CAPE CANAVERAL, FL. - NASA has chosen May 11 as the launch date for its last repair mission to the Hubble Space Telescope.
Space shuttle Atlantis is set to blast off then on the highly awaited 11-day flight. Senior managers who met at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida have concluded that the shuttle and Hubble teams could meet a launch date that was one day earlier than planned. Liftoff had been targeted for May 12th.
Atlantis's crew will conduct five spacewalks to replace and repair science instruments at Hubble.
They'll also install new equipment that should keep the orbiting telescope running for another five to 10 years.
The mission had been scheduled for last fall, but a breakdown at the telescope delayed everything for seven months.
