William Atkins
Saturday, 21 February 2009 20:21
Science -
Space
Page 1 of 2
On February 20, 2009, NASA announced that STS-119 mission managers remain concerned with the readiness of space shuttle Discovery to fly. Additional tests on its flow control valves are necessary before it delivers the S6 truss segment to the Space Station.
The NASA media report
NASA defers setting next shuttle launch date states that,
“During a thorough review of space shuttle Discovery's readiness for flight, NASA managers decided Friday [February 20, 2009] that more data and possible testing are required before launching the STS-119 mission to the International Space Station."
Damage was caused to a flow control valve on space shuttle Endeavour during its November 2008 flight to the International Space Station (ISS).
Since then, NASA and contractor engineering teams have been working to identify the problem to the control valve.
Further information on the problem is available on the iTWire article
NASA's STS-119 rescheduled for Feb. 27.
The associate administrator for Space Operations for NASA, Bill Gerstenmaier, stated,
“We need to complete more work to have a better understanding before flying."
He specifically adds,
"We were not driven by schedule pressure and did the right thing. When we fly, we want to do so with full confidence." [NASA]
Page two continues with additional information on the problematic flow control valves.
