Discovery returns to VAB
Posted: Fri, May 27, 2005, 7:57 AM ET (1157 GMT)
NASA rolled back the space shuttle Discovery to the Vehicle Assembly Building on Thursday to replace its external tank, part of preparations for a July launch. The rollback from pad 39B was delayed several hours because of paperwork, and the crawler transporter had to stop near the end of its journey to allow an overheated bearing to cool before entering the VAB late Thursday afternoon. Technicians will remove the shuttle from its external tank and SRBs and replace that tank with a new one equipped with a heater that will prevent ice from forming along a propellant feed line. Shuttle managers and engineers were concerned that ice that built up there before launch could fall off and strike the orbiter during ascent, damaging it. The launch has been rescheduled for a window that opens on July 13 and runs through the end of the month; Discovery will be rolled back out to the launch pad in mid-June.
NASA rolled back the space shuttle Discovery to the Vehicle Assembly Building on Thursday to replace its external tank, part of preparations for a July launch. The rollback from pad 39B was delayed several hours because of paperwork, and the crawler transporter had to stop near the end of its journey to allow an overheated bearing to cool before entering the VAB late Thursday afternoon. Technicians will remove the shuttle from its external tank and SRBs and replace that tank with a new one equipped with a heater that will prevent ice from forming along a propellant feed line. Shuttle managers and engineers were concerned that ice that built up there before launch could fall off and strike the orbiter during ascent, damaging it. The launch has been rescheduled for a window that opens on July 13 and runs through the end of the month; Discovery will be rolled back out to the launch pad in mid-June.
Related Links:
| <<previous article | next article>> |
|
news in brief
|
|
|
|
news links
|
|
Friday, July 4
U-M instrument shows what planet Mercury is made of
Univ. of Michigan — 9:58 am ET (1358 GMT) MESSENGER Settles old Debates and Makes new Discoveries at Mercury
JHUAPL — 9:56 am ET (1356 GMT) STFC announces ambitious 1.906bn science funding programme
UK Science and Technology Facilities Council — 9:29 am ET (1329 GMT) In Unique Stellar Laboratory, Einstein's Theory Passes Strict, New Test
NSF — 9:21 am ET (1321 GMT) Start of the Cassini Equinox Mission
ESA — 9:17 am ET (1317 GMT) |
