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Update 4: I’ve replaced the original NASA TV footage below with the official STS-127 launch HD footage.
Update 3: STS-127 launch footage from NASA TV

Update 2: Check out the amazing launch photos from Flying Jenny.

Update 1: 22:11:40 UT – Main Engine Cut-off (MECO)

July 15, 2009 at 22:03:10 UT, after two launch scrubs on June 13 and June 17 due to gaseous hydrogen leak on a vent line near the Ground Umbilical Carrier Plate, the saturday’s 24-hour delay to allow technical teams additional time to evaluate lightning strikes. and the  July 12 and July 13 scrubs due to unacceptable weather forecast for a possible Return To Launch Site (RTLS) abort, NASA successfully launched the Space Shuttle Endeavour on its its 23rd mission – the 10th to the International Space Station (ISS). Seven crew members of STS-127, commanded by NASA veteran Mark Polansky (STS-98, STS-116), will stay in space 15 days 16 hours and 42 minutes and land at the Kennedy Space Center at 14:45 UTC on July 31. Mission specialists Dave Wolf, Chris Cassidy, Tom Mashburn and Tim Kopra will combine for 31 hours and 45 minutes during 5 planed spacewalks (EVA). Endeavour will dock to the forward docking port at the end of the station’s Harmony module in two days.

Space shuttle Endeavour climbs toward orbit after its liftoff at 22:03 UTC. Photo credit: NASA TV

Space Shuttle Endeavour launch from Kennedy Space Center - Photo Credit: Flying Jenny

Space Shuttle Endeavour launch from KSC - Photo Credit: Flying Jenny

Julie Payette (STS-96) will return to the ISS after 10 years as a mission specialist operating the Shuttle Remote Manipulator System (SRMS) aka Canadarm (Canadarm 1) and the Mobile Servicing System (MSS), better known by its primary component Canadarm2. In a meeting of generations, Julie Payette and Robert Thirsk (55) of Expedition 20, a member of the Canadian Space Agency (CSA) committee which selected her from a pool of 5,330 applicants, will be the first two Canadian astronaut in space at the same time.

The crew of STS-127 - Source: NASA

STS-127 will be the first spaceflight for the shuttle pilot Doug Hurley and mission specialists Christopher Cassidy (who will, based on where he sits on the shuttle, become the 500th person in history to fly into space) , Tom Marshburn and Tim Kopra. Mission specialist Dave Wolf has never flown the shuttle but has spent 128 says aboard the Russian space station MIR. Koichi Wakata (STS-119) of the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency will return to Earth and Tim Kopra will join the crew of Expedition 20 as a flight engineer where he will remain until Nicole Stott of STS-128 will take his place.

One of a series of digital still images documenting the Japanese Experiment Module, or JEM, also called Kibo, in its new home on the International Space Station, this view depicts Kibo's exterior, backdropped by solar array panels for the orbital outpost and one of its trusses - Image Credit: NASA

The STS-127 mission will deliver to the station the final 2 modules of the Japanese Kibo (means “hope”) complex where science experiments will be exposed to the extreme environment of space. The first module, the Exposed Facility (EF) is a platform to perform experiments in the vacuum of space and will be attached to the Japanese pressurized module. The other module, the Exposed Section (ES) serves as a carrier for three large payloads which will be mounted to the EF during the mission.

The rest of the payload consists of:

• the Integrated Cargo Carrier (ICC-VLD) to provide heater power and electrical connections for the Orbital Replacement Units (ORU’s) and to deliver 9 large spare parts for the exterior of the space station

The Integrated Cargo Carrier configuration flown on STS-127 - Source: NASA

• the Atmosphere Neutral Density Experiment’s (ANDE) two microsatellites to gather data on the density the composition of Low-Earth Orbit (LEO) atmosphere
• the Dual RF Astrodynamic GPS Orbital Navigator Satellite (DRAGONSat) to collect GPS data on autonomous spacecraft rendezvous and docking capabilities, and finally
• the Shuttle carries also a resupply of water, food and oxygen for the station

One of the STS-127 Detailed Test Objectives (DTO’s) (which are aimed at testing, evaluating or documenting systems or hardware or proposed improvements to hardware, systems and operations) is to perform a series of tests to investigate the DragonEye laser navigation sensor, SpaceX’s Dragon vehicles will use on approach to the ISS. NASA’s Commercial Crew and Cargo Program Office (C3PO) – yes, it really is C3PO – is financing the experiment for SpaceX, a space transportation startup company, in NASA’s effort to stimulate a commercial market for spaceflight services. The SpaceX Dragon should be capable of carrying seven people or a smaller crew with cargo to the ISS. SpaceX also will perform a ground-based space qualification program to ensure the sensor can withstand the rigors of launch and operation in a space environment.

The STS-127 crew eagerly walk out of the Operations and Checkout Building to board the Astrovan - Photo Credit: NASA

Mission’s commander Mark Polansky will be the sending updates to his Twitter account via shuttle-NASA emails. 24/7 coverage of the STS-127 mission will be available on NASA TV. You can also follow the Space Shuttle Endeavour and the ISS in real time through NASA’s real time tracking. Information about out about visible ISS passes at your location is available from heavens-above.

The ground track of ISS with its current position - The dashed part of the orbit path shows where the satellite is in the earth's shadow, and the full part is where it is sunlit - Source: Heavens-Above.com

The next mission to the ISS will be STS-128, the 33rd construction flight, planned to launch on August 7 at 13:07 UTC (but now very likely to be pushed back because of the STS-127 launch delays). Shuttle Discovery will carry a Lightweight Multi-Purpose Experiment Support Structure Carrier and the Multi-Purpose Logistics Module (Leonardo) whose main purpose is to assist with establishing a six-man crew capacity by providing extra supplies and equipment to the station.

Endeavour next flight is scheduled for February 4, 2010. The STS-130 mission (assembly flight 20A) will deliver the Tranquility Node 3 and the Cupola Module to the station. The shuttle’s last visit to space is planned for July 29, 2010. During STS-133 (assembly flight ULF5) the ISS will be extended with the EXPRESS Logistics Carrier 4 (ELC4) and Multi-Purpose Logistics Module (MPLM).

Update 4: 00:34 UTC A field mill is a device situated near pad that measures the electrical charge around the pad and helps to predict potential lightning strikes.

Update 3: 00:30 UTC Crew rest did not largely factor into the decision for with a 48-hour turn around and launch of Wednesday.

Update 2: 00:00 UTC weather for Wednesday has 40% chance of prohibiting the launch. Thursday is the last option to launch STS127 until July 26.

Update 1: At 22:50 UTC NASA’s launch director Pete Nickolenko briefed the teams that the next launch attempt will be on Wednesday, July 15 with the launch window opening at 21:58 UTC. NASA will target the launch itself for 22:03:10 UTC.

July 13, 2009 at 22:39 UTC, NASA’s launch director (LD) Pete Nickolenko coordinating with the Mission Management Team (MMT) called off today’s launch of the Space Shuttle Endeavor on the STS-127 mission due violations in three weather criteria including lightning, restrictions on anvil clouds and the field mill violation, ending yet another “full dress launch rehearsal” for the crew of STS-127.

The T-9 min in-built starts - Photo Credit: NASA TV/Spacevidcast

The launch was scrubbed against during the final T-9 minute hold, while the LD and MMT were polling stations for the  Go/No-Go for launch. In addition to the launch site weather violations, the Mission Control in Houston also called a No-Go due to unacceptable weather forecast for a possible Return To Launch Site (RTLS) abort.

Thunderstorms in the launch pad 39-A area - Photo Credit: NASA TV/Spacevidcast

Update 1: 23:20 UTC the Spaceflight Meteorology Group (SMG) and the Cape Weather Officer predict 60% chance of NO GO for the launch tomorrow at 22:51 as well as a potential launch on Tuesday. (Today, the weather forecast started with 40% change of weather prohibiting the launches on Monday and Tuesday)

At 23:03 UTC NASA’s launch director Pete Nickolenko coordinating with the Mission Management Team (MMT) called off today’s launch of the Space Shuttle Endeavor on the STS-127 mission due inclement weather in the launch area as well as for a possible Return To Launch Site (RTLS) . There are launch windows opening at 22:46 UTC on Monday and 22:20 UTC on Tuesday. NASA will attempt another launch on Monday, July 13 at 22:51 UTC.

The RTLS abort is used if one or more engines shut down early and there is not enough energy to reach the Transatlantic Abort Landing (TAL) sites. The shuttle would pitch around toward KSC until reaching the gliding distance from the Shuttle Landing Facility (SLF) and carry out an abort landing. For launch to proceed, weather conditions within 20 Nautical Miles (roughly 37km) of the SLF must be forecast as acceptable for about 20 minutes after liftoff.

Today’s Launch Time-line:

Space Shuttle Endeavour on the pad 39A ready for launch tonight at 23:13 UTC - Photo Credit: NASA

~12:00 UTC – Chance of the weather prohibiting launch stays at 30% while the chance of weather prohibiting tanking is down to 10%. The primary concerns for launch are showers and thunderstorms within ~40km of the Shuttle Landing Facility (SLF).

13:16 UTC – Mission Management Team (MMT) has given a GO for tanking to start shortly after 13:30 UTC after engineering reviews have been completed and no problems with shuttle systems have been found in the post-lightning checks. 13:48 UTC – The countdown resumes at the T-6 hour mark after built-in hold.

STS-127 at T-6 hours can counting - Photo Credit: NASA TV

13:48 UTC – STS-127 Launch Director Pete Nickolenko gave a GO to start the chill-down process of the liquid oxygen and liquid hydrogen fuel lines.

13:58 UTC – Taking of liquid hydrogen (at 20K) started in the slow-fill mode and the liquid oxygen (at 90.188 K) will follow at 14:28 UTC

14:28 UTC – Launch teams began liquid oxygen tanking in the slow-fill phase adding 1,200 liters every minute.

View from inside the Launch Control Center of a monitor summarizing the External Tank (ET) fueling status - Photo Credit: NASA

14:39 UTC – Liquid oxygen tanking changes to fast-fill mode at almost 6,000 l per minute. Liquid hydrogen is also in fast-fill phase adding almost 32,000 liters every minute into the external tank (ET)

15:47 UTC – The liquid hydrogen tanking has reached 98% and will transition from fast-full to top-off at 2700 l per minute.

The Ground Umbilical Carrier Plate that was blamed for leaks which prompted two previous launch attempts by Endeavour to be scrubbed - Photo Credit: NASA TV

16:05 UTC – Launch teams keep a close eye on the readings from the Ground Umbilical Carrier Plate (GUCP) but see no indications of a leak.

16:48 UTC – The shuttle tanking went into a stable replenish and the countdown entered a 2.5 hour long inbuilt hold at T-3 hours.

The Final Inspection Team at the Pad 39-A - Photo Credit: NASA TV

18:15 UTC – The Final Inspection Team conduct a detailed analysis of the vehicle as the team walks up and down the entire launch tower. Meanwhile, the Closeout Crew, a team of technicians that straps the astronauts into the shuttle, is already at Launch Pad 39A configuring the crew module for countdown and launch.

The Closeout Crew configuring the crew module - Photo Credit: NASA TV

18:28 UTC – A Phase One Lightning Alert has been issued for the Kennedy Space Center but the situation is not unusual and the alert is likely to be canceled before the launch at 23:13 UTC.

18:30 UTC – STS-127 receive the weather briefing including weather at the abort landing sites, including the Return-To-Launch-Site (RTLS), Abort-To-Orbit (ATO) and Transatlantic-Abort-Landing (TAL)

18:53 UTC – The STS-127 crew suits-up and starts the preparations to board the Astrovan and head to the launch pad.

19:18 UTC – The countdown clocks have resumed at T-3 hours. Endeavour’s crew are preparing to depart crew quarters for the pad.

19:23 UTC – The STS-127 crew members depart the Kennedy Space Center’s Operations and Checkout Building and board the Astrovan which takes them the launch pad 39-A a few minutes away.

The crew of STS-127 in front of the Astrovan - Photo Credit: NASA

19:30 UTC – Currently the weather is NO-GO due to thunderstorm within 20NM (roughly 40km) of the launch site. The forecast still predicts a 30% chance of the weather violating the launch criteria due to storms.

21:50 UTC – The weather is again on NO-GO due to conditions for the Return To Launch Site (RTLS) abort. For launch to proceed, weather conditions must be forecast as acceptable for a possible RTLS landing at KSC about 20 minutes after liftoff.

21:58 UTC – Countdown enters a 10-minute planned hold at the T-20 minute mark

22:08 UTC – The countdown resumes at the T-20 minute mark

22:19 UTC – Countdown enters a 45-minute planned hold at the T-9 minute mark, during which the Mission Management Team and Launch Control team will conduct polls to give a final “go” decision for launch.

The ISS position and ground track about 20 minutes before the planned launch - Source: Heavens-Above.com

23:02 UTC – During the final GO / NO-GO polls Houston declares NO-GO for RTLS weather.

23:03 UTC – Phase 1Lightning warning just issued for KSC

23:03 UTC – The launch director in coordination with the MMT declared a launch scrub.

Storm approaching the launch pad 39-A - Photo Credit: NASA TV/Spacevidcast

Update 3: At 10:27 UTC Engineers at NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt confirmed the spacecraft’s lunar orbit insertion.
Update 2: The LOI burn finished at 10:26:28 UTC.  Four-and-a-half days after leaving Earth NASA’s Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter has reached its capture orbit around the Moon.

Update 1: At 10:08 UTC “Stable capture around the Moon” has been declared on a voice loop from LRO mission control.

Today at 09:47 UTC the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) control engineers executed the Lunar Orbit Insertion (LOI) engine burn lasting about 40 minutes which adjusted the spacecraft’s trajectory to be captured by the lunar gravity and enter a 200 by 3,000 km orbit around the Moon. In the next few days the mission controllers will execute a series of short orbit adjustment burns that will help the spacecraft to reach the planned 30×216 km commissioning orbit.

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LRO orbit animation – Source: NASA

Update 2: LRO’s Lunar Orbit Insertion (LOI) live stream on NASA TV starts at 9:30 UTC and the actual engine burn will occur at 9:47 UTC.

Update 1: The live LCROSS telemetry-based spacecraft animation and the visible camera images will be available at LCROSS mission page.

Last Thursday at 21:32 UTC NASA launched the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) and the Lunar Crater Observation and Sensing Satellite (LCROSS) aboard the Atlas V (401) rocket. Tomorrow, after five days in space, the LCROSS spacecraft will fly by the moon and enter into a Lunar Gravity Assist, Lunar Return Orbit (LGALRO) to position it for impact with the target lunar pole.

Graphic visualizations of the early part of the LCROSS orbit leading up to lunar swingby at Launch +5 days - Source: NASA

NASA will provide a live coverage of the event via NASA TV. The lunar swingby video stream coverage will begin approximately at 12:20 UTC. The instruments aboard LCROSS will be transmitting data back to Earth for about one hour. The first half of the live coverage will provide a view the lunar surface from an altitude of approximately 9,000 km. The expected video feed frame rate is one frame per second during this phase. In the second half, the spacecraft will perform various tasks and calibrate the onboard instruments and therefore the video feed will be updated only occasionally. The 3D visualization stream will show the spacecraft position and attitude throughout the swingby.

For the latest news follow LCROSS on Twitter or visit the LCROSS blog at NASA blogs.

If everything goes according to plan, the Space Shuttle Endeavour will take off from Pad 39A at the Kennedy Space Center (KSC) in Florida tomorrow at 11:17:15 UTC on its 23rd mission – the 10th to the International Space Station (ISS). Seven crew members of STS-127 commanded by NASA veteran Mark Polansky (STS-98, STS-116) will stay in space for 15 Days 16 Hours and 59 Minutes and land at the KSC at 16:16 UTC on June 29. Mission specialists Dave Wolf, Chris Cassidy, Tom Mashburn and Tim Kopra will combine for 31 hours and 45 minutes during 5 planed spacewalks (EVA).

The crew of STS-127 - Source: NASA

Julie Payette (STS-96) will return to the ISS after 10 years as a mission specialist operating the Shuttle Remote Manipulator System (SRMS) aka Canadarm (Canadarm 1) and the Mobile Servicing System (MSS), better known by its primary component Canadarm2. In a meeting of generations, Julie Payette and Robert Thirsk (55) of Expedition 20, a member of the Canadian Space Agency (CSA) committee which selected her from a pool of 5,330 applicants, will be the first two Canadian astronaut in space at the same time.

Patch commemorating Julie Payette's participation in STS-127 to the ISS. The patch features an image of the Earth taken from space with a robotic arm that spells out the astronaut's name in electronic circuitry - Source: NASASpaceFlight.com

STS-127 will be the first spaceflight for the shuttle pilot Doug Hurley and mission specialists Christopher Cassidy, Tom Marshburn and Tim Kopra. Mission specialist Dave Wolf has never flown the shuttle but has spent 128 says aboard the Russian space station MIR. Koichi Wakata (STS-119) of the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency will return to Earth and Tim Kopra will join the crew of Expedition 20 as a flight engineer where he will remain until August when Nicole Stott of STS-128 will take his place.

Pressurized Module of the Japanese Experiment Module (JEM) "Kibo" seen at Mitsubishi Heavy Industries in Nagoya, Japan - Source: NASDA

The mission will deliver to the station 2 modules of the Japanese Kibo (means “hope”) complex where science experiments will be exposed to the extreme environment of space. The rest of the payload consists of the ICC-VLD to provide heater power and electrical connections for the Orbital Replacement Units (ORU’s), the Atmosphere Neutral Density Experiment’s (ANDE) two microsatellites to gather data on the density and the composition of Low-Earth Orbit (LEO) atmosphere and finally, the Dual RF Astrodynamic GPS Orbital Navigator Satellite (DRAGONSat) to collect GPS data on autonomous spacecraft rendezvous and docking capabilities. The Shuttle carries also a resupply of water, food and oxygen for the station.

One of the STS-127 Detailed Test Objectives (DTO’s) is to perform a series of tests to investigate the DragonEye laser navigation sensor, SpaceX’s Dragon vehicles will use on approach to the ISS. NASA’s Commercial Crew and Cargo Program Office (C3PO) – yes, it really is C3PO – is financing the experiment for SpaceX, a space transportation startup company, in NASA’s effort to stimulate a commercial market for spaceflight services. The SpaceX Dragon should be capable of carrying seven people or a smaller crew with cargo to the ISS.

Today, at 18:52 UTC, the countdown will resume at T-11 after a built-in 13 hours and 52 minutes hold. At 01:52 UTC on Saturday, the external fuel tank will be loaded with 2.2  million liters of liquid hydrogen fuel and liquid oxygen oxidizer. At 07:27 UTC the crew will depart KSC Operations and Checkout Building and board the Astrovan to take them to the launch pad 39A a few minutes away. During the last built-in hold at T-9 minutes, the Launch Director Bryan Lunney, Mission Management Team and NASA Test Director Steve Payne will conduct the final “go/no go” polls for the launch.

Mission’s commander Mark Polansky will be the sending updates to his Twitter account via shuttle-NASA emails. 24/7 coverage of the STS-127 mission will be available on NASA TV. You can also follow the Space Shuttle Endeavour and the ISS in real time through NASA’s real time tracking. Information about out about visible ISS passes at your location is available from heavens-above.

ISS Ground track - Source: Heavens-Above.com

The next mission to the ISS will be STS-128, the 33rd construction flight, planned to launch on August 7 at 13:07 UTC. Shuttle Discovery will carry a Lightweight Multi-Purpose Experiment Support Structure Carrier and the Multi-Purpose Logistics Module (Leonardo) whose main purpose is to assist with establishing a six-man crew capacity by providing extra supplies and equipment to the station.

Endeavour next flight is scheduled for February 4, 2010. The STS-130 mission (assembly flight 20A) will deliver the Tranquility Node 3 and the Cupola Module to the station. The shuttle’s last visit to space is planned for July 29, 2010. During STS-133 (assembly flight ULF5) the ISS will be extended with the EXPRESS Logistics Carrier 4 (ELC4) and Multi-Purpose Logistics Module (MPLM).