Sunday, August 30, 2009

Space Shuttle News Updates -- August 30, 2009

The space shuttle Discovery sits atop Launch Pad 39A during final launch preparations at the Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Florida August 24, 2009. Discovery is scheduled for launch later in the day on a mission to the International Space Station. REUTERS/Pierre Ducharme

Astronauts Inspect Discovery Heat Shield -- CBS News

(CBS) The Discovery astronauts conducted an inch-by-inch inspection of the most critical sections of the shuttle's heat shield Saturday, examining the ship's nose cap and wing leading edge panels with a laser scanner on the end of a 50-foot-boom attached to the shuttle's robot arm. No obvious problems stood out, reports CBS News space analyst Bill Harwood.

But it will take engineers several more days to complete the normal (post-Columbia tragedy) assessment of launch imagery, laser scans carried out Saturday, and close-up photos of Discovery's belly during final approach to the International Space Station Sunday evening, before the heat shield is given a clean bill of health.

Read more ....

More News On The Space Shuttle

Shuttle steers closer to space station for hookup -- AP
Shuttle Discovery to Dock with Space Station Today -- WBKO
Shuttle steers closer to space station for hookup -- AP
Space Shuttle's Midnight Launch Dazzles in Photos -- Space.com
'Space rookies' soak it up -- BBC

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