Home
Business
Metro
Nation
World
Sports
Feature
Opinion
View more »Opinion Columns
Wan LixinOpinion deputy editor of Shanghai Daily
Shanghai set to sustain growth momentum by promoting its business environment
Deepening reform leads to opportunities
Sunday
- Subscribe
Related News
Discovery finally off to space
Source: Agencies |
March 17, 2009, Tuesday
|
Print Edition
Print Edition
SEVEN astronauts raced to the international space station aboard the space shuttle Discovery on Sunday after a successful launch that was delayed five times and caused the mission to be shortened by a day.
The delays forced a spacewalk to be axed, but mission managers said they would still be able to complete 80 to 90 percent of the tasks they had planned. The canceled spacewalk chores will be tackled by the space station crew.
"It's not a major setback to us," said Bill Gerstenmaier, NASA's associate administrator for space operations, after Sunday evening's launch from Cape Canaveral, Florida. "We're able to accomplish everything we want."
That includes dropping off the space station's newest crew member: Japanese astronaut Koichi Wakata, who is replacing US astronaut Sandra Magnus.
Other tasks during the 13-day mission include installing the station's last pair of solar wings so the orbiting outpost can operate at full power.
The crew will also deliver supplies and hardware, most notably replacing a broken machine that turns urine into drinking water, and iodine solution and a flusher to get rid of bacteria that is lurking in the water dispenser.
Mission managers were dazzled by the beauty of the sunset launch, which left a miles-long plume trail that glowed gold and pink from the day's last sunlight. Launch controllers could see the shuttle for seven minutes, until it reached somewhere off the New York or New Jersey coast.
"For the folks who watched this launch on TV, I really wish you could have been here in Florida," launch director Mike Leinbach said. "I've seen a lot of launches ... and this was the most visually beautiful launch I've ever seen. It was just spectacular."
The delays forced a spacewalk to be axed, but mission managers said they would still be able to complete 80 to 90 percent of the tasks they had planned. The canceled spacewalk chores will be tackled by the space station crew.
"It's not a major setback to us," said Bill Gerstenmaier, NASA's associate administrator for space operations, after Sunday evening's launch from Cape Canaveral, Florida. "We're able to accomplish everything we want."
That includes dropping off the space station's newest crew member: Japanese astronaut Koichi Wakata, who is replacing US astronaut Sandra Magnus.
Other tasks during the 13-day mission include installing the station's last pair of solar wings so the orbiting outpost can operate at full power.
The crew will also deliver supplies and hardware, most notably replacing a broken machine that turns urine into drinking water, and iodine solution and a flusher to get rid of bacteria that is lurking in the water dispenser.
Mission managers were dazzled by the beauty of the sunset launch, which left a miles-long plume trail that glowed gold and pink from the day's last sunlight. Launch controllers could see the shuttle for seven minutes, until it reached somewhere off the New York or New Jersey coast.
"For the folks who watched this launch on TV, I really wish you could have been here in Florida," launch director Mike Leinbach said. "I've seen a lot of launches ... and this was the most visually beautiful launch I've ever seen. It was just spectacular."
- About Us
- |
- Terms of Use
- |
-
RSS - |
- Privacy Policy
- |
- Contact Us
- |
- Shanghai Call Center: 962288
- |
- Tip-off hotline: 52920043
- 沪ICP证：沪ICP备05050403
- |
- 网络视听许可证：0909346
- |
- 广播电视节目制作许可证：沪字第354号
- |
- 增值电信业务经营许可证：沪B2-20120012
Copyright © 1999- Shanghai Daily. All rights reserved.Preferably viewed with Internet Explorer 8 or newer browsers.
