NASA's Shuttle Endeavour Launches to Complete Japanese Module

July 15, 2009

Katherine Trinidad
Headquarters, Washington
202-358-1100


Candrea Thomas
Kennedy Space Center, Fla.
321-867-2468


RELEASE: 09-160

NASA'S SHUTTLE ENDEAVOUR LAUNCHES TO COMPLETE JAPANESE MODULE

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. -- Space shuttle Endeavour and its seven-member
crew launched at 6:03 p.m. EDT Wednesday from NASA's Kennedy Space
Center in Florida. The mission will deliver the final segment to the
Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency's Kibo laboratory and a new crew
member to the International Space Station.

Endeavour's 16-day mission includes five spacewalks and the
installation of two platforms outside the Japanese module. One
platform is permanent and will allow experiments to be directly
exposed to space. The other is an experiment storage pallet that will
be detached and returned with the shuttle. During the mission, Kibo's
robotic arm will transfer three experiments from the pallet to the
exposed platform. Future experiments also can be moved to the
platform from the inside of the station using the laboratory's
airlock.

Shortly before liftoff, Commander Mark Polansky thanked the teams
that
helped make the launch possible.

"Endeavour has patiently waited for this," said Polansky. "We're
ready
to go, and we're going to take all of you with us on a great
mission."

Polansky is joined on STS-127 by Pilot Doug Hurley and Mission
Specialists Christopher Cassidy, Tom Marshburn, Dave Wolf, Canadian
Space Agency astronaut Julie Payette and Tim Kopra. Kopra will
replace space station crew member Koichi Wakata, who has been aboard
the station for more than three months. Kopra will return to Earth
during the next station shuttle mission, STS-128, targeted to launch
in August 2009. Hurley, Cassidy Marshburn and Kopra are first-time
space fliers.

Endeavour's first landing opportunity at Kennedy is scheduled for
Friday, July 31 at 10:45 a.m. STS-127 is the 127th space shuttle
flight, the 29th to the station, the 23rd for Endeavour and the third
in 2009.

NASA is providing continuous television and Internet coverage of
Endeavour's mission. NASA Television features live mission events,
daily mission status news conferences and 24-hour commentary. For
NASA TV streaming video, downlink and schedule information, visit:

http://www.nasa.gov/ntv

NASA's Web coverage of STS-127 includes current mission information,
interactive features, news conference images, graphics and videos.
Mission coverage, including the latest NASA TV schedule, also is
available on the main space shuttle Web site at:

http://www.nasa.gov/shuttle

Polansky will send updates about the mission from space to his
Twitter
account, Astro_127. He can be followed at:

http://www.twitter.com/Astro_127

Live updates to the NASA News Twitter feed will be added throughout
the shuttle mission and landing. To access the NASA News Twitter
feed, visit:

http://www.twitter.com/nasa

Daily news conferences with STS-127 mission managers will take place
at NASA's Johnson Space Center in Houston. During normal business
hours of 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday, reporters may ask
questions from participating NASA locations. Please contact your
preferred NASA facility before its daily close of business to confirm
its availability before each event.


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