA 1 was the 237th conducted by U.S. astronauts, the second for Reisman and the fourth for Bowen. It was also the 144th in support of ISS assembly and maintenance. For EVA 1, lead spacewalker Reisman had a spacesuit with no stripes. Bowen' spacesuit was marked with a red stripe.
The shuttle's robotic arm also successfully grappled the MRM-1 module in Atlantis
18 May (Flight Day 5 – MRM1 installation)
On flight day 5, the crew focused on the addition of the MRM-1 module to the space station. Commander Ken Ham and pilot Tony Antonelli maneuvered AtlantisExpedition 23 Commander Oleg Kotov also monitored the activities from the Russian segment, as the MRM-1 began its automated docking sequence for the final attachment to the Zarya module. The berthing marked the first time that the Russian automated docking system has been used along with the station's robotic arm.
At 17:20 UTC, shuttle crew members Ham, Reisman, Sellers, along with station crew members Kotov, Skvortsov and Caldwell Dyson, gathered in the space station's Harmony module to talk with reporters from MSNBC
MSNBC
MSNBC is a cable news channel based in the United States available in the US, Germany , South Africa, the Middle East and Canada...
, Fox News and CNN
CNN
Cable News Network is a U.S. cable news channel founded in 1980 by Ted Turner. Upon its launch, CNN was the first channel to provide 24-hour television news coverage, and the first all-news television channel in the United States...
. The two crews answered questions related to their stay in orbit, medical experiments being conducted on the ISS, spacewalking experiences and the Gulf of Mexico oil spill
Gulf of Mexico oil spill
There have been two major oil spills in the Gulf of Mexico:*The Ixtoc I oil spill, from June 1979 to March 1980*The Deepwater Horizon oil spill, from April 2010 to August 2010...
.
After midday, Reisman and Sellers used Canadarm2 to unberth the OBSS from the sill of Atlantis
Mission Specialists Bowen and Good prepared for next day's EVA 2, configuring their tools and preparing their spacesuits. At the end of the workday, Atlantis' crew, along with three station crew members, met for an hour-long spacewalk procedure review.
At 21:45 UTC, Good and Bowen began their campout inside the Quest airlock, with pressure reduced to 10.2 psi to reduce the risk of decompression sickness
Decompression sickness
Decompression sickness describes a condition arising from dissolved gases coming out of solution into bubbles inside the body on depressurization...
.
File:S132e008114.jpg|Canadarm2 transfers MRM-1 to the Earth-facing port of the Zarya module.
Image:Iss023e047527.jpg|Canadarm2 attaches MRM-1 to the Zarya module.
Image:STS132_Reisman_inside_Cupola.jpg|Garrett Reisman inside the Cupola.
19 May (Flight Day 6 – EVA 2)
The primary task on the mission's second spacewalk, EVA 2, was to remove and replace batteries on the station's port 6 truss. The spacewalk got under way at 10:38 UTC, more than 25 minutes ahead of the scheduled start, which already had been moved up 30 minutes.Lead spacewalker Bowen's first task was to remove a cable snag in the OBSS's pan and tilt mechanism. Bowen looped a tie wrap on two cables to relieve the snag and completed the task in less than 30 minutes, while Good began work with the batteries. Although the initial plan was to replace three batteries, the two astronauts managed to replace an additional fourth battery during EVA 2. The batteries Bowen and Good replaced had originally been launched in November 2000. After the battery work and cleanup of the area, Bowen and Good moved on to the new backup Ku band antenna on the Z1 truss. They tightened bolts holding the antenna's dish to its boom, closing a gap left there after EVA 1. Good performed a wiggle test and confirmed that two spacewalkers did not see any signs of motion in the antenna-mast interface. They then removed the antenna's launch locks, leaving the antenna ready to operate.
During EVA 2, commander Ken Ham provided photo and television support, and pilot Tony Antonelli served as the spacewalk choreographer. ISS crew member Tracy Caldwell Dyson also assisted with spacewalk preparations. EVA 2 marked the 238th conducted by U.S. astronauts, the fifth for Bowen and the third for Good. It was also the 145th in support of International Space Station assembly and maintenance.
20 May (Flight Day 7 – MRM-1 initial checks, transfers and off-duty)
On flight day 7, the crew spent a few hours of off-duty time in the afternoon, but otherwise were largely focused on preparations for EVA 3. Earlier in the day, at 10:52 UTC, following leak checks, ISS Expedition 23 commander Oleg Kotov and flight engineer Alexander Skvortsov opened the hatch to the MRM-1 module. They wore eye and breathing protection as a standard precaution when entering a new module. Kotov reported that some metal filings were drifting around inside the new module as unpacking activities gathered pace, although initially he reported the interior of MRM-1 looked clean. Flight controllers both in Houston and Moscow worked with the crew to develop a technique for safely removing the floating debris.At 12:25 UTC, shuttle crew members Ken Ham, Tony Antonelli, Piers Sellers, and ISS flight engineer Tracy Caldwell Dyson, talked with the Associated Press
Associated Press
The Associated Press is an American news agency. The AP is a cooperative owned by its contributing newspapers, radio and television stations in the United States, which both contribute stories to the AP and use material written by its staff journalists...
, Fox News Radio
Fox News Radio
Fox News Radio is an American radio network programmed by Fox News Channel.- History :In 2003, Fox News began syndicating one minute radio updates to radio stations via syndication service Westwood One. On June 1, 2005, Fox News Radio employed 60 people and provided five minute newscasts at the top...
, and CBS News
CBS News
CBS News is the news division of American television and radio network CBS. The current chairman is Jeff Fager who is also the executive producer of 60 Minutes, while the current president of CBS News is David Rhodes. CBS News' flagship program is the CBS Evening News, hosted by the network's main...
. Ham also joined in with past and present members of Mission Control to recognize Lonnie J. Schmitt as the first flight controller to reach his 100th shuttle mission.
During the day, Ham, Antonelli and Sellers transferred equipment, supplies and experiments between Atlantis and the ISS. Mission Specialists Mike Good and Garrett Reisman prepared for EVA 3, configuring tools and preparing suits and the Quest airlock. Ham, Antonelli and Sellers also joined them to review the procedures. As part of the campout procedure, the two spacewalkers spent the night in the Quest airlock, with its air pressure reduced to 10.2 psi.
Image:STS132_fd7_ISS_view1.jpg|View of a section of ISS as photographed by a STS-132 crew member.
Image:STS132_Reisman_inside_Quest_Airlock.jpg|Garrett Reisman inside the Quest airlock.
Image:Atlantis Aft While Docked With ISS STS-132.jpg|The aft section of Atlantis while docked with the Station.
21 May (Flight Day 8 – EVA 3)
On flight day 8, Mike Good and Garret Reisman completed EVA 3, the third and final spacewalk of the STS-132 mission. The pair connected a pair of ammoniaAmmonia
Ammonia is a compound of nitrogen and hydrogen with the formula . It is a colourless gas with a characteristic pungent odour. Ammonia contributes significantly to the nutritional needs of terrestrial organisms by serving as a precursor to food and fertilizers. Ammonia, either directly or...
jumpers on the P4/P5 truss segment, before continuing on out to the end of the P6 truss. Once at the P6 truss, Good and Reisman completed the battery swap by removing and replacing the final two batteries and retrieving the temporarily stowed old battery on the truss. Once that task was complete, Good and Reisman moved to Atlantis
While the spacewalk was going on, Commander Ken Ham and Mission Specialist Steve Bowen completed some more of the transfer work for the mission.
22 May (Flight day 9 – ICC-VLD re-installation and off-duty)
Flight day 9 saw the shuttle crew enjoying some off-duty time during the afternoon. In the morning, the entire crew participated in some transfer activities and orbiter maintenance. The ICC-VLD was also berthed back aboard AtlantisTracy Caldwell Dyson
Tracy Caldwell Dyson, PhD is an American chemist and NASA astronaut. Caldwell Dyson was a Mission Specialist on Space Shuttle Endeavour flight STS-118 in August 2007. She was part of the Expedition 24 crew on the International Space Station between April 4, 2010 and September 25, 2010...
. The ICC-VLD re-installation operation began just after 4:30 am EDT, and was completed at 5:50 am EDT. The shuttle crew and Caldwell Dyson also answered some questions from elementary- and middle-school students from around the U.S. Students from 12 NASA Explorer Schools had submitted their questions earlier by video. The combined shuttle-station crew also shared a joint meal before the shuttle crew enjoyed two and a half hours of off-duty time starting at 11:05 am EDT.
23 May (Flight day 10 – Undocking)
On flight day 10, the joint STS-132/Expedition 23Expedition 23
Expedition 23 was the twenty-third long-duration mission to the International Space Station . Expedition 23 began with the Soyuz TMA-16 undocking on 18 March 2010. Shortly thereafter cosmonauts Aleksandr Skvortsov and Mikhail Korniyenko and astronaut Tracy Caldwell Dyson arrived at the Space...
crews awoke to begin the final hours of the joint docked mission. The crews completed the final time-sensitive transfers of the mission, which included scientific research samples that need to be kept cold. Once these transfers were completed, the two crews held a joint crew news conference and took a crew photo, and later, prior to hatch closure, held a mutual farewell ceremony. After the ceremony, the hatches between Atlantis and the International Space Station were closed, and a leak check was performed to ensure all the hatches were sealed properly. The shuttle undocked from the ISS at 15:22 UTC, a little more than 2 hours after the hatches were closed. At the time of the undocking, the two spacecraft were orbiting 220 miles (354.1 km) above the Southern Ocean
Southern Ocean
The Southern Ocean comprises the southernmost waters of the World Ocean, generally taken to be south of 60°S latitude and encircling Antarctica. It is usually regarded as the fourth-largest of the five principal oceanic divisions...
southwest of Perth, Australia
Perth, Western Australia
Perth is the capital and largest city of the Australian state of Western Australia and the fourth most populous city in Australia. The Perth metropolitan area has an estimated population of almost 1,700,000....
. The shuttle, guided by pilot Tony Antonelli
Dominic A. Antonelli
Dominic Anthony "Tony" Antonelli is a NASA astronaut. Antonelli was born in Detroit, Michigan, but was raised in both Indiana and North Carolina. He is married and has two children.-Education:...
, backed away from the ISS to a distance of about 400 feet (121.9 m), at which time Antonelli began conducting a fly-around of the space station, so that crew members on both the ISS and shuttle could get photos of both vehicles. Once the fly-around was complete, the shuttle crew conducted two separation burns to move Atlantis away from the space station.
File:STS132_ISS_Shuttle_Photo1.jpg|STS-132 (blue shirts) and Expedition 23 crew members pose for a group portrait on the ISS.
File:STS132_Ham_Kotov.jpg|Ham and Kotov shake hands at the farewell ceremony.
File:STS132_Atlantis_Undocking1.jpg|Atlantis separates from the ISS after undocking.
File:STS132_Atlantis_undocking2.jpg|Departing Atlantis, as photographed by a station crew member.
24 May (Flight day 11 – Late inspection)
The crew of Atlantis awoke on flight day 11, and after a couple of hours of personal time, began the late inspection of the shuttle's wing leading edges and nose cap. The crew finished the scans about two and a half hours ahead of schedule. By 09:50 UTC, they had finished their look at the right wing, by 10:52 UTC the nose cap survey was complete, and the left wing survey was finished at 11:17 UTC. The TPS survey was done using the shuttle's robotic arm and its OBSS extension. While the scans were going on, some of the crew stowed items that were no longer needed or were transferred right before undocking. Spacewalkers Mike Good and Steve Bowen cleaned up and stowed their spacesuits for landing. The latter part of the crew's day was spent with some off-duty time.25 May (Flight day 12 – Landing prep)
AtlantisAll STS-132 crew members worked at various times throughout the day to stow items in the cabin to prepare for landing. They also gathered for a 30-minute deorbit briefing at 5:40 am EDT. Immediately afterward, the crew talked with representatives of the Colbert Report, ABC Radio Network, and WEWS-TV
WEWS-TV
WEWS-TV, virtual channel 5 , is a television station in Cleveland, Ohio. WEWS has been owned by the E. W. Scripps Company since its inception, and is an affiliate of the ABC television network...
of Cleveland, Ohio
Cleveland, Ohio
Cleveland is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and is the county seat of Cuyahoga County, the most populous county in the state. The city is located in northeastern Ohio on the southern shore of Lake Erie, approximately west of the Pennsylvania border...
.
Late in the day, Mission Specialists Reisman and Sellers stowed the Ku band antenna in Atlantis
26 May (Flight day 13 – Re-entry and landing)
The STS-132 crew awoke at 12:20 EDT (4:20 UTC). At about 7:40 UTC, the astronauts began deorbit preparations, and closed the payload bay doors at 9:01 UTC. The deorbit burn initiated at 11:42 UTC, 220 miles (354.1 km) above IndonesiaIndonesia
Indonesia , officially the Republic of Indonesia , is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania. Indonesia is an archipelago comprising approximately 13,000 islands. It has 33 provinces with over 238 million people, and is the world's fourth most populous country. Indonesia is a republic, with an...
, and terminated at 11:45. At an altitude of 400000 feet (121,920 m) and a speed of Mach
Mach
Mach may refer to:* Mach , a lunar crater* Mach disk, diamond pattern seen in rocket exhaust* Mach number, a measure of speed* Gillette Mach3, a manual razor with three blades* Mach bands, an optical illusion...
25, Atlantis began re-entry at 12:16. At about 12:23 UTC, Atlantis began its s-rolls, to bleed off speed and energy during re-entry. At about 12:29, the shuttle was more than 40 miles (64.4 km) above the Earth and 2000 miles (3,218.7 km) from KSC, traveling at Mach 22. At 12:34, Atlantis was about 180000 feet (54,864 m) up, traveling at about 9,200 mph, and was 600 miles (965.6 km) from the runway. At about the same time, the shuttle was experiencing maximum re-entry heating conditions, peaking at about 2,900 degrees Fahrenheit
Fahrenheit
Fahrenheit is the temperature scale proposed in 1724 by, and named after, the German physicist Daniel Gabriel Fahrenheit . Within this scale, the freezing of water into ice is defined at 32 degrees, while the boiling point of water is defined to be 212 degrees...
, lasting about two minutes. At 12:39, long-range cameras at KSC spotted the shuttle gliding towards the runway at an altitude of 16 miles (25.7 km) and a distance of 77 miles (123.9 km) from KSC. At 12:44, commander Ken Ham took manual control of the orbiter for landing as it glided below the 50000 feet (15,240 m) mark.
Atlantis landed on its main wheels on runway 33 of Kennedy Space Center's Shuttle Landing Facility at 08:48:11 EDT (12:48:11 UTC). The nose wheel touched down 10 seconds later, at 08:48:21 EDT (12:48:11 UTC), with the vehicle coming to a stop at 08:49:18 EDT (12:49:18 UTC). The entire mission lasted 11 days, 18 hours, 29 minutes, and 9 seconds, during which time the space shuttle traveled a total of 7724851 kilometres (4,800,011.8 mi).
The six astronauts headed to Houston on 27 May. A welcome ceremony for the crew was held at 5 pm EDT that same day at Ellington Field's NASA Hangar 276.
Spacewalks
Three spacewalks were conducted to replace six aging batteries and to stage spare components outside the station, including a secondary Ku band antenna and spares for the Canadian Dextre robotic arm extension.| EVA | Spacewalkers | Start (UTC Coordinated Universal Time Coordinated Universal Time is the primary time standard by which the world regulates clocks and time. It is one of several closely related successors to Greenwich Mean Time. Computer servers, online services and other entities that rely on having a universally accepted time use UTC for that purpose... ) |
End (UTC) | Duration |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| EVA 1 | Garrett Reisman Garrett Reisman Garrett Erin Reisman is an American engineer and former NASA astronaut. He was a backup crew member for Expedition 15 and joined Expedition 16 aboard the International Space Station for a short time before becoming a member of Expedition 17. He returned to Earth 14 June 2008 on board STS-124 on... Steve Bowen Stephen G. Bowen Stephen Gerard Bowen is a US Navy submariner and a NASA astronaut; he was the second submariner to travel into space. Bowen has been on three spaceflights, all of which were Space Shuttle missions to the International Space Station... |
17 May 2010 11:54 |
17 May 2010 19:19 |
7 hours 25 minutes |
| Reisman and Bowen installed a spare space-to-ground Ku band Ku band The Kμ band is a portion of the electromagnetic spectrum in the microwave range of frequencies. This symbol refers to —in other words, the band directly below the K-band... antenna on the station's truss, or backbone. They then installed a new tool platform on Dextre. The spacewalkers also broke the torque on bolts holding batteries in place on the truss, in preparation for their removal and replacement on the second and third spacewalks. |
||||
| EVA 2 | Steve Bowen Stephen G. Bowen Stephen Gerard Bowen is a US Navy submariner and a NASA astronaut; he was the second submariner to travel into space. Bowen has been on three spaceflights, all of which were Space Shuttle missions to the International Space Station... Michael Good Michael T. Good Michael Timothy "Bueno" Good is a NASA astronaut and retired commissioned officer in the United States Air Force, holding the rank of Colonel. Mike Good flew aboard Space Shuttle Atlantis for its STS-125 mission. STS-125 was the final Hubble Space Telescope servicing mission... |
19 May 2010 10:38 |
19 May 2010 17:47 |
7 hours 9 minutes |
| Bowen and Good removed and replaced four of the six batteries on the port truss to store electricity from the solar arrays on that truss. The used batteries were installed on the cargo carrier for return to Earth on Atlantis. They also fixed a snagged cable on the Orbiter Boom Sensor System. The final task was to re-torque the bolts on the SGANT and then remove the launch locks and tether that were helping hold it in place. | ||||
| EVA 3 | Michael Good Michael T. Good Michael Timothy "Bueno" Good is a NASA astronaut and retired commissioned officer in the United States Air Force, holding the rank of Colonel. Mike Good flew aboard Space Shuttle Atlantis for its STS-125 mission. STS-125 was the final Hubble Space Telescope servicing mission... Garrett Reisman Garrett Reisman Garrett Erin Reisman is an American engineer and former NASA astronaut. He was a backup crew member for Expedition 15 and joined Expedition 16 aboard the International Space Station for a short time before becoming a member of Expedition 17. He returned to Earth 14 June 2008 on board STS-124 on... |
21 May 2010 10:27 |
21 May 2010 17:13 |
6 hours 46 minutes |
| Good and Reisman first connected a liquid ammonia jumper hose. They then installed the final two new batteries on the truss and put the old batteries on the carrier. Next, they retrieved a grapple fixture from Atlantis' payload bay and brought it inside the station to be modified for future installation on the Zarya Zarya Zarya , also known as the Functional Cargo Block or FGB , was the first module of the International Space Station to be launched. The FGB provided electrical power, storage, propulsion, and guidance to the ISS during the initial stage of assembly... module. The pair also stowed some tools in an external toolbox outside the airlock for future spacewalks. |
||||
Mission insignia
The STS-132 mission patchMission patch
A mission patch is a cloth badge worn by astronauts and other personnel affiliated with a manned or unmanned space mission. A new patch is created for each mission.- Origins :Mission patches were first sported by NASA astronauts in 1965...
was designed by NASA artist Sean Collins, working with astronaut Garrett Reisman. The patch shows Atlantis flying towards a sunset landing, with the names of the STS-132 astronauts around the border.
STS-132 mission decal
During the standard post-flight inspection of Atlantis, a United Space Alliance inspector found a STS-132 mission decal accompanied by an inscription, "The first last flight of Atlantis left Earth on 14 May 2010 from Pad 39A" together with the crew's signatures. The worker had found it tucked away on the upper side of Locker A-16 while scanning the area with a mirror. Moreover, he said the note must have been written in orbit, since otherwise the author would have had to stand on their head to write it.At the time the note was written, STS-132 was indeed the last planned mission of Atlantis. However, one further mission was ultimately approved for the shuttle: STS-135
STS-135
STS-135 was the final mission of the American Space Shuttle program. It used the orbiter Atlantis and hardware originally processed for the STS-335 contingency mission, which was not flown. STS-135 launched on 8 July and was originally scheduled to land on 20 July 2011, but the mission was...
, which will be the last flight of both Atlantis and the Space Shuttle program
Space Shuttle program
NASA's Space Shuttle program, officially called Space Transportation System , was the United States government's manned launch vehicle program from 1981 to 2011...
.
Wake-up calls
NASA began a tradition of playing music to astronauts during the Gemini program, and first used music to wake up a flight crew during Apollo 15Apollo 15
Apollo 15 was the ninth manned mission in the American Apollo space program, the fourth to land on the Moon and the eighth successful manned mission. It was the first of what were termed "J missions", long duration stays on the Moon with a greater focus on science than had been possible on previous...
.
Each track is specially chosen, often by the astronauts' families, and usually has a special meaning to an individual member of the crew, or is applicable to their daily activities.
| Flight Day | Song | Artist | Played for | Links |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Day 2 | "You're My Home You're My Home "You're My Home" is a single by Billy Joel. It was originally on Billy Joel's 1973 album Piano Man, and also appears on Songs in the Attic , The Ultimate Collection The Essential Billy Joel and 12 Gardens Live .... " |
Billy Joel Billy Joel William Martin "Billy" Joel is an American musician and pianist, singer-songwriter, and classical composer. Since releasing his first hit song, "Piano Man", in 1973, Joel has become the sixth best-selling recording artist and the third best-selling solo artist in the United States, according to... |
Kenneth Ham Kenneth Ham Kenneth "Hock" Todd Ham is an American astronaut and a captain in the United States Navy. Ham was selected for NASA's astronaut program in August 1998, while serving as the F/A-18E/F Super Hornet lead carrier suitability test pilot. Ham's U.S... |
WAV, MP3 TRANSCRIPT |
| Day 3 | "Sweet Home Alabama" | Lynyrd Skynyrd Lynyrd Skynyrd Lynyrd Skynyrd is an American rock band prominent in spreading Southern Rock during the 1970s.Originally formed as the "Noble Five" in Jacksonville, Florida, in 1964, the band rose to worldwide recognition on the basis of its driving live performances and signature tune, Freebird... |
Dominic A. "Tony" Antonelli Dominic A. Antonelli Dominic Anthony "Tony" Antonelli is a NASA astronaut. Antonelli was born in Detroit, Michigan, but was raised in both Indiana and North Carolina. He is married and has two children.-Education:... |
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| Day 4 | "Alive Again Alive Again (Matt Maher album) Alive Again is the fifth studio album by contemporary Christian musician Matt Maher, released on September 22, 2009. It is his second album with Essential Records. It reached #6 on the Billboard Christian albums chart, and reached #128 on the Billboard 200... " |
Matt Maher Matt Maher Matthew "Matt" Guion Maher is a contemporary Christian music artist, songwriter, and worship leader originally from Newfoundland, Canada, who later relocated to Tempe, Arizona. He has written and produced five solo albums to date... |
Michael T. Good Michael T. Good Michael Timothy "Bueno" Good is a NASA astronaut and retired commissioned officer in the United States Air Force, holding the rank of Colonel. Mike Good flew aboard Space Shuttle Atlantis for its STS-125 mission. STS-125 was the final Hubble Space Telescope servicing mission... |
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| Day 5 | "Macho Man Macho Man (song) "Macho Man" is the seond single recorded by the American disco group Village People. The song "bubbled under" the charts during summer 1978 before picking up substantial airplay that August... " |
Village People Village People Village People is a concept disco group that formed in the United States in 1977, well known for their on-stage costumes depicting American cultural stereotypes, as well as their catchy tunes and suggestive lyrics.... |
Garrett Reisman Garrett Reisman Garrett Erin Reisman is an American engineer and former NASA astronaut. He was a backup crew member for Expedition 15 and joined Expedition 16 aboard the International Space Station for a short time before becoming a member of Expedition 17. He returned to Earth 14 June 2008 on board STS-124 on... |
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| Day 6 | "Start Me Up Start Me Up "Start Me Up" is a song by The Rolling Stones featured on the 1981 album Tattoo You. Released as the album's lead single, it reached #2 on the Billboard Hot 100 and #7 on the UK Singles Chart.-Writing and recording:... " |
The Rolling Stones The Rolling Stones The Rolling Stones are an English rock band, formed in London in April 1962 by Brian Jones , Ian Stewart , Mick Jagger , and Keith Richards . Bassist Bill Wyman and drummer Charlie Watts completed the early line-up... |
Piers Sellers Piers Sellers Piers John Sellers OBE is a British-born Anglo-American meteorologist and a NASA astronaut. He is a veteran of three space shuttle missions.... |
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| Day 7 | "Welcome to the Working Week My Aim Is True My Aim Is True is the debut album by Elvis Costello.The album was recorded at Pathway Studios in Holloway, London Borough of Islington, over the course of 1976 during late-night studio sessions, in a total of twenty-four hours... " |
Elvis Costello Elvis Costello Elvis Costello , born Declan Patrick MacManus, is an English singer-songwriter. He came to prominence as an early participant in London's pub rock scene in the mid-1970s and later became associated with the punk/New Wave genre. Steeped in word play, the vocabulary of Costello's lyrics is broader... |
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| Day 8 | "Travelin' Light" | JJ Cale | Piers Sellers Piers Sellers Piers John Sellers OBE is a British-born Anglo-American meteorologist and a NASA astronaut. He is a veteran of three space shuttle missions.... |
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| Day 9 | "Shine Beautiful News Beautiful News is an album by Christian worship artist Matt Redman. Two songs were written in collaboration with Martin Smith, lead singer with Christian band Delirious? and one was written in collaboration with worship artist Paul Baloche."All Over The World" was covered by Tree63 on their... " |
Matt Redman Matt Redman Matt Redman is an English Christian worship leader, songwriter and author based in Brighton.He has worked with Newfrontiers, Passion Conferences, Hillsong London, Soul Survivor, is an artist for Sixstepsrecords and is a member of Compassionart a charity founded by Martin Smith.He appeared with... |
Michael T. Good Michael T. Good Michael Timothy "Bueno" Good is a NASA astronaut and retired commissioned officer in the United States Air Force, holding the rank of Colonel. Mike Good flew aboard Space Shuttle Atlantis for its STS-125 mission. STS-125 was the final Hubble Space Telescope servicing mission... |
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| Day 10 | "These Are Days These Are Days "These Are Days" is a song by alternative rock group 10,000 Maniacs from their 1992 album Our Time in Eden. Its lyrics are essentially ruminations on the present. They also performed the song for their 1993 album MTV Unplugged. The song hit number one on the Billboard Modern Rock Tracks chart in... " |
10,000 Maniacs 10,000 Maniacs 10,000 Maniacs is a United States-based alternative rock band, which formed in 1981 and continues to be active with various line-ups.-1981–1993:... |
Dominic A. "Tony" Antonelli Dominic A. Antonelli Dominic Anthony "Tony" Antonelli is a NASA astronaut. Antonelli was born in Detroit, Michigan, but was raised in both Indiana and North Carolina. He is married and has two children.-Education:... |
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| Day 11 | "Theme from Wallace and Gromit Wallace and Gromit Wallace and Gromit are the main characters in a series consisting of four British animated short films and a feature-length film by Nick Park of Aardman Animations... " |
Julian Nott Julian Nott Julian Nott is a British film composer, mostly of animated films. He is best known for his work in the Wallace & Gromit films.... |
Steve Bowen | WAV, MP3 TRANSCRIPT |
| Day 12 | "Empire State of Mind Empire State of Mind "Empire State of Mind" is a song by American rapper and hip hop artist Jay-Z, featuring vocals and a chorus from R&B and soul singer Alicia Keys. It was released as the third single from Jay-Z's 11th studio album The Blueprint 3 by his Roc Nation label in October 2009... " |
Jay-Z Jay-Z Shawn Corey Carter , better known by his stage name Jay-Z, is an American rapper, record producer, entrepreneur, and occasional actor. He is one of the most financially successful hip hop artists and entrepreneurs in America, having a net worth of over $450 million as of 2010... |
Garrett Reisman Garrett Reisman Garrett Erin Reisman is an American engineer and former NASA astronaut. He was a backup crew member for Expedition 15 and joined Expedition 16 aboard the International Space Station for a short time before becoming a member of Expedition 17. He returned to Earth 14 June 2008 on board STS-124 on... |
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| Day 13 | "Supermassive Black Hole" | Muse Muse (band) Muse are an English alternative rock band from Teignmouth, Devon, formed in 1994. The band consists of school friends Matthew Bellamy , Christopher Wolstenholme and Dominic Howard... |
Kenneth Ham Kenneth Ham Kenneth "Hock" Todd Ham is an American astronaut and a captain in the United States Navy. Ham was selected for NASA's astronaut program in August 1998, while serving as the F/A-18E/F Super Hornet lead carrier suitability test pilot. Ham's U.S... |
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See also
- 2010 in spaceflight2010 in spaceflightThe year 2010 saw a number of notable events in spaceflight. These included the first test flight of the SpaceX Dragon spacecraft, which is intended to conduct commercial resupply missions to the International Space Station under the Commercial Orbital Transportation Services program, and the...
- List of ISS spacewalks
- List of space shuttle missions
- List of spacewalks since 2000
- List of human spaceflights chronologically
External links
- Press Kit
- NASA's space shuttle page
- NASA's STS-132 mission page
- collectSPACE's STS-132 Flight Day Journal
- NASA Space Shuttle launches last mission
- STS-132: NASA refines processing targets for Atlantis' Final Flight
- Spherical panorama of Atlantis in the VAB HB1 from level 5 prior to rollout
- Spherical panorama of Atlantis in the VAB HB1 from level 16 prior to rollout
- First of the last Space Shuttle launches Alan Taylor, The Big Picture, The Boston GlobeThe Boston GlobeThe Boston Globe is an American daily newspaper based in Boston, Massachusetts. The Boston Globe has been owned by The New York Times Company since 1993...