STS-98

Launch, orbit & landing data: Designation  26698 / 01006A Launch date - time  07 Feb 2001 - 23:13:02 UT Launch site  KSC, LC39A Launch vehicle  Space Shuttle Orbiter  Atlantis #21 (OV-104) Primary payload  US Laboratory DESTINY Mass (kg)   Flight Crew  Cockrell, Polansky Curbeam, Ivins, Jones Docking date - time  09 Feb 2001 - 16:51 UT Target spacecraft/port  ISS/Unity's PMA-3 port Earth orbit on :    - Perigee / Apogee   km    - Inclination  °    - Period   min Undocking date - time  16 Feb 2001 - 14:06 UT Landing date - time  20 Feb 2001 - 20:33:05 UT Landing location  Edwards AFB, Runway 22 Flight Duration (d:hr:min)   Nbr orbits

Flight crew

Mission details:

• Atlantis has been mated to external tank ET-106 and solid boosters RSRM-77. The stack is on Mobile Launch Platform MLP-2 in high bay 3 of the Vehicle Assembly Building.
• STS-98 was rolled out to the pad on Jan 3, 2001 but continuing concerns about wiring in the solid boosters led to a decision to roll back the vehicle to the VAB. During the STS-97 launch, the SRB separation system had problems when one explosive separation cartridge failed to fire; a backup system saved the mission.The rollback is expected on Jan 19.
  

  A crawler-transporter ferrying Space Shuttle Atlantis to launch pad 39-A for the STS-98 mission.

  
  
• Atlantis rolled out to the pad on Jan 26 after further wiring checks.
  Revised estimate for the STS-98 cargo bay:
  
  

  -	-	Est. Mass (kg)
  Bay 1-2:	Orbiter Docking System and External Airlock	1800
  -	3 EMU spacesuits (S/N unknown)	360?
  Bay 4-13:	Destiny Module	14056
  Unknown	Adapter Beam with PDGF (Power Data Grapple Fixture)	78?
  Unknown	Adapter Beam with SASA (S-band Antenna Support Assembly)	100?
  Sill:	Canadarm RMS 202	410
  .	Total payload bay cargo	16804 kg

  
  
• Launch occurred on Feb 7, 2001 at 23:13:02 UTC. The solid rocket boosters separated at 23:15 UTC and the main engines cut off at 23:21 UTC, followed 10 seconds later by separation of the external tank. The Orbiter and the ET were then in a 74 x 323 km x 51.6 deg orbit. At 23:57 UTC the OMS engines fired for the OMS-2 burn which raised Atlantis' orbit to 204 x 322 km x 51.6 deg while the ET fell back for impact in the Pacific. Atlantis docked with Station at 16:51 UTC on Feb 9. Docking was at the PMA-3 port on Unity's nadir.
  At the end of the docked phase, Atlantis mass is 95242 kg and the Station mass is 104401 kg for a total mass of 199643 kg.

• At 15:00 UTC on Feb 10 Marsha Ivins used the RMS arm to unberth the PMA-2 docking port from Unity. Tom Jones and Bob Curbeam have begun the first spacewalk from the ODS airlock on Atlantis, supervising the assembly operations. The airlock was depressurized at 15:44 UTC; the hatch was opened at 15:46 UTC and the astronauts went to suit battery power at 15:50 UTC. PMA-2 was berthed on Z1 at 16:50 UTC; Destiny was unberthed from the payload bay at 17:35 UTC and docked to Unity at 19:00 UTC. At 19:35 UTC Curbeam was connecting ammonia coolant lines when a leaking connector sprayed ammonia into space, contaminating his suit. He was ordered to stay in sunlight to bake off the ammonia. At around 23:11 UTC the spacewalkers returned to the airlock, closing the hatch at 23:18 UTC. Repressurization began at 23:24 UTC, for a duration of 7h40m (depress), 7h34m (NASA), or 7h32m (hatch open/close).

• The airlock reached 5psi (34 kPa) at 23:26 UTC and was held there, with the astronauts still in suits. A new depressurization for decontamination was begun at 23:42 UTC, with the airlock fully depressurized at 23:50 UTC. The hatch was then opened and closed quickly at 23:51-23:52 UTC, to flush the airlock of any ammonia residue, and repressurization began anew at 23:53 UTC, reaching 5psi again prior to 23:57 UTC. This new spacewalk lasted 3 minutes (depress), or 1 minute (hatch open/close); it was not counted as an EVA by NASA.

• EVA-2 began at 15:55 UTC on Feb 12 with depressurization of the airlock. The astronauts went to battery power at 15:59 UTC. The PMA-2 docking port was attached to Destiny at 17:28 UTC. The Power Data Grapple Fixture (PDGF) was removed from its location on an adaptive payload carrier on the port side of the payload bay (probably bay 5P) and installed on Destiny. The PDGF will be used by the Station's robot arm, and is an improved grapple fixture with electrical power and data ports. The hatch was closed at 22:40 UTC and the airlock was repressurized at 22:49 UTC. Duration was 6h54m (depress), about 6h50m (hatch open/close), or 6h50m (NASA rule).

• The third official EVA was on Feb 14. The airlock was depressurized at 14:43 UTC, with hatch open at around 14:45 and battery power at 14:48. The spare SASA S-band antenna was unberthed from an adapter beam in the payload bay and installed on Z1. The +X (starboard) TCS radiator on P6, launched on the previous mission, was deployed at 16:49 UTC. The astronauts completed the spacewalk with repressurization of the airlock at 20:13 UTC. Time was 5h30m (depress), about 5h24m (hatch open/close), or 5h25m (NASA).

• Atlantis undocked from Alpha at 14:06 UTC on Feb 16, 2001. Plans to land on Feb 18 and Feb 19 were called off due to bad weather at Kennedy Space Center. The deorbit burn was at 19:27 UTC on Feb 20 and lowered the orbit from 370 x 386 km to about 50 x 380 km. The nominal entry interface at 122 km came at 20:02 UTC and touchdown on runway 22 at Edwards AFB was at 20:33 UTC.
  Inclement weather conditions in Florida prompted the decision to land Atlantis at Edwards. The last time a space shuttle landed at Edwards was Oct. 24, 2000.
  On Mar 1, 2001 Atlantis was flown on the back of NASA′s SCA 911 carrier aircraft to Altus AFB, Oklahoma and will be returned to KSC when the weather clears. Meanwhile, in nearby Palmdale, Columbia (next flight STS-102) has completed its maintenance period and began its journey back to KSC on NASA SCA 905 half an hour earlier, landing at Dyess AFB, Abilene, Texas. There are two converted Boeing 747 Shuttle Carrier Aircraft, but it′s been a while since both have been needed at the same time and this is the first time that both have been in the air carrying an Orbiter simultaneously.

STS-98 landed at 12:33 p.m. February 20, 2001, on the runway at Edwards Air Force Base, California, where NASA′s Dryden Flight Research Center is located. Credit: NASA

External links:

• AmericaSpace: Remembering the Launch of the U.S. Lab.

Astrophilately covers:

Launch cancel KSC. Credit: J. Vd Dr.

Launch cancel Goddard Space Flight. Credit: #401

Boosters STS98 recovery, cancel KSC

Docking cancel Houston.

Docking cancel Koporev.

Landing cancel Edwards AFB. Credit: J. Vd Dr.