Endeavour being fuelled ready for May 16 launch

by Steven Mostyn - May 16 2011, 08:28

With the promise of good weather around the Kennedy Space Center in Florida, and any and all technical glitches apparently put to bed, the space shuttle Endeavour should begin its final mission (STS-134) at around 13:00 GMT today.

More pointedly, the Reuters news agency is reporting that NASA engineers are currently in the process of fuelling the stalwart orbiter ahead of its imminent launch towards the International Space Station (ISS).

Endeavour had initially been pencilled in for an April 29 launch, but NASA was forced to delay the countdown due to a problem with one of the spacecraft’s hydraulic power generators.

Once the shuttle safely docks with the ISS, its crew of astronauts will help the station’s current occupants unload and install a selection of important physics equipment and important spare parts.

With Discovery already retired and Endeavour on the cusp, the honour of the very last space shuttle launch will belong to Atlantis when it blasts clear of its tower some time before the end of July.

Supply runs and crew transportation to and from the International Space Station will soon become the responsibility of Russian and European space agencies, at least until NASA can introduce a fresh raft of space-faring hardware.

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