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NASA clears space shuttle for launch try today
Source: Agencies |
November 4, 2010, Thursday
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NASA managers cleared space shuttle Discovery yesterday for a launch attempt today on a cargo run to the International Space Station.
The move followed two delays to resolve technical issues for the flight, which would be the 39th and final voyage for NASA's most-flown shuttle.
The shuttle is now targeted for launch at 3:29pm EDT (1929 GMT), though the weather may be another showstopper.
Meteorologists forecast an 80 percent chance of another delay due to rain and clouds in the area around the Kennedy Space Center in Florida at the time of launch.
Managers planned to make a fresh assessment of the weather around 5:30am EDT (0930 GMT) today before the shuttle is fueled for liftoff.
The US space agency had hoped to get Discovery off the launch pad on November 1, but delayed the launch two days to repair helium and nitrogen leaks in the system the shuttle uses to maneuver while in orbit.
Yesterday's scheduled launch attempt likewise was canceled to allow more time for engineers to understand what caused a momentary drop in a power signal from a backup computer that controls one of the shuttle's main engines.
The shuttle uses three liquid hydrogen-burning engines, plus two solid-fuel strap-on boosters, during its 8.5-minute ride into space. Should an engine shut down during launch, the Discovery crew might have to attempt an emergency landing back at the launch site or at a base in Europe.
"We make sure we truly do understand the risks we fly with," said Mike Moses, who oversees a team of managers that clears the shuttles for launch.
NASA believes the slight dip in the computer's voltage was a one-time event related to what probably was a bit of dust or debris clearing off the metal contacts.
The flight will be the last for shuttle Discovery, one of NASA's three spaceships which are being retired to save money to develop new vehicles that can travel deeper into space, such as to asteroids and Mars, beyond where the shuttles can fly.
Discovery will be delivering a storage room that will be left permanently attached to the space station, a US$100 billion project of 16 nations that has been under construction 354 km above Earth since 1998. The shuttle's payload also includes spare parts, supplies and a prototype humanoid robot, nicknamed R2, that was developed in partnership with General Motors.
If the shuttle launches on time, it will reach the orbital outpost on Saturday. The flight is expected to last 11 or 12 days. Upon its return to Earth, Discovery will be prepared for its new mission as a museum piece after more than a quarter century of service.
The move followed two delays to resolve technical issues for the flight, which would be the 39th and final voyage for NASA's most-flown shuttle.
The shuttle is now targeted for launch at 3:29pm EDT (1929 GMT), though the weather may be another showstopper.
Meteorologists forecast an 80 percent chance of another delay due to rain and clouds in the area around the Kennedy Space Center in Florida at the time of launch.
Managers planned to make a fresh assessment of the weather around 5:30am EDT (0930 GMT) today before the shuttle is fueled for liftoff.
The US space agency had hoped to get Discovery off the launch pad on November 1, but delayed the launch two days to repair helium and nitrogen leaks in the system the shuttle uses to maneuver while in orbit.
Yesterday's scheduled launch attempt likewise was canceled to allow more time for engineers to understand what caused a momentary drop in a power signal from a backup computer that controls one of the shuttle's main engines.
The shuttle uses three liquid hydrogen-burning engines, plus two solid-fuel strap-on boosters, during its 8.5-minute ride into space. Should an engine shut down during launch, the Discovery crew might have to attempt an emergency landing back at the launch site or at a base in Europe.
"We make sure we truly do understand the risks we fly with," said Mike Moses, who oversees a team of managers that clears the shuttles for launch.
NASA believes the slight dip in the computer's voltage was a one-time event related to what probably was a bit of dust or debris clearing off the metal contacts.
The flight will be the last for shuttle Discovery, one of NASA's three spaceships which are being retired to save money to develop new vehicles that can travel deeper into space, such as to asteroids and Mars, beyond where the shuttles can fly.
Discovery will be delivering a storage room that will be left permanently attached to the space station, a US$100 billion project of 16 nations that has been under construction 354 km above Earth since 1998. The shuttle's payload also includes spare parts, supplies and a prototype humanoid robot, nicknamed R2, that was developed in partnership with General Motors.
If the shuttle launches on time, it will reach the orbital outpost on Saturday. The flight is expected to last 11 or 12 days. Upon its return to Earth, Discovery will be prepared for its new mission as a museum piece after more than a quarter century of service.
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