Local Man Will Spend Birthday In Space

Lynchburg News & Advance
Published: February 4, 2008

After almost two months of waiting, local astronaut Leland Melvin and the space shuttle Atlantis crew are to arrive at the Kennedy Space Center today to gear up for Thursday’s scheduled launch.

Because of the new schedule, which will have them in orbit from Thursday until Feb. 18, Melvin will be in space for his birthday on Feb. 15.

“That will be a wonderful birthday present,” said his sister, Cathy Melvin Clarke, who is flying down to Florida with the family on Wednesday.

The launch is set for 2:45 p.m. Thursday.

Atlantis was originally scheduled to lift off in early December, but fuel sensors in the external tank failed late in the countdown, causing the launch to be scrubbed. The sensors are part of the fuel cutoff sensor system, one of several systems that protect the shuttle’s main engines by triggering their shutdown if fuel runs unexpectedly low.

After a tanking test in mid-December, a faulty connector was discovered as the culprit, and a modified one has since been installed.

Another problem arose during launch preparations last week, when technicians noticed a bent radiator hose in Atlantis’ payload bay. But engineers designed a tool to guide the hose, which carries Freon, back into its storage box. That was expected to solve the problem, officials said Friday. Melvin, a 1982 Heritage High School graduate, has been in quarantine since Friday. He has kept in contact with Clarke and his parents, Grace and Deems Melvin, by phone.

“He’s just trying to focus on what he’s going to do,” Clarke said. “He realizes this is an important mission. (It wasn’t) just America waiting (for the launch). Other countries have been waiting for this moment for a long time.”

Atlantis’ main mission is to deliver the Columbus laboratory to the International Space Station. The lab, which was built in Italy and outfitted in Germany, will be the second dedicated research facility taken to the station. It holds 10 racks, each approximately the size of a phone booth, which are dedicated to space science experiments.

Melvin has a key role in the lab’s delivery. As a mission specialist, he will operate the space station’s 58-foot robotic arm to move the lab out of the shuttle’s cargo hold and onto the station. He will also command the robotic arm to carry his fellow astronauts on three planned space walks.

Back in December, nearly 300 of Melvin’s family and friends came to Florida for the attempted launch.

This time, Clarke said they’re expecting about 100 people to make the return trip.

“It’s great,” she says. “We’re just waiting and maintaining.”