WIKIARCHIVES.SPACE

A field of wildflowers rings the hardstand as the Space Shuttle Columbia completes the journey from the Vehicle Assembly Building to Launch Pad 39B. After Columbia is hard-down on the pad, upcoming activities will include pad validations, hot-firing of orbiter Auxiliary Power Unit no. 1, and a flight readiness test of the main propulsion system. Next week the astronauts assigned to Mission STS-80 will be at KSC for the Terminal Countdown Demonstration Test (TCDT), a dress rehearsal for launch. Columbia is scheduled to lift off on Mission STS-80 around Nov. 8.