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NASA Eyes Damage on Space Shuttle

By MARCIA DUNN

posted: 9 HOURS 13 MINUTES AGO

comments: 462

filed under: National News, Science News

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CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (July 16) - Space shuttle Endeavour rocketed toward the international space station Thursday as engineers on Earth pored over launch pictures that showed debris breaking off the fuel tank and striking the craft.

Mission Control told the astronauts late Wednesday that the damage looked less extensive at first glance than what occurred on the last shuttle flight, but it will take days to sort through available data to reach a conclusion.

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The astronauts planned a Thursday afternoon inspection of their ship's thermal shielding, using a 100-foot laser-tipped boom. The procedure has been standard since shuttle flights resumed after the Columbia accident.

Endeavour's liftoff early Wednesday evening was the sixth try and came more than a month late. It occurred on the eve of the 40th anniversary of the launch of man's first moon landing mission.

"Persistence pays off," launch director Pete Nickolenko told the astronauts, who are carrying up a veranda for Japan's enormous space station lab.

The shuttle had been grounded by hydrogen gas leaks last month and, since the weekend, thunderstorms.

Eight or nine pieces of foam insulation came off the external fuel tank during liftoff, and Endeavour was hit at least two or three times, said Bill Gerstenmaier, NASA's space operations chief. Some scuff marks were spotted, but that probably is coating loss and considered minor, he said.

The impacts that occurred not quite two minutes into the flight were around the edge of the shuttle where the right wing joins the fuselage.

Any additional damage should be evident Friday, when the space station residents use zoom lenses to photograph the entire shuttle as it performs a backflip right before docking.

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"The bottom line is we saw some stuff," said Mike Moses, chairman of the mission management team. "Some of it doesn't concern us. Some of it you just can't really speculate on right now. But we have the tools in front of us and the processes in front of us to go clear this vehicle for entry" in 16 days.

At a news conference, Gerstenmaier noted that the Endeavour crew has shuttle repair kits on board. In case of irreparable damage, the astronauts could move into the space station for two to three months and await rescue by another shuttle.

Columbia was destroyed during re-entry in 2003 because of a hole in its wing, left there by flyaway foam at liftoff.

When commander Mark Polansky and his crew catch up with the space station, it will be the first time 13 people are together in space. All of the major space station partners will be represented. The combined crews will have seven Americans, two Canadians, two Russians, one Japanese and one Belgian.

Endeavour will remain docked at the space station for nearly two weeks. During that time, the shuttle astronauts will help install the third and final piece of the Japanese space station lab, a porch for outdoor experiments. Five spacewalks are planned.

NASA was anxious to get Endeavour flying, given time is running out on the shuttle program. Only eight shuttle flights remain, including this one, before NASA retires the fleet next year.

The space agency, at least, finally has a new administrator to oversee everything. Former shuttle commander Charles Bolden was confirmed by the Senate less than two hours after Endeavour's liftoff. He fills a vacancy left by Michael Griffin's departure in January.

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Follow the Moon Landing 'Live' Online

wechoosethemoon.org

Track the Apollo 11 moon mission in real-time from the July 16 liftoff through the July 20 landing at WeChoosetheMoon.org. Chronicle the four-day odyssey exactly as it happened 40 years ago by experiencing the trip as the astronauts did via animation, real mission audio, video, photos, real-time tweets and more.
Plus: AIM Buddy Icons | Moon Landing on KOL | Theme for AOL.com | On Bebo

Copyright 2009 The Associated Press. The information contained in the AP news report may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or otherwise distributed without the prior written authority of The Associated Press. Active hyperlinks have been inserted by AOL.

2009-07-15 18:20:31

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AP Science NewsBrief at 7:26 a.m. EDT
9 hours ago
Space shuttle blasts off after month’s delay
22 hours ago
NASA’S Shuttle Endeavour Launches to Complete Japanese Module
22 hours ago

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Pacific707

06:08 PMJul 16 2009

....or rather, the "and?"

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Pacific707

06:05 PMJul 16 2009

" GROUND THESE THINGS AND SPEND THE &&&&&& TO PAY FOR HEALTH blahblahblahblah"-------------Since when did the ampersand replace the dollar????

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Sixeyess4dinner

05:59 PMJul 16 2009

""....... I'm becoming very doubtful that there was actually a "MOON" landing...""@@@@ Then you're just stupid, no other descriptor for it...and no known remedy for such a severe case............

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Sixeyess4dinner

05:56 PMJul 16 2009

The upcoming lunar colonies may very well be ordering Chinese take-out. In 2005 the Chinese sent 40 grams of pig sperm into space onboard the Shenzhou VI. ""...What kind of changes will occur in the figure and quality of the test-tube pigs? The experiment results will likely come out in two years, according to breeders..."" http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2005-07/18/content_3233323.htm

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Mshelly33

05:52 PMJul 16 2009

I thought this was about the space shuttle?? When exactly did it veer off to politics?? Anyway's I hope they fix the problem before they re-enter into Earths atmosphere because I would hate to see another tragic end to these brave men & woman. Not to mention that they need to do more to make sure that things like this don't happen in the future. I'm becoming very doubtful that there was actually a "MOON" landing. Besides why haven't Nasa sent some astonaunts back??....JUST A THOUGHT!!!

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Sixeyess4dinner

05:50 PMJul 16 2009

While common, the seemingly increased number of political posts in this forum makes me wonder if AOL has a link issue. Political propagandists, parroting their rhetoric, find themselves in space instead of the fece-ridden politics forum.....................

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RMacHayes

05:46 PMJul 16 2009

She should fit right in with old lady Ginsberg. Boy, has the US Supreme Court gone to hell in a hand basket. RIP America!

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Sixeyess4dinner

05:45 PMJul 16 2009

Dskaalrud5 05:43 PMJul 16 2009 It's not about anything falling off the shuttle per se Sixeyess4dinner....""@@@@@ Agreed, I believe your comment was intended to be directed to the person I responded to...........

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Dskaalrud5

05:43 PMJul 16 2009

It's not about anything falling off the shuttle per se Sixeyess4dinner;, it's more about the foam insulation that is sprayed onto the exterior of the liquid hydrogen/oxygen fuel tank. Considering the cyclic vibrations that are distributed through those tanks, the extreme cold temperatures those liquids are kept at and the load pressures from the atmosphere the shuttle is blasting through, that insulation does a pretty damn good job of staying on. Just watch a launch from the external orbiter cam and you'll be amazed that anything holds together on the shuttle.

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Goodgrief61945

05:39 PMJul 16 2009

We'll probably be building a satelite to pick the trash out of outerspace next!!

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