Launch Prep

#otd Technicians prepare space shuttle Discovery's external fuel tank for a tanking test on Launch Pad 39A at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida. During the test, engineers monitor what happens to 21-foot long, U-shaped aluminum brackets, called stringers, located at the intertank, as well as the newly replaced ground umbilical carrier plate (GUCP), during the loading of cryogenic propellants. Teams already installed environmental enclosures on the tank, removed foam and prepared the tank's skin for approximately 89 strain gauges and thermocouples, 10 December 2010. #nasa #spaceshuttle #aviationsafari #aviationpreservation #boneyardsafari #aviationadventures