Thu, Apr 07, 2005
But Rollout Delayed Because Of... Yikes... External Tank Foam
Problems
The space shuttle
Discovery is standing tall on Pad 39A at the Kennedy Space Center
in Florida, after a 10 hour 30 minute journey from the Vehicle
Assembly Center that was delayed by the discovery of a crack in the
insulation surrounding the space plane's external fuel tank.
It was a reminder of the insulation foam that fell from
Columbia's external fuel tank as the nation's oldest shuttle
blasted into space for the last time January 16th, 2003. Damage
caused by that chunk of foam led to Columbia's disintegration as it
re-entered Earth's atmosphere February 1st, 2003. All seven
astronauts on board were lost.
The remaining shuttle fleet has been grounded since then, as
NASA worked to refit the space planes according to safety
recommendations made by the Columbia Accident Investigation
Board.
"It's a very, very tiny crack," Launch Director Mike Leinbach
told the Washington Post. "Very, very narrow ... well within our
experience base. It was an acceptable condition for flight, so we
rolled on out and we're going to fly with it just as it is."
Leinbach said the crack was located high up on the tank, in an area
that makes it unlikely to cause any damage to the orbiter
itself.
"It's a great sight to see Discovery rolling out to the launch
pad," said shuttle commander Eileen Collins, watching the
one-mile an hour procession to the pad from her vantage point at
the Johnson Space Center in Houston. Collins will lead the crew on
the next mission. "We know we are getting close."
More News
Aero Linx: JAARS Nearly 1.5 billion people, using more than 5,500 languages, do not have a full Bible in their first language. Many of these people live in the most remote parts of>[...]
'Airplane Bounced Twice On The Grass Runway, Resulting In The Nose Wheel Separating From The Airplane...' Analysis: The pilot reported, “upon touchdown, the plane jumped back>[...]
"Burt is best known to the public for his historic designs of SpaceShipOne, Voyager, and GlobalFlyer, but for EAA members and aviation aficionados, his unique concepts began more t>[...]
"Polaris Dawn, the first of the program’s three human spaceflight missions, is targeted to launch to orbit no earlier than summer 2024. During the five-day mission, the crew >[...]
There Are SO Many Ways To Get YOUR Aero-News! It’s been a while since we have reminded everyone about all the ways we offer your daily dose of aviation news on-the-go...so he>[...]