STS-122

STS-122
Canadarm2 takes Columbus from Atlantis' payload bay, ahead of its installation on the ISS
NamesSpace Transportation System-122
Mission typeISS assembly
OperatorNASA
COSPAR ID2008-005A Edit this at Wikidata
SATCAT no.32486
Mission duration12 days, 18 hours, 21 minutes, 50 seconds[1]
Distance travelled8,500,000 kilometres (5,300,000 mi)
Orbits completed202
Spacecraft properties
SpacecraftSpace Shuttle Atlantis
Launch mass121,264 kilograms (267,341 lb)
Landing mass93,536 kilograms (206,212 lb)
Crew
Crew size7
Members
Launching
Landing
Start of mission
Launch dateFebruary 7, 2008, 19:45 (2008-02-07UTC19:45Z) UTC[2]
Launch siteKennedy, LC-39A
End of mission
Landing dateFebruary 20, 2008, 14:07:10 (2008-02-20UTC14:07:11Z) UTC[1]
Landing siteKennedy, SLF Runway 15
Orbital parameters
Reference systemGeocentric
RegimeLow Earth
Perigee altitude331 kilometres (206 mi)[3]
Apogee altitude339 kilometres (211 mi)[3]
Inclination51.6 degrees[3][4]
Period91.23 minutes[3]
EpochFebruary 9, 2008[3]
Docking with ISS
Docking portPMA-2
(Harmony forward)
Docking dateFebruary 9, 2008, 17:17 UTC
Undocking dateFebruary 18, 2008, 09:24 UTC
Time docked8 days, 16 hours, 7 minutes

Left to right - Front row: Frick, Eyharts, Poindexter; Back row: Melvin, Walheim, Love, Schlegel
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STS-122 was a NASA Space Shuttle mission to the International Space Station (ISS), flown by the Space Shuttle Atlantis. STS-122 marked the 24th shuttle mission to the ISS, and the 121st Space Shuttle flight overall.[4]

The mission was also referred to as ISS-1E by the ISS program. The primary objective of STS-122 was to deliver the European Columbus science laboratory, built by the European Space Agency (ESA), to the station. It also returned Expedition 16 Flight Engineer Daniel M. Tani to Earth. Tani was replaced on Expedition 16 by Léopold Eyharts, a French Flight Engineer representing ESA. After Atlantis landing, the orbiter was prepared for STS-125, the final servicing mission for the Hubble Space Telescope.

The original target launch date for STS-122 was December 6, 2007, but due to engine cutoff sensor (ECO) reading errors, the launch was postponed to December 9, 2007.[5] During the second launch attempt, the sensors failed again, and the launch was halted.[6] A tanking test on December 18, 2007, revealed the probable cause to lie with a connector between the external tank and the shuttle. The connector was replaced and the shuttle launched during the third attempt on February 7, 2008.[2][7]

  1. ^ a b Cite error: The named reference SFN-MSC was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  2. ^ a b NASA (January 11, 2008). "NASA Announces Space Shuttle Launch Targets". National Aeronautics and Space Administration. Archived from the original on November 22, 2013. Retrieved January 11, 2008.
  3. ^ a b c d e McDowell, Jonathan. "Satellite Catalog". Jonathan's Space Page. Archived from the original on October 18, 2018. Retrieved May 24, 2013.
  4. ^ a b William Harwood (2007). "STS-122 Quick Look Data". CBS News. Archived from the original on September 26, 2018. Retrieved November 26, 2007.
  5. ^ Chris Bergin (2007). "STS-122 launch attempt scrubbed – ET sensor issue". NASA Spaceflight.com. Archived from the original on February 14, 2012. Retrieved December 6, 2007.
  6. ^ Chris Bergin (2007). "PRCB debates STS-122 options – includes rollback and tank swap". NASA Spaceflight.com. Archived from the original on February 14, 2012. Retrieved December 29, 2007.
  7. ^ Chris Bergin (January 13, 2008). "STS-122: Engineers install ET-125's modified connector". NASA Spaceflight.com. Archived from the original on September 27, 2017. Retrieved January 17, 2008.