Atlantis Set to Return to Earth

Boston (DbTechNo) - Astronauts aboard the space shuttle Atlantis have finished preparing for the return trip to earth and will arrive back on solid ground today.

They are scheduled to touch down at 9:44 a.m. EST, and so far the weather is cooperating nicely.

The crew have spent the last little while visiting the International Space Station, bringing needed supplies and performing numerous space walks.

The crew tested all re-entry systems to make sure they were working properly, and have been given the green light from mission control.

“Our thermal protection system has been cleared for entry,” said Flight Director Bryan Lunney. “We did a late inspection yesterday and folks looked at the data and it looks really good, the system is in great shape for entry tomorrow.”

“Everything in the flight control system checked out really, really well, that system is in great shape,” Lunney said. “In addition, we did our reaction control system hotfire. We fired all 38 thrusters twice, verified they all look really good and they’re performing exactly as we expect. So those 38 thrusters are ready for entry as well.”

If for any reason the crew can not re-enter the earth’s atmosphere on schedule, they will have one more chance tomorrow to do so.