Space shuttle Atlantis was fueled Monday for one last flight to the Hubble Space Telescope, an extraordinarily ambitious repair mission that NASA hopes will lift the celebrated observatory to new scientific heights.
The seven astronauts who will attempt the complicated, riskier than usual job shouted, waved and raised their fists as they headed out to the pad, eager to get going after waiting seven months to fly. Their flight was delayed last fall, two weeks before the scheduled launch, after the orbiting telescope broke down.
"Let's go!" commander Scott Altman said. "Yeah!"
Near perfect weather was forecast for the afternoon liftoff. NASA also was keeping an eye on the weather at the emergency landing strip in Spain, where there was a slight chance of rain.
As the sun rose in a clear sky, NASA finished loading Atlantis' big external fuel tank. A mile away on the other pad stood shuttle Endeavour, primed for a rescue in case Atlantis is battered by launch debris or space junk.
Many of the expected 30,000 people began gathering at Kennedy Space Center for the launch — scheduled for just after 2 p.m. EDT — including space center workers and guests. The Hubble scientists and managers were euphoric to finally be so close to liftoff.
