Coverage continues with Part 2 of our Mission Journal.

• 07 April 2002 - Evening Update - OK, the "secret" launch time has been revealed: NASA has announced that Atlantis will lift off tomorrow at 4:40PM EDT. NASA reports:

  STS-110 Launch Set for Monday
  Space Shuttle Managers announced that STS-110 is scheduled to lift off at 3:40 p.m. CDT (2040 GMT) Monday to begin the 13th shuttle mission to the International Space Station. Space Shuttle Atlantis and its seven-member crew will deliver the S0 (S-Zero) Truss and conduct four spacewalks at the orbital outpost.

  Over the weekend, workers at Kennedy Space Center, Fla., completed work to fix a hydrogen vent line leak on the Mobile Launch Platform that Atlantis is poised to lift off. The leak occurred Thursday morning and posed no threat to the shuttle.

  Currently, forecasts call for a 60-percent chance of favorable weather at launch time. Watch NASA TV to see coverage of STS-110's launch at 3:40 p.m. CDT [4:40PM EDT/2040 GMT] Monday, with coverage beginning at 12:30 p.m. CDT [1:30PM EDT/1730 GMT].

  Preflight images and videos are available in the NASA Gallery.  CNN is repeating their Space Shuttle special tonight at 11PM and and Monday morning at 2AM EDT.

  
  

• 07 April 2002 - Repairs are complete on the Mobile Launcher Platform's cracked vent line, making way for tomorrow's liftoff (if weather cooperates). NASA will reveal the exact launch time later today. Watch NASA TV for live coverage of preflight activities, and check the play-by-play links at top right for up-to-the-minute status.

  Watch CNN tonight at 7PM and 11PM EDT - they are showing a Space Shuttle special.

• 06 April 2002 - Repairs are underway at Kennedy Space Center. A clamshell-type sleeve is being installed over a failed joint that was welded in the 1980s as part of the conversion of the Mobile Launcher Platform from Apollo Saturn V use to the Space Shuttle Program. The crack in one of the platform's vent lines allowed a cloud of potentially explosive hydrogen gas to escape during fueling operations, forcing a delay in Atlantis' planned launch this past Thursday.  NASA reports:

  STS-110 Launch Scheduled for Monday
  NASA managers set Monday, April 8, as launch day for the Space Shuttle Atlantis. Ground crews are still investigating and repairing a hydrogen leak on the shuttle's mobile launching pad that scrubbed Thursday's launch attempt. The leak, which occurred in a vent pipe on the side of the mobile launcher, is believed to have resulted from a weld that failed. A welding team arrived at the site late Friday morning to begin the repair -- by welding a two-piece aluminum clam shell sleeve, about 10 inches wide, around the 16-inch diameter line.

  Atlantis and its seven-member crew will be journeying to the International Space Station, where the crew will perform four spacewalks and install the S0 Truss onto the orbital outpost.

  NASA is not revealing the precise time of liftoff to protect against terrorist attacks (whether it's really any protection is debatable). So far, they will only say that launch will take place Monday (April 8th) between 2PM and 6PM EDT (hey, is it Daylight Saving Time already?!?!).

• 05 April 2002 - Evening Update - Mission managers have decided to go ahead with a clamshell-type repair to the failed weld in a hydrogen vent line on the launch platform. This work will take a couple of days, so we are now looking at Monday afternoon for a new launch date. NASA reports:

  STS-110 Launch Date Set for Monday
  NASA managers have decided to make another attempt to launch the Shuttle Atlantis to the International Space Station on Monday, April 8 during a period extending from 1:00pm-5:00pm CDT.

  The decision to launch on Monday came after managers agreed to fix a cracked hydrogen vent line on the Mobile Launch Platform upon which Atlantis is mounted with a clamshell collar, a procedure which should be completed by Saturday night. The leak posed no threat to Space Shuttle Atlantis.

  The exact launch time will be revealed Sunday, 24 hours in advance of the liftoff time. A launch on Monday would mean a landing at the Kennedy Space Center on April 19.

  NASA has been keeping exact launch times under wraps to protect against terrorist attacks, but since Atlantis is rendezvousing with the ISS, which has a known orbit, the launch time can be derived (but you won't hear it from us!).

  
  

• 05 April 2002 - The crew of Shuttle Atlantis is waiting at KSC for word on the new launch time. Ground personnel are repairing the cracked weld in a hydrogen line on the MLP. Launch is tentatively scheduled for Sunday afternoon, but that is likely to be pushed back further.

• 04 April 2002 - Evening Update - Ground crews will need more time to repair the cracked weld in the vent line. will Launch has been pushed back to this Sunday (7 Apr 2002) between 2 and 6PM EDT. NASA reports:

  Leak Forces Delay; STS-110 to Launch No Earlier Than Sunday
  NASA managers said today that Space Shuttle Atlantis will be delayed until at least Sunday while they investigate and repair a hydrogen leak on the shuttle's mobile launching pad. The leak, which occurred in a vent pipe on the side of the mobile launcher, is believed to have resulted from a weld that failed.

  Managers have three options for repairing the vent line. They will meet again Friday morning to evaluate the situation. If Sunday is selected as the launch date, liftoff will occur between 1 p.m. CDT (1800 GMT) and 5 p.m. CDT (2200 GMT).

  Atlantis and its seven-member crew will be journeying to the International Space Station, where the crew will perform four spacewalks and install the S0 Truss onto the orbital outpost.

  
  

• 04 April - Afternoon Update - A leak in the Mobile Launcher Platform has pushed back liftoff until at least Friday afternoon. More detail (with photos) on the hydrogen leak here.  NASA reports:

  Leak Forces Launch Delay
  At Kennedy Space Center, Fla., managers decided Thursday morning to delay the launch of STS-110 by at least 24 hours. The delay is in response to a hydrogen leak in ground support equipment within the Mobile Launcher Platform. If Space Shuttle Atlantis launches Friday, it will occur between 1 p.m. CST (1900 GMT) and 5 p.m. CST (2300 GMT). A final decision is expected to be announced later today.

  Check the play-by-play links at top right for up-to-the-minute status.

  
  

• 04 April 2002 - SCRUB! - A hydrogen gas leak was spotted in a piece of launchpad equipment this morning, causing mission managers to postpone the launch of Shuttle Atlantis by at least one day to determine the cause, and to make repairs.