The mission is especially important to this Lockheed Martin crew. Many of them worked on the two Mars probes that vanished in 1999 because of a math error and a still-undiagnosed propulsion problem. Spacecraft technicians Terry Kampmann, left, and Dick Bryan align the Mars Odyssey orbiter for further assembly after its arrival at Kennedy Space Center. The NASA craft is scheduled to be launched April 7 and to start orbiting Mars on Oct. 20. Now, there is probably nothing on there that is the same.
Space travel is very much about taking risks.
He lined up the C-17 cargo plane that would carry the load. Miss this one and the team will have to wait two years. We do not get bumped. The trickiest part of the trip is when Welton and his crew winch the spacecraft into the belly of the plane, cross the country and then offload it. This is definitely a career highlight.