| SPACE TRAVEL | SPACE DAILY | SPACE WAR | TERRA DAILY | MARS DAILY | SPACE MART | GPS DAILY | ENERGY DAILY |
 |
Miami (AFP) Aug 11, 2005 NASA said Thursday it is unlikely to meet a September target for its next space shuttle flight as engineers try to figure out why foam fell off Discovery 30 months after a similar problem doomed Columbia. "We probably won't make the September 22 window," said Bill Gerstenmaier, who is leading an investigation into why pieces of foam insulation fell off Discovery's massive external fuel tank upon launch on July 26. He said two engineering teams examining the possible causes of the problem would need more time to make their assessment and probably modify the external tank. "We didn't find anything that showed the specific root cause, we just need to keep looking," said Gerstenmaier, the International Space Station's International Manager. "More than likely, we'll have to do some minor engineering modifications to the tank," he said in a telephone news conference. NASA already had spent 30 months and millions of dollars to improve the shuttle after foam insulation fell off Columbia's tank and damaged the left wing, causing the orbiter to disintegrate upon re-entry into Earth's atmosphere, killing all seven astronauts on board on February 1, 2003. But foam again tore off the tank of Space Shuttle Discovery, which safely landed in California Tuesday. Related Links SpaceDaily Search SpaceDaily Subscribe To SpaceDaily Express
Astronauts Get Heroes' Welcome Amid Debate Over Space Future
Houston, Texas (AFP) Aug 11, 2005Discovery astronauts have held an emotional reunion with their families as NASA sought to counter doubts about the future of the space shuttle programme.
|
|
| The content herein, unless otherwise known to be public domain, are Copyright 1995-2006 - SpaceDaily.AFP and UPI Wire Stories are copyright Agence France-Presse and United Press International. ESA PortalReports are copyright European Space Agency. All NASA sourced material is public domain. Additionalcopyrights may apply in whole or part to other bona fide parties. Advertising does not imply endorsement,agreement or approval of any opinions, statements or information provided by SpaceDaily on any Web page published or hosted by SpaceDaily. Privacy Statement |
