Close lightning strikes can be cause for walk-downs or retests. Lightning data, when it is collected, is evaluated to determine if any damage has occurred to the shuttle and/or the launch pad. If a severe weather event occurs prior to launch, the shuttle vehicle and launch pad is inspected for damage. A severe weather thunderstorm is defined as having the potential to produce winds “50 knots or greater, hail and/or tornadic activity” (Voorhees, 2011). Therefore, a “GO” was given for launch for weather! It should be mentioned that not only are there weather concerns during launch for Kennedy Space Center but also the Transoceanic Abort Landing sites (TAL) weather sites.Īs the STS-134 launch day loomed, meteorologists spent their time evaluating whether severe weather systems would be a concern (i.e., electrical energy). Prior to the STS-134 launch, the possibility of thunderstorms had been anticipated in the area that did not occur. These systems help to determine whether lightning might affect ground or vehicle systems. The 45 th operates the Four Dimensional Lightning Surveillance System (4DLSS), the Cloud to Ground Lightning Surveillance System (CGLSS), the Launch Pad Lightning Warning System (LPLWS, a network of 31 surface electric field mills), and the National Lightning Detection Network (NLDN). Any lightning-related data that would have impacted STS-134’s launch commit criteria for Kennedy Space Center on May 16th would have been provided by the 45th Weather Squadron. “8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1, 0 … and liftoff for the final launch of Endeavour, expanding our knowledge and expanding our lives in space.” On Monday, May 16, 2011, Space Shuttle Endeavour (Shuttle Transportation System: STS-134) was launched at 8:56am on its last and final mission from Kennedy Space Center, Florida.Ĭentral Florida is considered “Lightning Alley” because it experiences the highest lightning activity in the United States.
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