Sun, Sep 10, 2006
Acknowledges Some Foam Was Lost During Launch
During a post-launch
briefing Saturday, NASA shuttle Program Manager Wayne Hale said
Atlantis appears to have come through launch in good shape and
unscathed. Hale's announcement follows analysis of imagery of the
shuttle's climb into space provided by cameras on the ground around
Kennedy Space Center and mounted onboard the vehicle.
Hale even went so far as to apologize for bringing no images to
the news conference. "There's just nothing to look at," said an
obviously pleased Hale.
Hale did acknowledge that five objects believed to be foam and
ice harmlessly released from the space shuttle beginning at
approximately four minutes into Atlantis' flight -- well past the 2
1/2 "critical" phase of the launch cycle, during which time the
atmosphere is thick enough to send debris careening towards the
orbiter. Hale added that due to the thinness of the atmosphere and
other factors, the debris didn't have anywhere near the velocity
needed to cause damage to the orbiter.
More detailed analysis of the condition of the orbiter will come
in the next three days, as engineers continue to pore over images
taken from cameras mounted on the shuttle's external fuel tank.
Atlantis will also perform a "backflip" as it approaches the
International Space Station Monday, so cameras on the station can
also capture images of the shuttle's fragile tile heat shield. The
shuttle Discovery performed a similar maneuver in July.
As Aero-News reported in Real
Time, Atlantis lifted off from Kennedy Space Center
and charged into the midday Florida sky Saturday, on a mission to
boost power on the International Space Station. The launch was on
time, with liftoff at 11:15 am EDT.
Over the 11-day mission, the six-member crew will perform three
spacewalks to install the P3/P4 integrated truss and solar arrays
on the station, doubling the current power-generating capability of
the orbiting outpost.
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