About Two Week Delay To Each; Next Two Flights Pending

NASA officials on Thursday revised the target launch dates for space shuttle flights during the second half of 2008, pushing the last three scheduled flights for the year off by about two weeks apiece.

The space shuttle and International Space Station programs agreed to the changes during a meeting at NASA's Johnson Space Center to evaluate options following the STS-122 mission delay.

The next two shuttle flights, STS-123 on Endeavour targeted for March 11 and STS-124 on Discovery targeted for April 24, are being assessed and coordinated with NASA's international partners. Any decision on those launch dates will take place after the current STS-122 mission lands.

Late 2008 shuttle mission target launch dates are:

• August 28 - Atlantis (STS-125) to service the Hubble Space Telescope
• October 16 - Endeavour (STS-126) to deliver equipment to the International Space Station
• December 4 - Discovery (STS-119) to deliver the final set of solar arrays to the station.

Flights beyond 2008 have not been assessed. Both shuttle and station program officials are considering options for scheduling the remainder of the shuttle flights, according to the space agency.

FMI: www.nasa.gov/shuttle