NASA now is targeting May 20 for launch instead of April 24 after another Atlas V government launch, also on Launch Complex 41, experienced technical problems and was delayed.
NASA's Lunar Crater Observation Sensing Satellite, or LCROSS arrived at the Astrotech facility in Titusville, Fla., near Kennedy Space Center, on Feb. 19. It is now undergoing checkout and prelaunch preparations. The spacecraft is managed by NASA's Ames Research Center in Moffett Field, Calif.
NASA's Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter, or LRO, arrived at the Astrotech facility on Feb. 13. The spacecraft was uncrated and transferred to Astrotech the same day, where covers were removed and technicians performed a black-light inspection.
The spacecraft's solar arrays were attached and deployed, and a spacecraft activation test was conducted on Feb. 15. The Deep Space Network end-to-end test was completed last week. LRO and LCROSS will be integrated in mid-April. LRO is managed by NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, Md.
The Centaur stage of the Atlas V arrived at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station on Feb. 20. It was offloaded and transported to the Atlas Spaceflight Operations Center facility on Feb. 21.
The launch vehicle fairing halves arrived at Astrotech on Feb 26. The Atlas payload fairings were moved from Astrotech's north encapsulation bay into the facility's spin bay on March 3.
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