STS-125 Will Service Hubble Telescope One Final Time

Space shuttle Atlantis' rollout to Launch Pad 39A at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida began at 4 am EDT on Tuesday, March 31, as preparations for the STS-125 mission move forward. Atlantis is targeted to lift off May 12 to service NASA's Hubble Space Telescope.

The fully assembled space shuttle, consisting of the orbiter, external fuel tank and twin solid rocket boosters was mounted on a mobile launcher platform and will be delivered to the pad atop a crawler-transporter. It took approximately six hours for the massive assembly to travel the 3.4-mile journey from the Vehicle Assembly Building.

During Atlantis' 11-day mission, the crew of seven astronauts will make the final shuttle flight to Hubble. During five spacewalks, they will install two new instruments, repair two inactive ones and replace components. NASA hopes the result will be six working, complementary science instruments with capabilities beyond what is now available, and an extended operational lifespan for the telescope through at least 2014.

Scott Altman will command Atlantis. Gregory C. Johnson will be the pilot. Mission specialists will be John Grunsfeld, Mike Massimino, Megan McArthur, Andrew Feustel and Michael Good.

FMI: www.nasa.gov/shuttle