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CNN Live Saturday

Space Shuttle Prepares for Lift-Off

Aired November 23, 2002 - 17:34   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.


CAROL LIN, CNN ANCHOR: The countdown is on. Space Shuttle Endeavor prepares for lift-off and we're going to go live to the launch pad. In fact, there it is. God, that's a view you don't often get to see as they actually work at the doorway to Endeavor. Don't forget, you can watch that lift-off tonight right here on CNN, about 8:30 Eastern.
Well, the crewmembers of the Space Shuttle Endeavor probably have their fingers crossed after nearly two weeks of delays, including one last evening because of rain in Spain. They actually - well they do plan on lifting off later today. We're going to keep our fingers crossed. CNN's Space Correspondent, Miles O'Brien, keeping an eye at the Kennedy Space Center, Miles is it looking good so far?

MILES O'BRIEN, CNN SPACE CORRESPONDENT: Well, Carol, it's just perfect here and, as a matter of fact, Jim Weatherbee, the commander of the Space Shuttle Endeavor said gosh, what a great day for a launch, and the reply was well, we hope so. A great day here doesn't mean necessarily, of course, a great day in Spain.

And, for those of you who don't understand what Spain has to do with where I am right now at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida, if for some reason the space shuttle on its way to orbit lost an engine, they had to do an emergency landing, they would go to Spain, about an hour after they left here. How's that for a quick trip across the Atlantic Ocean? No time for a movie. No time for even some peanuts on that ride.

In any case, that would be kind of a bad day for NASA needless to say. The trick is it's got to be good weather, good enough for the world's most expensive, complicated, glider to do its one-time, one shot only landing and we're watching that weather very closely. Look at this scene here, though. Isn't that a beautiful shot as we look at that shot high above the Vehicle Assembly Building? This area here, this lagoon, they call it the turn basin in there and that's where they bring some of the big pieces of the shuttle back, the external tank and so forth.

Right at the center here is Pad 39-A, and at the core of that is the Space Shuttle Endeavor. You notice it's a beautiful clear day here, barely a cloud in the sky. This air space around here is secure and yesterday about three small planes were intercepted by F-15s. The pilots have quite a story to tell. We're told they were innocent intrusions.

Anyway, take a look at the close shot there of the Space Shuttle Endeavor, and as I point your attention to right up here, you can see this thing called the gaseous oxygen vent hood, beanie cap for a lot of people here. It has some oxygen coming out the stove pipe there if you will. That's designed to keep ice from forming on the top of the external tank, liquid oxygen very cold.

They had some problems with the hydraulic motor in it but apparently that's OK. Down at the bottom, you'll see some of the liquid hydrogen that's coming out of there. There's about 500,000 gallons of liquid hydrogen, liquid oxygen onboard there. That would put it in the category of a relatively small nuclear bomb.

Now, let's take a look at what's going on inside as they get ready. Carol, you were talking about the people inside the White Room. Well, that shot's not there anymore but you can see the countdown and then you can see the space shuttle on the pad, Endeavor. Their mission is to go to the International Space Station. It will take them about two days just to catch up. When they get there, the key - well there are two big keys to this mission.

They're going to attach a big piece of the station, about a school bus size truss that will carry some solar rays and some radiators. That's important. But more important for the crew onboard, having just spent 170 days in space, their relief crew will be onboard Endeavor, and they are ready to come home.

We've been told directly by Peggy Whitson, the American crewmember onboard that she is just sick and tired of the food, Carol, and is dying to come home and if not have Thanksgiving on Thanksgiving, she will have a feast whenever she gets back. So, we'll be watching the weather here, not here so much as we will be watching in Spain. The weather here is not a problem at all.

So far, the shuttle itself is doing well. Let's go back quickly to that shot of the White Room that you were fascinated with. I'll tell you very quickly about this team. This group, they call them the Caped Crusaders. They all have numbers on their backs so they can keep track of them all.

John Herrington, one of the crewmembers onboard who just got strapped in, the first Native American to go to space when it happens, spent two and a half years here working as a Caped Crusader. He says he's pretty happy to be on the inside of the hatch this go-round. There's John Herrington before he strapped in a little while ago getting ready to go.

The Chickasaw Nation is a very proud Native American Nation right now. We got some tape. We'll lose that live up at the left here. This is taped shots from a little while ago. The right-hand corner there, Jim Weatherbee, and then one of those Caped Crusaders, doing his job, strapping in, waiting for the day when he gets to be on the inside of the hatch - Carol.

LIN: Oh, so that's what Caped Crusaders grow up to be, astronauts.

O'BRIEN: Yes. LIN: Yes, our hero.

O'BRIEN: Astronauts.

LIN: All right, thanks so much Miles. We'll be looking forward to your coverage later tonight. We'll keep our fingers crossed for Endeavor.

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com






Aired November 23, 2002 - 17:34   ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
CAROL LIN, CNN ANCHOR: The countdown is on. Space Shuttle Endeavor prepares for lift-off and we're going to go live to the launch pad. In fact, there it is. God, that's a view you don't often get to see as they actually work at the doorway to Endeavor. Don't forget, you can watch that lift-off tonight right here on CNN, about 8:30 Eastern.
Well, the crewmembers of the Space Shuttle Endeavor probably have their fingers crossed after nearly two weeks of delays, including one last evening because of rain in Spain. They actually - well they do plan on lifting off later today. We're going to keep our fingers crossed. CNN's Space Correspondent, Miles O'Brien, keeping an eye at the Kennedy Space Center, Miles is it looking good so far?

MILES O'BRIEN, CNN SPACE CORRESPONDENT: Well, Carol, it's just perfect here and, as a matter of fact, Jim Weatherbee, the commander of the Space Shuttle Endeavor said gosh, what a great day for a launch, and the reply was well, we hope so. A great day here doesn't mean necessarily, of course, a great day in Spain.

And, for those of you who don't understand what Spain has to do with where I am right now at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida, if for some reason the space shuttle on its way to orbit lost an engine, they had to do an emergency landing, they would go to Spain, about an hour after they left here. How's that for a quick trip across the Atlantic Ocean? No time for a movie. No time for even some peanuts on that ride.

In any case, that would be kind of a bad day for NASA needless to say. The trick is it's got to be good weather, good enough for the world's most expensive, complicated, glider to do its one-time, one shot only landing and we're watching that weather very closely. Look at this scene here, though. Isn't that a beautiful shot as we look at that shot high above the Vehicle Assembly Building? This area here, this lagoon, they call it the turn basin in there and that's where they bring some of the big pieces of the shuttle back, the external tank and so forth.

Right at the center here is Pad 39-A, and at the core of that is the Space Shuttle Endeavor. You notice it's a beautiful clear day here, barely a cloud in the sky. This air space around here is secure and yesterday about three small planes were intercepted by F-15s. The pilots have quite a story to tell. We're told they were innocent intrusions.

Anyway, take a look at the close shot there of the Space Shuttle Endeavor, and as I point your attention to right up here, you can see this thing called the gaseous oxygen vent hood, beanie cap for a lot of people here. It has some oxygen coming out the stove pipe there if you will. That's designed to keep ice from forming on the top of the external tank, liquid oxygen very cold.

They had some problems with the hydraulic motor in it but apparently that's OK. Down at the bottom, you'll see some of the liquid hydrogen that's coming out of there. There's about 500,000 gallons of liquid hydrogen, liquid oxygen onboard there. That would put it in the category of a relatively small nuclear bomb.

Now, let's take a look at what's going on inside as they get ready. Carol, you were talking about the people inside the White Room. Well, that shot's not there anymore but you can see the countdown and then you can see the space shuttle on the pad, Endeavor. Their mission is to go to the International Space Station. It will take them about two days just to catch up. When they get there, the key - well there are two big keys to this mission.

They're going to attach a big piece of the station, about a school bus size truss that will carry some solar rays and some radiators. That's important. But more important for the crew onboard, having just spent 170 days in space, their relief crew will be onboard Endeavor, and they are ready to come home.

We've been told directly by Peggy Whitson, the American crewmember onboard that she is just sick and tired of the food, Carol, and is dying to come home and if not have Thanksgiving on Thanksgiving, she will have a feast whenever she gets back. So, we'll be watching the weather here, not here so much as we will be watching in Spain. The weather here is not a problem at all.

So far, the shuttle itself is doing well. Let's go back quickly to that shot of the White Room that you were fascinated with. I'll tell you very quickly about this team. This group, they call them the Caped Crusaders. They all have numbers on their backs so they can keep track of them all.

John Herrington, one of the crewmembers onboard who just got strapped in, the first Native American to go to space when it happens, spent two and a half years here working as a Caped Crusader. He says he's pretty happy to be on the inside of the hatch this go-round. There's John Herrington before he strapped in a little while ago getting ready to go.

The Chickasaw Nation is a very proud Native American Nation right now. We got some tape. We'll lose that live up at the left here. This is taped shots from a little while ago. The right-hand corner there, Jim Weatherbee, and then one of those Caped Crusaders, doing his job, strapping in, waiting for the day when he gets to be on the inside of the hatch - Carol.

LIN: Oh, so that's what Caped Crusaders grow up to be, astronauts.

O'BRIEN: Yes. LIN: Yes, our hero.

O'BRIEN: Astronauts.

LIN: All right, thanks so much Miles. We'll be looking forward to your coverage later tonight. We'll keep our fingers crossed for Endeavor.

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com