Shuttle rolled back to launch pad
Posted: Thu, Jun 16, 2005, 8:14 AM ET (1214 GMT)
NASA returned the space shuttle Discovery to its launch pad on Wednesday, the latest milestone towards the shuttle's return to flight next month. Discovery, mounted on its external tank and solid rocket boosters, left the Vehicle Assembly Building at around 2 am EDT (0600 GMT) Wednesday, arriving at Pad 39B a little more than ten hours later. The rollout took longer than normal because the crawler transporter traveled at below-average speed and stopped frequently so engineers could examine overheating bearings on the crawler. The shuttle had been earlier rolled out to the pad in April, when the shuttle's launch was scheduled for May, but the shuttle was sent back to the VAB to fix a potential ice buildup problem on the external tank that was only revealed in tests completed after the first rollout. The arrival of the shuttle at the latest major milestone in the return to flight, with a launch currently scheduled for between July 13-31. A launch date will be set during a flight readiness review on June 29-30.
NASA returned the space shuttle Discovery to its launch pad on Wednesday, the latest milestone towards the shuttle's return to flight next month. Discovery, mounted on its external tank and solid rocket boosters, left the Vehicle Assembly Building at around 2 am EDT (0600 GMT) Wednesday, arriving at Pad 39B a little more than ten hours later. The rollout took longer than normal because the crawler transporter traveled at below-average speed and stopped frequently so engineers could examine overheating bearings on the crawler. The shuttle had been earlier rolled out to the pad in April, when the shuttle's launch was scheduled for May, but the shuttle was sent back to the VAB to fix a potential ice buildup problem on the external tank that was only revealed in tests completed after the first rollout. The arrival of the shuttle at the latest major milestone in the return to flight, with a launch currently scheduled for between July 13-31. A launch date will be set during a flight readiness review on June 29-30.
Related Links:
| <<previous article | next article>> |
|
news in brief
|
|
|
|
news links
|
|
Friday, February 14
Firefly Aerospace Wins Victus Sol Mission Contract
Aviation Week — 6:05 am ET (1105 GMT) U.S. Space Force to beef up Japan unit amid growing threat in region
Kyodo International — 6:04 am ET (1104 GMT) Jeff Bezos-Backed Blue Origin to Cut 10% of Its Workforce
Bloomberg News — 6:02 am ET (1102 GMT) Blue Origin to Lay Off 10% of Workforce Weeks After First Orbital Launch
Wall Street Journal — 6:01 am ET (1101 GMT) Blue Origin lays off over 1,000 employees
Spectrum News — 6:01 am ET (1101 GMT) |
