STS-118 Mission Specialist Barbara R. Morgan is helped by the closeout crew with final preparations of her launch and entry suit.

In the White Room on Launch Pad 39A, STS-118 Mission Specialist Barbara R. Morgan is helped by the closeout crew with final preparations of her launch and entry suit. Morgan is a teacher-turned-astronaut making her first space flight. Behind her is Mission Specialist Tracy Caldwell, also making her first flight. The outer end of the orbiter access arm ends in an environmental chamber (the White Room) that mates with the orbiter and allows personnel to enter the crew compartment. With assistance, each member of the flight crew dons a parachute pack before crawling through the open hatch into the shuttle. The closeout crew also straps the astronauts into the space shuttle's crew module and takes care of any other last-minute needs that arise. Space Shuttle Endeavour's STS-118 mission is the 22nd shuttle flight to the International Space Station. It will continue space station construction by delivering a third starboard truss segment, S5, and other payloads such as the SPACEHAB module and the external stowage platform 3. Liftoff of Endeavour is scheduled at 6:36 p.m. EDT. Photo credit: NASA/John Kechele, Scott Haun, Tom Farrar