[sarex] STS-116 LATEST NEWS

[Arthur Rowe]

SUBMITTED BY ARTHUR N1ORC - AMSAT A/C #31468

Preparations Continue for STS-116 Crew
   
 http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/shuttle/main/index.html -**
     

STS-116 crew members are familiarized with flight hardware.

(Image above: Inside the SPACEHAB Payload Processing Facility at Port 
Canaveral, Fla., STS-116 mission specialists (from left) Joan 
Higginbotham, Sunita Williams and Nicholas Patrick look over flight 
hardware during the Crew Equipment Interface Test. Image Credit: 
NASA/Jack Pfaller)**


The STS-116 crew members visited NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida 
last week for the crew equipment interface test. The test is a routine 
part of astronaut training and launch preparations, and allows 
astronauts to get hands-on with the equipment and flight hardware that 
will be used during the mission.

During the STS-116 mission, Discovery will deliver the P5 integrated 
truss structure to the International Space Station, and carry the 
SPACEHAB module and other key components. Discovery is slated to roll 
over to the Vehicle Assembly Building on Nov. 1 for mating with the 
external tank and solid rocket boosters. Launch is scheduled for no 
earlier than Dec. 7.