Liftoff Scheduled For March 15

NASA's next shuttle mission is on its way... to the launchpad, that is. Thursday morning, Atlantis began the deliberate trek to Launch Pad 39A, in anticipation of a mid-March launch into orbit.

Atlantis' emergence from the Vehicle Assembly Building at Florida's Kennedy Space Center was greeted by sunny skies (a rarity of late -- Ed.) The 3.4-mile journey to the pad was expected to last about six hours.

Once on the pad, NASA will transfer payloads into the orbiter's payload bay.

The flight of Atlantis to the International Space Station has been targeted for March 15. The STS-117 crew will install a new truss segment, retract a set of solar arrays and unfold a new set on the starboard side of the station. Lessons learned from two previous missions will provide the astronauts with new techniques and tools to perform their duties.

Commanding the Atlantis team is Frederick Sturckow, a veteran of two shuttle missions (STS-88, STS-105), while Lee Archambault will be making his first flight as the shuttle's pilot. Mission Specialists James Reilly (STS-89, STS-104) and Patrick Forrester (STS-105) will be returning to the station. Steven Swanson and John Olivas, both mission specialists, join the crew for their first flight into space.

The mission astronauts will return to Kennedy a few weeks before liftoff to participate in the Terminal Countdown Demonstration Test. During this time they will practice launch activities, safety exercises, inspect the payload and conclude with a simulated main engine cut-off exercise.

NASA says the launch of Atlantis will be the first launch from Pad 39A in four years.

FMI: www.nasa.gov/shuttle