At NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida, technicians at Launch Pad 39A will begin final system checks in the aft, or back, section of space shuttle Atlantis today.
Also, a retest of Atlantis’ main propulsion pressure valve system, or engine piping, will take place today. This "closeout" work will be in progress all week.
Meanwhile, the STS-129 astronauts will be practicing for the mission’s third spacewalk in the massive swimming pool, called the Neutral Buoyancy Lab, near NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston.
This afternoon, STS-129 Commander Charlie Hobaugh and Pilot Barry Wilmore will fly their T-38 jets to Kennedy for training associated with the mission’s space station payload.