SPACEPHOTOS

(12/01/2001) - STS-109 Pilot Duane Carey checks the windshield and windows from inside Columbia. This is Carey's first Shuttle flight. He and the crew are at KSC to take part in Crew Equipment Interface Test activities that include familiarization with the orbiter and equipment. STS-109 is the Hubble Space Telescope (HST) Servicing mission. The crew also comprises Commander Scott Altman, Payload Commander John Grunsfeld and Mission Specialists Nancy Currie, James Newman, Richard Linnehan and Michael Massimino. The goal of the mission is to service the HST, replacing Solar Array 2 with Solar Array 3, replacing the Power Control Unit, removing the Faint Object Camera and installing the Advanced Camera for Surveys, installing the Near Infrared Camera and Multi-Object Spectrometer (NICMOS) Cooling System, and installing New Outer Blanket Layer insulation on bays 5 through 8. Mission STS-109 is scheduled for launch Feb. 14, 2002