At NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida, the six STS-130 crew members climbed aboard space shuttle Endeavour on Launch Pad 39A. They will go through a complete launch countdown simulation right up to the point of liftoff.
The astronauts will complete their prelaunch training at Kennedy this afternoon with a bench review of flight crew equipment and are scheduled to fly back to NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston tomorrow.
Launch teams at the pad conducted a walkdown of the shuttle to ensure there was no damage from the unusually icy weather conditions experienced last week. They also will continue testing and maintenance until liftoff.
Endeavour is targeted to launch at 4:39 a.m. EST Feb. 7 to deliver the Italian-built Tranquility with its attached cupola to the International Space Station.
On Jan. 27, an executive-level Flight Readiness Review meeting will be held at Kennedy to assess the readiness of the shuttle, flight crew and payloads to proceed with the countdown.
The official launch date will be set at the review and announced during a press briefing following the meeting.