STS-120, the 23rd shuttle flight to the International Space Station, has successfully launched and will eventually deliver and install a new module, the Harmony Node 2. Harmony will allow the addition of new European and Japanese space laboratories on upcoming missions.

Discovery’s seven astronauts include Commander Pam Melroy, Pilot George Zamka, mission specialists Scott Parazynski, Stephanie Wilson, Doug Wheelock, and Paolo Nespoli,
representing the European Space Agency (ESA).

Total planned time for the mission is 13 days 18 hours 9 minutes.

As part of assembling the giant laboratory, STS 120 astronauts will relocate the Port 6 (P6) truss element and solar arrays to a permanent position. The element is presently on orbit and attached to the truss segment Zenith 1 (Z1). P6 will be removed from its current location, reattached to the Port 5 (P5) truss and then the solar arrays will be redeployed and activated to gather sunlight for power generation.

After takeoff at Kennedy Spaceport and orbital insertion the Shuttle crew will spend about 44 hours inspecting the heat shield, and then dock with the International Space Station on October 25 at 0843 EDT.

After undocking with the ISS on November 4 at 1:34 AM EDT the Shuttle crew will spend the next 51 hours re-inspecting the heat shield and checking out the flight control systems. And, as suggested by some, here on ATS, get some rest, get a little ‘free time’ (this is not a sweat shop you know) and do a few checklists.

They will then land at Kennedy Spaceport all refreshed at 4:48 am on November 6.

Thanks for the heads up!

44 hours to dock! Gotta love the NASA people. So honest about what they really do up there...

Think we will get some live video from space?


[edit on 23-10-2007 by Copernicus]

Originally posted by Copernicus

Thanks for the heads up!

44 hours to dock! Gotta love the NASA people. So honest about what they really do up there...

Think we will get some live video from space?

Yes, but it will be airbrushed.

I watched the launch on NASA television live. It looked like everything was going pretty smooth. Didn't see any debris hitting the shuttle or anything.

So do we have anyway of tracking where it is? I know they show the mission control screen from time to time but that is not continuous so if there was another stop we wouldn't see it...

Is there anyway to watch it at all? I think we should also track the down time of the videos

I am going to see if I can find out how many progress ships are there right now or on the way

Originally post by Cool Hand on the other Discovery thread

Let's not forget all the preparations that have to be made before you can dock to the space station (testing, stowing equipment, setting up housekeeping, etc.)

You cannot take off and hope to immediately perform a rendezvous. Even the contingency flights have time built in between launch and docking.

Yeah, right. 44 hours worth? Testing? They just took off! Stowing equipment? Its all stowed for takeoff! Setting up housekeeping? Let me respectfully suggest that this belongs in a fairy tale thread.

Originally posted by Soylent Green Is People in other Discovery thread

Plus, it's easier for them to do their post-launch inspection while they are not docked. They use the shuttle's robotic arm to inspect the entile craft for damage.

They can use the shuttle's and the ISS's arm while docked, but it's easier to get every inch if the ship while not docked, because the ISS isn't "in the way" of the perferred path of the arm.

Right SGIP, and it shouldn’t take them more than 44 hours to check is out! Remember that when they undock they will have another 51 hours to inspect it.

It's 1021 PDT and Discovery has probably already docked or will dock shortly with one of the Secret Space Stations.

I would guess that they want to get supplies unloaded and whatever business has to be done and undocked before sunset over the U.S. where there might be more prying eyes than there would be from the rest of the world.

I suspect there might be more than one Secret Space Station and that it will be docked with tomorrow, during U.S. daylight hours.

Any confirmation or debunking of this theory would be greatly appreciated.

Since your ONLY (circumstantial) evidence is you think there is too long of a delay from launch to docking, you insert whatever sounds feasible, moderately believable, and might catch on with other people. Unfortunately, your ignorance of the shuttle program, it's mission, it's internal schedule, among many other things, has lead you down the path to ridiculous conspiracy. Most conspiracies are born from ignorance and fancy, this one is no different.

But hey, I'm telling you flat out, the time delay from lauch to docking is not because of a secret space station....duh. They are firing up anti-gravity drives to visit the alien bases on the far side of the moon real quick to pick up/drop some stuff off before aligning up with the ISS. Prove me wrong.

No wait.....I got it.....They take the time they have between launch and docking to play cards and board games, kind of a stress relief thing. Prove me wrong.

No wait....I got another one....since there can be NO MUNDANE ANSWER to something that is SO OBVIOUSLY a great conspiracy (lol), perhaps they are warping to Beta Reticuli to have a meeting with some youtube reptoids, speak in person with Elvis, and pick up a fresh load of element 115. Prove me wrong.

My point here is obvious, in the absence of information, your mind fills in the blanks with whatever you think it would be cool to believe. You further delude yourself (and others that, unfortunately, look up to you) by then trying in vein to find bits and pieces of anything possible to back up your already made up mind. Sound correct?

Since you are so concerned with this mystery, have you actually called nasa and ask them what the delay is, or what they are doing before you leap to conclusions? Of course, your too paranoid to believe anything they tell you anyway, so don't bother.

Did ya miss me, John?

[edit on 23-10-2007 by IgnoreTheFacts]

Originally posted by zorgon
I think I am missing something here....

Me too....help me with this. Why would a crew change be a mystery? Can you not think of a single mundane reason why a crew manifest might change?

Originally posted by MrPenny
Me too....help me with this.

Why is STS 119 scheduled for Nov 2008 and we are now seeing STS 120 DOH!

Originally posted by IgnoreTheFacts

Since you are so concerned with this mystery, have you actually called nasa and ask them what the delay is, or what they are doing before you leap to conclusions? Of course, your too paranoid to believe anything they tell you anyway, so don't bother.

Did ya miss me, John?

Thanks for the post IgnoreTheFacts, your input is genuinely appreciated.

I have been listening to Mission Control since launch and have no reason to believe that Discovery has not docked and is not unloading cargo at the Secret Space Station. The payload bay doors were opened at 11:05 PDT.

I believe that these launches are scheduled for morning so that they have the whole day in which to dock and unload while it would be difficult to see the spacecraft from the U.S. during bright sunlight.

Or heck, maybe they just play Scrabble until the second day and dock with the Secret Space Station then.

However it is planned, I believe the shuttle Discovery has or is going to dock with at least one of the Secret Space Stations before it docks with the ISS on Thursday.

You sound a little stressed ITF? Are you OK?

Thanks again for the post and hope you feel better.

From the official press kit:

OCTOBER 2007 TIMELINE OVERVIEW 7
TIMELINE OVERVIEW
FLIGHT DAY 1
• Launch
• Payload Bay Door Opening
• Ku-Band Antenna Deployment
• Shuttle Robotic Arm Activation and Checkout
• Umbilical Well and Handheld External Tank Video and Stills Downlink
FLIGHT DAY 2
• Discovery Thermal Protection System Survey with Orbiter Boom Sensor System (OBSS)
• Extravehicular Mobility Unit Checkout • Centerline Camera Installation
• Orbiter Docking System Ring Extension
• Orbital Maneuvering System Pod Survey
• Rendezvous Tools Checkout


OCTOBER 2007 RENDEZVOUS & DOCKING 47
RENDEZVOUS AND DOCKING
The shuttle launch is timed precisely to place the orbiter on the correct trajectory and course for its two-day chase of the station. Periodic engine firings will gradually bring Discovery to about 50,000 feet behind the station — the starting point for a final approach. About 2.5 hours before docking, Discovery’s jets will be fired during what is called the Terminal Initiation burn to begin the final phase of the rendezvous. Discovery will close the final miles to the station during the next orbit. As Discovery moves closer to the station, the shuttle’s rendezvous radar system and trajectory control sensor will track the complex and provide range and closing rate data to the crew. During the final approach, Discovery will execute several small mind course correction burns that will place the shuttle about 1,000 feet directly below the station. STS-120 Commander Pam Melroy then will manually control the shuttle for the remainder of the approach and docking.

I don’t understand what you find so difficult to fathom about why it takes time for the shuttle to catch up to the station? The shuttle orbit inserts for the station very precisely, which is why the launch window on ISS missions is so narrow. It has always been that way when they had to rendezvous with the station, maybe if you lived here, and watched the shuttles launch in person, you would realize how often they scrubbed for missing that window.

Originally posted by IgnoreTheFacts

Back on topic, can you think of any reason they would have opened up the cargo doors when they did...other than a super secret space station docking? Anybody?

The mission control lady gave some moronic excuse but I ignored her. Whats your story?