KSC-2010-2122

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - On Launch Pad 39A at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, the members of space shuttle Discovery's STS-131 crew receive further training on the pad's emergency exit system by the catch nets for the slidewire baskets at the base of the pad. The emergency exit system includes seven baskets suspended from seven slidewires that extend from the fixed service structure to a landing zone 1,200 feet west of the pad. From left, in the blue flight suits, are Mission Specialists Rick Mastracchio, Dorothy Metcalf-Lindenburger, and Naoko Yamazaki of the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency; Commander Alan Poindexter; Mission Specialists Stephanie Wilson and Clayton Anderson; and Pilot James P. Dutton Jr. The crew members of space shuttle Discovery's STS-131 mission are at Kennedy for training related to their launch dress rehearsal, the Terminal Countdown Demonstration Test. The seven-member crew will deliver the multi-purpose logistics module Leonardo, filled with resupply stowage platforms and racks, to the International Space Station aboard Discovery. Targeted for launch on April 5, STS-131 will be the 33rd shuttle mission to the station and the 131st shuttle mission overall. For information on the STS-131 mission and crew, visit http:__www.nasa.gov_mission_pages_shuttle_shuttlemissions_sts131_index.html. Photo credit: NASA_Kim Shiflett