Space Shuttle Endeavour
Space Shuttle Endeavour launched successfully at 7:55pm EST on November 14th. This was the 124th Space Shuttle flight and the 27th flight to the International Space Station. The shuttle docked with the International Space Station on Sunday, November 16, and delivered ISSAC as part of its payload. (ISSAC's components were transferred from Endeavour to ISS exactly on the 10th anniversary of ISS.) Endeavour's crew spent 11 days of joint duty with the Space Station before returning to Earth.
Launch Prep
The ISSAC imaging system was transported to the Kennedy Space Center in February, 2008 where it was prepared for launch into space. ISSAC system controllers held their first in a series of simulations with NASA on October 9, 2008 in preparation for upcoming operations in March 2009.
Launch Viewing
The NASA Office of Education provided VIP tours for members of the ISSAC project who were able to attend the launch. Tours included the Kennedy Space Center and the International Space Station Complex. ISSAC Team Members received briefings from Astronauts Terry Virts and Dottie Metcalf-Lindenberger, and observed the launch of Space Shuttle Endeavour from Banana Creek viewing area. (For those of you who enjoyed the launch live, you may like
this online article in the Boston Globe.)
Loss of Columbia
The loss of Space Shuttle Columbia in February 2003 forced a hiatus in construction of the ISS while problems with foam insulation shedding from the External Tank were resolved. The launches of many scientific experiments to the ISS, including ISSAC, have also been delayed.
Waiting for WORF
Assembly of ISS resumed with the launch of STS-115 in September 2006. The Window Observational Research Facility (WORF), within which ISSAC was designed to operate, was originally slated for launch on the next shuttle after Columbia. However priorities for other systems and assembly schedule recovery have delayed WORF as well; it is also not yet on orbit.
With the launch of the WORF delayed until early 2010, ISSAC was developed with an
Alternate Configuration which will allow it to operate for the interim without WORF, albeit with reduced capabilities.
