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Astronauts inspect shuttle for damage

NASA said Wednesday a chipped thermal tile on Discovery’s belly does not appear to be a danger.

Imagery experts and engineers expect to know by Thursday afternoon whether the gouge left by the missing 1½-inch piece of thermal tile needs a second look or, in the worst case, a repair, Hill said. The astronauts have a 100-foot laser-tipped crane on board that could determine precisely how deep the gouge is.

The tile fragment broke off less than two minutes after liftoff Tuesday and was spotted by a camera mounted on the external fuel tank. It fell off a particularly vulnerable spot, near the set of doors for the nose landing gear.

The tank camera also captured a large piece of debris flying off the tank but missing Discovery itself; the nature of the debris is still a mystery. After the Columbia accident, the tank was redesigned to reduce the risk of foam insulation falling off.

On Wednesday, Discovery’s astronauts spent nearly six hours using the boom to inspect Discovery’s wings and nose cap for launch damage. The wings and nose are protected by reinforced carbon panels capable of taking the brunt of the searing re-entry heat.

posted by: kyawoo at 20:04 | link | comments |
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