Postponed of Launch of NASA's Space Shuttle Endeavour


Space shuttle Endeavour's launch to the International Space Station has been postponed until Sunday to give technical teams more time to evaluate lightning strikes at the launch pad that occurred during thunderstorms Friday. Liftoff is scheduled for 7:13 p.m. EDT.

Sensors indicted there were 11 lightning strikes within 0.35 miles, which is inside the launch pad's threshold. Teams have seen nothing so far that indicates anything has been affected.

The Mission Management Team will meet at 8 a.m. Sunday to evaluate the latest data. Fueling of the external fuel tank is scheduled to begin at 9:48 a.m. Sunday.

The 16-day STS-127 mission will feature five spacewalks and complete construction of the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency's Kibo laboratory. Astronauts will attach a platform to the outside of the Japanese module that will allow experiments to be exposed to space.