KSC-2009-6321

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - At NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, the astronauts on the STS-129 crew, dressed in their orange launch-and-entry suits, pause for a group portrait in front of the Astrovan that will take them to Launch Pad 39A. From left are Mission Specialists Robert L. Satcher Jr., Mike Foreman, Randy Bresnik and Leland Melvin; Pilot Barry E. Wilmore; and Commander Charles O. Hobaugh. Liftoff is set for 2:28 p.m. EST Nov. 16. On STS-129, the crew will deliver two Express Logistics Carriers to the International Space Station, the largest of the shuttle's cargo carriers, containing 15 spare pieces of equipment including two gyroscopes, two nitrogen tank assemblies, two pump modules, an ammonia tank assembly and a spare latching end effector for the station's robotic arm. Atlantis will return to Earth a station crew member, Nicole Stott, who has spent more than two months aboard the orbiting laboratory. STS-129 is slated to be the final space shuttle Expedition crew rotation flight. For information on the STS-129 mission and crew, visit http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/shuttle/shuttlemissions/sts129/index.html. Photo credit: NASA/Kim Shiflett