Kennedy Space Center
CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - NASA's Kennedy Space Center, Fla., will reopen Thursday at 10 a.m. EDT for "mission essential" personnel. Kennedy has been closed since Tuesday because of Tropical Storm Fay, which is continuing to bring heavy rain and wind to the region.
Individual center supervisors will define which workers are considered "mission essential." These will include employees who are needed to ensure center infrastructure is safe and working, and personnel who process spaceflight hardware, such as space shuttles and Hubble Space Telescope equipment. A liberal leave policy for employees will be in effect Thursday. Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex will remain closed Thursday, but reopen on Friday.
Plans call for the center to open to all employees and return to full operation Friday.
Based on initial assessments, there are no injuries, damage to flight hardware or flooding associated with Fay at the center. Only minor damage has been seen on a few facilities, including the Vehicle Assembly Building, which lost one exterior panel from its east side.
About 200 emergency personnel, known as a "ride-out crew," will remain on-site overnight into Thursday morning to provide real-time storm assessments.
-----Posted Added-----
Plans to recall "mission essential" personnel this morning has been scrapped as TS Fay has stalled over the area and is continuing to bring heavy raind and wind to KSC, CCAFS and PAFB.
-----Posted Added-----
The 11 am EDT NHC update is pretty much the same as the earlier one. TS Fay is holding steady northeast of KSC. Below is the forecast discussion from the NHC:
000
WTNT41 KNHC 211441
TCDAT1
TROPICAL STORM FAY DISCUSSION NUMBER 24
NWS TPC/NATIONAL HURRICANE CENTER MIAMI FL AL062008
1100 AM EDT THU AUG 21 2008
THERE IS BASICALLY NOTHING NEW TO REPORT. FAY HAS BEEN MEANDERING
FOR THE PAST 12 HOURS OR SO WITH LITTLE CHANGE IN INTENSITY. LATEST
MINIMUM PRESSURE REPORTED BY A RECONNAISSANCE PLANE WAS 994 MB AND
FLIGHT LEVEL WINDS SUPPORT AN INITIAL INTENSITY OF 50 KT.
SATELLITE IMAGES SHOW NUMEROUS RAINBANDS AND DEEP CONVECTION
MAINLY TO THE NORTHEAST OF THE CENTER WITH A WELL-DEFINED
UPPER-LEVEL OUTFLOW. NWS DOPPLER RADAR CLEARLY SHOWS A SPINNING
RING OF CONVECTION WITH DOPPLER VELOCITIES OF UP TO 67 KNOTS AT
APPROXIMATELY 5000 FEET. HOWEVER...FAY DOES NOT HAVE AN INNER
CORE. ALTHOUGH THE ATMOSPHERIC CONDITIONS ARE QUITE FAVORABLE FOR
STRENGTHENING...THE INTERACTION WITH LAND SHOULD IMPEDE IT. NO
SIGNIFICANT CHANGE IN STRENGTH IS FORECAST BEFORE THE CENTER MOVES
INLAND WITHIN THE NEXT 12 HOURS OR SO. THEREAFTER...FAY SHOULD
BEGIN TO WEAKEN BUT A TRACK FATHER SOUTH THAN INDICATED COULD BRING
THE CENTER OVER THE NORTHEAST GULF OF MEXICO. IN THIS CASE...FAY
SHOULD NOT WEAKEN AS MUCH AS FORECAST...AND DO NOT RULE OUT THE
POSSIBILITY OF SLIGHT STRENGTHENING IF THE CENTER OF FAY REMAINS
OVER WATER LONGER THAN ANTICIPATED.
STEERING CURRENTS HAVE REMAINED VERY LIGHT...CONSEQUENTLY FAY HAS
BARELY MOVED SINCE YESTERDAY. GLOBAL MODELS INSIST ON THE
DEVELOPMENT OF A HIGH PRESSURE SYSTEM NORTH OF FAY. THIS PATTERN
SHOULD FORCE THE CYCLONE TO MOVE SLOWLY TOWARD THE WEST-NORTHWEST
OR WEST...A MOTION WE HAVE BEEN FORECASTING BUT HAS NOT MATERIALIZED
YET. NEVERTHELESS...THE DEVELOPING STEERING PATTERN GIVES ME NO
OPTION BUT TO FORECAST A TURN TO THE LEFT WHICH SHOULD BEGIN SOON.
THIS IS CONSISTENT WITH ALL GLOBAL MODELS AND TRACK GUIDANCE.
REGARDLESS OF ITS EXACT TRACK...FAY WILL BE MOVING RATHER SLOWLY
DURING THE NEXT SEVERAL DAYS...POSING A SIGNIFICANT HEAVY RAINFALL
AND FLOOD HAZARD TO A VERY LARGE AREA.
-----Posted Added-----
The NHC is reporting that Fay is on the move again, albeit slowly at 2 MPH:
000
WTNT31 KNHC 211750
TCPAT1
BULLETIN
TROPICAL STORM FAY INTERMEDIATE ADVISORY NUMBER 24A
NWS TPC/NATIONAL HURRICANE CENTER MIAMI FL AL062008
200 PM EDT THU AUG 21 2008
...CENTER OF TROPICAL STORM FAY BEGINNING TO CROSS THE FLORIDA EAST
COAST NEAR FLAGLER BEACH...
A TROPICAL STORM WARNING REMAINS IN EFFECT FROM FORT PIERCE FLORIDA
NORTHWARD TO THE SAVANNAH RIVER AT THE BORDER BETWEEN GEORGIA AND
SOUTH CAROLINA.
FOR STORM INFORMATION SPECIFIC TO YOUR AREA...INCLUDING POSSIBLE
INLAND WATCHES AND WARNINGS...PLEASE MONITOR PRODUCTS ISSUED
BY YOUR LOCAL WEATHER OFFICE.
AT 200 PM EDT...1800Z...THE CENTER OF TROPICAL STORM FAY WAS
LOCATED NEAR LATITUDE 29.4 NORTH...LONGITUDE 81.0 WEST...OR VERY
NEAR FLAGLER BEACH FLORIDA.
FAY HAS BEGUN TO MOVE TOWARD THE WEST-NORTHWEST AT 2 MPH...3 KM/HR.
THIS GENERAL SLOW MOTION SHOULD CONTINUE FOR THE NEXT COUPLE OF
DAYS. ON THIS TRACK...FAY IS FORECAST TO MOVE SLOWLY ACROSS THE
NORTHERN FLORIDA PENINSULA TODAY...AND BE VERY NEAR THE GULF COAST
OF THE FLORIDA PANHANDLE BY LATE FRIDAY OR EARLY SATURDAY.
MAXIMUM SUSTAINED WINDS REMAIN NEAR 60 MPH...95 KM/HR...WITH HIGHER
GUSTS. NO SIGNIFICANT CHANGE IN STRENGTH AS THE CENTER MOVES INLAND
LATER TODAY. A GRADUAL WEAKENING SHOULD BEGIN AFTER FAY MOVES
INLAND OVER THE FLORIDA PENINSULA.
TROPICAL STORM FORCE WINDS EXTEND OUTWARD UP TO 150 MILES...240 KM
MAINLY TO THE EAST OF THE CENTER. ST. AUGUSTINE FLORIDA JUST
REPORTED A WIND GUST OF 56 MPH...91 KM/HR.
ESTIMATED MINIMUM CENTRAL PRESSURE IS 993 MB...29.32 INCHES.
FAY IS EXPECTED TO PRODUCE RAINFALL ACCUMULATIONS OF 5 TO 10 INCHES
ACROSS THE CENTRAL TO NORTHERN PORTION OF THE FLORIDA
PENINSULA...INCLUDING THE FLORIDA PANHANDLE...SOUTHERN
GEORGIA...AND SOUTHEASTERN ALABAMA...WITH ISOLATED MAXIMUM AMOUNTS
OF 15 INCHES POSSIBLE. RAINFALL TOTALS OF 2 TO 4 INCHES ARE
POSSIBLE ACROSS THE COASTAL AREAS OF SOUTHERN SOUTH CAROLINA.
ADDITIONAL RAINFALL AMOUNTS OF 1 TO 2 INCHES ARE POSSIBLE OVER
SOUTHWEST AND SOUTHERN FLORIDA. ISOLATED STORM TOTAL ACCUMULATIONS
OF 20 TO 30 INCHES HAVE BEEN OBSERVED WITH THIS SYSTEM OVER THE EAST
CENTRAL COASTAL AREAS OF FLORIDA.
STORM SURGE FLOODING OF 1 TO 3 FEET ABOVE NORMAL TIDES IS POSSIBLE
ALONG THE EAST COAST OF FLORIDA AND GEORGIA TO THE NORTH OF THE
CENTER OF FAY.
REPEATING THE 200 PM EDT POSITION...29.4 N...81.0 W. MOVEMENT
TOWARD...WEST-NORTHWEST NEAR 2 MPH. MAXIMUM SUSTAINED WINDS...60
MPH. MINIMUM CENTRAL PRESSURE...993 MB.
THE NEXT ADVISORY WILL BE ISSUED BY THE NATIONAL HURRICANE CENTER AT
500 PM EDT.
$$
FORECASTER AVILA