Atlantis Powered Down, Crew Practice Entry

At NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, technicians will power down Atlantis today for the final time before its move, or rollover, from Orbiter Processing Facility-1 to the Vehicle Assembly Building on Oct. 6.

A structural leak test of the aft section of Atlantis, as well as a pressure test of the orbiter compartment, also will be performed.

The STS-129 mission astronauts will conduct an integrated entry simulation today at NASA's Johnson Space Center in Houston.

The simulator is a mock-up of a shuttle cockpit, balanced on a hydraulic platform and loaded with the same instruments and equipment of a real shuttle.

Launch of the STS-129 mission to the International Space Station is targeted for 4:04 p.m. EST Nov. 12.