NEUROLAB SHUTTLE MISSION TO LAUNCH APRIL 16



April 3, 1998



Debbie Rahn / Jennifer McCarter
Headquarters, Washington, DC
(Phone: 202/358-1639)



George Diller
Kennedy Space Center, FL
(Phone: 407/867-2468)



Ed Campion
Johnson Space Center, Houston, TX
(Phone: 281/483-5111)

<h4>Release: N98-25</h4> <h3>Neurolab Shuttle Mission to Launch April 
16</h3> 

Space Shuttle program managers today affirmed April 16 as thelaunch 
date for NASA's second Shuttle mission of 1998 -- a two week life 
sciences research flight that will focus on the most complex and 
least understood part of the human body, the nervous system.



The Flight Readiness Review held at NASA's Kennedy Space Center, FL, 
yesterday is the final major review by all Shuttle project offices to 
evaluate the readiness of the flight crew and vehicle, along with 
launch and mission control flight teams, to support the launch of 
Space Shuttle Columbia on the STS-90 Neurolab mission.



Columbia is scheduled for launch on April 16, 1998 from NASA's Kennedy 
Space Center Launch Complex 39-B. The 2 1/2 hour available launch 
window opens at 2:19 p.m. EDT. The STS-90 mission is scheduled to 
last 15 days, 21 hours, 50 minutes. However, mission managers are 
reserving an option of extending the flight one additional day for 
science operations if Shuttle electrical power margins permit. A 
launch on April 16, and a 16- or 17- day nominal mission would have 
Columbia landing at Kennedy on May 2 or 3.



The STS-90 Mission Commander is Richard A. Searfoss. Pilot for the 
flight is Scott D. Altman. There are three mission specialists 
assigned to this mission -- Richard M. Linnehan, who is also serving 
as the Payload Commander; Kathryn P. (Kay) Hire; and Dafydd (Dave) 
Rhys Williams from the Canadian Space Agency. Two payload specialists 
-- Jay Clark Buckey, Jr., and James A. (Jim) Pawelczyk -- round out 
the seven member STS-90 crew.



STS-90 will be the 25th flight of Columbia and the 90th mission flown 
since the start of the Space Shuttle program in April 1981.



For complete biographical information on the STS-90 crew and other 
astronauts, see the NASA Internet astronaut biography home page at 
URL: http://www.jsc.nasa.gov/Bios/

	
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