Tank Slated To Fly Next Spring Ready For Foam Spray On Intertank

Workers at Michoud Assembly Facility in New Orleans (LA) have transferred External Tank 120 -- the Space Shuttle External Tank slated for the launch of the orbiter Discovery next spring -- into the facility's vehicle assembly building.

The tank is erected vertically so that foam insulation can be applied on the liquid hydrogen tank-to-intertank flange area, a tank structural connection point. The foam will be applied with an enhanced finishing procedure that requires two technicians, a new mold-injection procedure to the intertank's ribbing and real-time videotaped surveillance of the process.

The foam was removed from all existing tanks when the intertank area was identified as a potential debris-shedding source following the loss of the Space Shuttle Columbia and her crew on Feb. 1, 2003. The move -- a major step toward returning the Space Shuttle to flight -- brings the tank one step closer to its eventual transfer to the Kennedy Space Center in Florida.

FMI: www.returntoflight.org