pull this off , if need be , as I would any other mission , '' he said . The idea of a standby rescue spacecraft grew out of the 2003 Columbia disaster , in which that shuttle disintegrated over Texas during re-entry into the Earth 's atmosphere . But until now , there 's been no need . All the previous missions since Columbia have gone to the International Space Station . The crew of a damaged shuttle could take refuge there for months if need be until another shuttle was readied to retrieve them . But Atlantis is going to Hubble , whose orbit is n't anywhere near the space station . If their spacecraft malfunctioned , the seven-member Atlantis crew would have to survive aboard -- probably for days -- until they could be rescued . `` In this case it 's a much shorter fuse , '' Ferguson said . `` Consumables like food and oxygen would run out quickly . So the reason we 've gotten this crew trained and spooled up and ready to go on literally a moment 's notice is because they -LSB- Atlantis 's crew -RSB- have no place comfortable to
KENNEDY SPACE CENTER , Florida -LRB- CNN -RRB- -- With space shuttle Atlantis on its way to upgrade the Hubble Space Telescope , that leaves one shuttle , Endeavour , at the ready on the other launch pad here . Space shuttle Endeavour , in background , sits poised to launch in case Atlantis , in foreground , meets trouble . And that 's where everybody at NASA wants it to stay . `` We have high confidence that we 're just having that thing over on pad B to make it look nice , '' said mission flight director Tony Ceccaci . Endeavour is far more than a postcard picture -- it 's on standby in case something goes seriously wrong with the Atlantis mission . For example , NASA has estimated there 's a 1-in-221 chance the shuttle could be struck and crippled by orbiting space debris . If such an incident were to thrust the seven Atlantis astronauts into danger , Endeavour would blast off within days in a last-ditch attempt to save them . Endeavour Cmdr. Christopher Ferguson believes his crew is up to the task . `` I feel as confident about our ability to