Technicians from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida are continuing preparation work on space shuttle Endeavour at NASA’s Dryden Flight Research Center in California so the shuttle can begin its cross-country flight Monday. An issue with preparations to install the flight tail cone on Endeavour has delayed plans to start the shuttle’s flight Sunday morning. Tail cone installation is set to begin today. Endeavour, parked at Dryden’s Mate-Demate Device, will be attached to the top of NASA’s Shuttle Carrier Aircraft, a modified 747, for the return to Florida.
 

 
The Space Shuttle Atlantis, mounted on top of NASA’s 747 Shuttle Aircraft Carrier, takes off from Edwards Air Force Base, California early on Sunday morning. The shuttle ferry flight ends Atlantis’ nine-day visit to Edwards after landing on June 22, 2007 at the end of mission STS-117. Courtesy of Edwards Air Force Base; image credit: NASA/Carla Thomas
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Workers at Kennedy have moved the newest external tank into the Vehicle Assembly Building for processing. It will be used by Atlantis for the STS-125 mission targeted to launch May 12, 2009, on a servicing mission to the Hubble Space Telescope. The tank was built at Lockheed Martin’s factory in New Orleans, La., and brought by barge to Kennedy.
 
The next shuttle mission is STS-119, targeted for launch on Feb. 12, 2009, on a flight to install the fourth set of solar arrays on the International Space Station.
 
http://sts-119.space.gs
 
 - courtesy of NASA

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