Feb 4, 2008 8:05 am US/Pacific
NASA Crew Arrives For Thursday Liftoff
CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (CBS) ―
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Space shuttle Atlantis sits on launch pad 39A at the Kennedy Space Center on Dec. 6, 2007.
Joe Raedle/Getty Images
Seven astronauts returned to NASA's Florida launch site from Houston Monday to take a new shot at flying the space shuttle Atlantis to the International Space Station after a two-month delay.
The countdown clock is scheduled to begin ticking down Monday at 5:00 p.m. ET.
Liftoff is set for Thursday afternoon at 2:45 p.m. ET, however launch-day weather is a worry, reported CBS station WFOR-TV in Miami.
Forecasters put the odds of acceptable conditions at just 40 percent due to a cold front and rain expected on launch day. Friday's outlook was much better: 80 percent.
Despite the forecast, shuttle commander Steve Frick says everything else is "looking just great."
NASA engineers think a big problem with erratic fuel gauges in the space shuttle's external tank has finally been fixed. In addition, a problem with a bend in a cooling-system hose also has been resolved.
The crew is set to spend 11 days in space, delivering a long-overdue European science lab called "Columbus" to the international space station.
"Columbus" will be the second science lab at the ISS. The United States operates one there already and the largest lab of all, Japan's Kibo, or "Hope", will be carried up in sections beginning next month.
NASA still hopes to get six shuttle launches in this year, even with Atlantis' two-month delay.
The space station faces a 2010 completion date. Then, the three remaining shuttles will be retired so the space agency can focus on returning astronauts to the moon, with eventual plans to fly to Mars.
In a video hookup with family members and friends in Ireland on Monday, space station astronaut Daniel Tani was asked by a young boy if he'd ever been to Mars.
"No, unfortunately, I have not been on Mars. In fact, no people have been on Mars yet. Mars is a long way away. It's going to take a long time to get there, but we're working toward it," said Tani, whose wife, Jane, is from Cork.
Tani, in orbit since October, will return to Earth aboard Atlantis. A French Air Force general will fly up on Atlantis and take his place.
"Hopefully, they'll launch this Thursday and I'll be home in a couple weeks," Tani said.
(© 2009 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Associated Press contributed to this report.)
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