EXPENDABLE VEHICLES AND SPACECRAFT STATUS REPORT March 6, 2002 George H. Diller Kennedy Space Center MISSION: TDRS-I (Tracking and Data Relay Satellite-I) LAUNCH VEHICLE: Lockheed Martin ATLAS IIA (AC-143) LAUNCH PAD: 36-A Cape Canaveral Air Force Station LAUNCH DATE: March 8, 2002 LAUNCH WINDOW: 5:39 - 6:19 p.m. EST SPACECRAFT CURRENT LOCATION: Pad 36-A The Flight Readiness Review for TDRS-I was completed on Monday, March 4 and launch preparations are on schedule for a liftoff on Friday. Also on Monday, the RP1 fuel, a highly refined kerosene, was loaded aboard the Atlas first stage followed by installation of launch vehicle ordnance and the loading of reactants into the hypergolic systems. Closeouts of the Lockheed Martin Atlas IIA vehicle and the TDRS-I spacecraft are scheduled for Thursday, Mar. 7. Also on Thursday, a final management review, the Launch Readiness Review, will be held at KSC. The countdown will begin at 8:49 a.m. on Friday morning. The gantry will be pulled back from around the Atlas launch vehicle at 2:26 p.m. Loading of the Liquid Oxygen aboard the Centaur stage will begin at 3:53 p.m. Atlas stage liquid oxygen loading begins at 4:19 p.m. Finally, the liquid hydrogen will be loaded aboard the Centaur stage beginning at 4:33 p.m. A 15-minute built in hold is planned to occur at the T-5 minute mark leading to launch at 5:39 p.m. EST. MISSION: Aqua EOS-PM (Earth Observing System Aqua Observatory) LAUNCH VEHICLE: DELTA II 7920-10L LAUNCH PAD: Space Launch Complex 2, Vandenberg Air Force Base LAUNCH DATE: April 18, 2002 LAUNCH WINDOW: 2:54:58 - 3:04:58 a.m. PDT The Aqua spacecraft is at the Spaceport Systems International (SSI) payload processing facility located on South Vandenberg Air Force Base. Battery charging and spacecraft testing has begun. Connection of the Electrical Ground Support Equipment (EGSE) has been completed in preparation for the upcoming Comprehensive Performance Test of the spacecraft. At Space Launch Complex 2, the Delta first stage was erected on Monday, Feb. 25. Erection of the nine solid rocket boosters was completed on Thursday, Feb. 28. The second stage was hoisted into position atop the first stage on Friday, March 1. Initial electrical, mechanical and propulsion system leak checks are underway this week. MISSION: NOAA-M Polar Orbiter LAUNCH VEHICLE: USAF Titan II LAUNCH PAD: Space Launch Complex 4 West, Vandenberg Air Force Base LAUNCH DATE: June 25, 2002 LAUNCH WINDOW: 11:22 - 11:32 a.m. PDT The NOAA-M spacecraft is at the Lockheed Martin plant in Sunnyvale, Calif. and is tentatively planned for shipment to Vandenberg on April 26. The spacecraft will be processed at NASA spacecraft hangar 1610 on North Vandenberg Air Force Base. Erection of the Titan II/G-14 booster for NOAA-M will take place on April 1 after routine corrosion control and maintenance is completed at the launch pad during March.