Space shuttle Endeavour prepares for final launch April 29

Preparations are underway for space shuttle Endeavour’s final mission, with the launch time tentatively scheduled for 3:47 p.m. on Friday, April 29. The entire space shuttle program is expected to end this summer with Discovery’s final mission, so thousands of space buffs and curious onlookers are expected to descend upon Florida’s Space Coast for Endeavour’s final mission, STS-134.

Orlando visitors can reach the Space Coast via the Beach Line Expressway (SR 528). The drive to the Space Coast might only last an hour, depending on how close it is to the launch but be prepared for at least a four hour drive back to Orlando after the launch.

According to the NASA.gov website, Endeavour will deliver the Alpha Magnetic Spectrometer (AMS) and spare parts including two S-band communications antennas, a high-pressure gas tank, additional spare parts to the International Space Station during its 14 day mission. The commander of the mission will be Mark Kelly, who will be joined by Pilot Gregory H. Johnson and Mission Specialists Michael Fincke, Greg Chamitoff, Andrew Feustel and European Space Agency astronaut Roberto Vittori.

After this mission, Endeavour will retire and be sent to the California Science Center in Los Angeles. Atlantis will have its final mission later this year (with a target launch date of June 28) and will remain at Kennedy Space Center on permanent display upon its return. Space shuttle Discovery, which had its final mission in February, will be sent to the Smithsonian Air and Space Museum.

Since shuttle launches can be scrubbed for a number of reasons right up until the last few minutes of the countdown, always check http://www.nasa.gov/ or a local news station, such as http://www.wesh.com/ for the latest updates on the status of the mission.