IT WAS a remarkable outburst.
Australian astronaut Andy Thomas let his frustration with his bosses at ground control boil over. For a devoted career astronaut to publicly criticise NASA from space shows the extreme stress being endured by Thomas and his colleagues on board the space shuttle Discovery.
Tomorrow they are due to re-enter the Earth's atmosphere at 22 times the speed of sound with temperatures reaching 1300 degrees knowing that the mistakes that led to the deaths two years ago of their colleagues on board the space shuttle Columbia have not been properly addressed.
"He certainly gave his bosses a serve," says Thomas's Adelaide-based father Adrian. "It's the most outspoken he has ever been."
In 2003 seven astronauts died when the Columbia burnt up on re-entry because of damage to the heat shield suffered from falling debris during the launch. And despite thousands of hours of checks, during the launch of Discovery a piece of foam tore away from the fuel tank and narrowly missed the shuttle. From space Thomas said: "It didn't strike us, but nonetheless we're very, very troubled and very disappointed that such a thing could happen.
"The area where the foam came off is an area that was not examined or decisions were made not to look at it and not to test the foam there.
"I think we do need to address why was that decision made. Was that decision made out of concern for damaging the foam? Was there some technical reason why they made that decision, or was it subject to cost pressures or schedule pressures?"
Adrian says his son's outburst is a clear indication of the "stress and frustration" the astronauts are feeling. "Andy is absolutely dedicated to everything he does. He expects everything to be correct and he expects similar standards from those who work with him."
The concern on board the shuttle was exacerbated by the need for a high-risk space walk to remove foam gap filler sticking out between heat insulation tiles. "I can't believe that thing got off the ground with whatever that material was sticking out between the tiles," says Adrian. "It should have been found during inspection."
The crucial role in co-ordinating the surgery on the shuttle's tiles was carried out by Thomas. "He has kept his light under a bushel," says his 81-year-old father. "It is apparent now that he is the one in charge - out of necessity, of course. He is a very clever man - I don't know where those genes come from."
Thomas grew up in Adelaide listening to his father's stories about life as a Lancaster bomber pilot in World War II.
The Mercury, Gemini and Apollo space missions of the 1960s and 1970s inspired him but, as he said in a pre-flight interview, "for a young kid growing up in Australia at that time, the prospects of becoming an astronaut were remote, to say the least".
Thomas took a bachelor's degree in mechanical engineering at the University of Adelaide and eventually moved to the US and deliberately set about building a solid CV that would appeal to NASA decision-makers. He quickly realised it was not about being a leather jacket-wearing hotshot. "The sort of fearless test pilot, winged warrior, is an image that was conjured up in the '60s when that's really what the astronaut's background was: test pilot," Thomas has said. "And it's an image I think that some astronauts have worked very hard to cultivate. But it's not entirely true. What you really need now is operationally oriented engineers and that's what they have."
His father says it has also meant complete dedication to the job. "Through all of his life there have been a stream of very presentable young women, but eventually they realised he was wedded to the job and he wasn't going to change." The most recent in the 53-year-old astronaut's line of girlfriends was NASA administrator Shannon Walker, who herself has just begun training as an astronaut.
A couple of months before Discovery was launched, Adrian received a surprising phone call from his son who said, "I am putting my affairs in order and I have news for you - Shannon and I were married an hour ago." Adrian was delighted, but the fact his son said he was putting his affairs in order made it clear he was aware of the dangers that could confront him on the expedition.
MILESTONES: ANDY THOMAS
BORN: Adelaide, 1952.
EDUCATED: Bachelor's degree in mechanical engineering at University of Adelaide in 1973.
EMPLOYMENT: Joined Lockheed Aeronautical Systems in the US in 1977 and then moved to NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory. Began training as an astronaut in 1992.
FIRST TRIP TO SPACE: May 19, 1996, and followed this with two more trips on shuttles Endeavour and Discovery. This is his fourth and final trip before retirement.
FAMILY: Married astronaut trainee Shannon Walker a couple of months before lift-off on board Discovery.