Oct 9, 2009

Allard Beutel Kennedy Space Center, Fla 321-867-2468 allard beutel@nasa gov

MEDIA ADVISORY: M51-09

NASA ADJUSTS SHUTTLE ATLANTIS' LAUNCH PAD MOVE TO OCT 14

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla - NASA now is targeting Wednesday, Oct 14, to move space shuttle Atlantis to Launch Pad 39A at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida

First motion of Atlantis from Kennedy's Vehicle Assembly Building to the pad is targeted for 12:01 a m EDT The move is known as "rollout " The 3 4 mile journey is expected to take approximately six hours Activities include a 6:30 a m photo opportunity of the shuttle's move and an interview availability with Atlantis Flow Director Angie Brewer at 7:45 a m Reporters must arrive at Kennedy's news center by 6 a m for transportation to the viewing area

Live video coverage of the move will be shown on NASA Television starting at 6:30 a m Video highlights of the move will air on NASA TV Video File

Atlantis' original rollout date was Oct 13 The shuttle was towed Tuesday from its hangar, Orbiter Processing Facility 1, to the Vehicle Assembly Building, or VAB, in preparation for its STS-129 mission to the International Space Station However, an issue with a crane that was being used to transfer Atlantis for attachment to its external fuel tank and two solid rocket boosters caused a delay in operations That in turn caused additional workload on teams in the VAB who also are working on preparing NASA's Ares I-X rocket for rollout to Kennedy's Launch Pad 39B on Oct 19 Ares I-X is targeted to launch on its flight test on Oct 27 Shuttle managers added a day to Atlantis' rollout preparations to provide relief to the work force

The one-day change to the rollout still will allow managers to target Atlantis' launch for Nov 12 It also does not affect the practice countdown, known as the terminal countdown demonstration test, and associated training for Atlantis' six astronauts and ground teams, which is set to begin Oct 19

Media accreditation for Atlantis' Oct 14 rollout now is closed Journalists who already have applied for badges must pick them up before 4 p m Tuesday, Oct 13, at the Kennedy Space Center Badging Office on State Road 405

Recorded updates for rollout will be available at 321-867-2525

For NASA TV downlink information, schedules and links to streaming video, visit:

http://www nasa gov/ntv

For more information about the STS-129 mission and crew, visit:

http://www nasa gov/shuttle

-end-

To subscribe to the list, send a message to: ksc-subscribe@newsletters nasa gov To remove your address from the list, send a message to: ksc-unsubscribe@newsletters nasa gov

The following information is a reminder of your current mailing list subscription:

You are subscribed to the following list: [list_name]

using the following email: example@example.com

You may automatically unsubscribe from this list at any time by visiting the following URL:

http://www aus-city com/cgi-bin/dada/mail cgi/u/[list]/

If the above URL is inoperable, make sure that you have copied the entire address Some mail readers will wrap a long URL and thus break this automatic unsubscribe mechanism

You may also change your subscription by visiting this list's main screen:

<[program_url]/list/[list]>

If you're still having trouble, please contact the list owner at:

<mailto:[list_owner_email]>

The following physical address is associated with this mailing list:

[physical_address]