KSC-08pd3412

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. – At the 195-foot level of the fixed service structure on Launch Pad 39A at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, STS-126 Mission Specialist Shane Kimbrough (right) reaches toward the release mechanism for the slidewire basket used for emergency exit from the pad. Watching are Mission Specialist Heidemarie Stefanyshyn-Piper, at left, and Pilot Eric Boe, at center. The crew is at Kennedy to take part in the Terminal Countdown Demonstration Test, which includes equipment familiarization, emergency exit training and a simulated launch countdown. On the STS-126 mission, space shuttle Endeavour's crew will deliver equipment and supplies to the International Space Station in preparation for expansion from a three- to six-person resident crew aboard the complex. The mission also will include four spacewalks to service the station’s Solar Alpha Rotary Joints. Endeavour is targeted to launch Nov. 14. Photo credit: NASA/Kim Shiflett