<The Rotating Service Structure at Launch Pad 39B is ready to enfold Space Shuttle Discovery upon its arrival. (Image Credit NASA/KSC)
NASA has cleared the Space Shuttle to Return to Flight. After a two-day Flight Readiness Review meeting at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, senior managers approved a July 13 launch date for Discovery.
Commander Eileen Collins and her crew are scheduled to lift off Wednesday, July 13, at 3:51 p.m. EDT on the first U.S. space flight since the February 2003 loss of the Shuttle Columbia.
"After a vigorous, healthy discussion our team has come to a decision: we're ready to go," NASA Administrator Michael Griffin said after the meeting. "The past two and half years have resulted in significant improvements that have greatly reduced the risk of flying the Shuttle. But we should never lose sight of the fact that space flight is risky.
"The Discovery mission, designated STS-114, is a test flight," Griffin said, noting that astronauts will try out a host of new Space Shuttle safety enhancements. In addition, Discovery will carry 15 tons of supplies and replacement hardware to the International Space Station. July 13 is the beginning of three weeks of possible launch days that run through July 31.
NASA's Associate Administrator for Space Operations, William Readdy, chaired the Flight Readiness Review, the meeting that traditionally sets launch dates and assesses the Shuttle's fitness to fly
NASA recently announced a new Transoceanic Abort Landing (TAL) site at Istres Air Base in France, giving NASA three places to land across the Atlantic in case of an emergency during launch.
The new site is the result of an agreement signed June 7 between the U.S. and French governments that applies to all future Space Shuttle missions supporting the International Space Station.
The primary TAL site for Space Station missions is in Zaragoza, Spain. If weather is bad in Zaragoza on launch day, the Istres site and a site in Moron, Spain provide alternate landing options.
Dennis Gagen, NASA landing recovery manager, said the three current TAL sites were chosen mostly because of their location near the high inclination launch path. "These are really the better sites as far as being close to the trajectory of the launch," Gagen said.
Shuttle missions for the Station use a high inclination launch, which means they reach higher maximum latitude in their orbit around the Earth as they climb into space. If an emergency landing were necessary, it would be important to have a site near this flight path where the orbiter could abort the launch and land safely. Other factors like runway length and local climate were also considered in choosing the TAL sites.
Landing at a TAL site is a safe way for NASA to call off a Shuttle mission if the orbiter can't reach orbit or turn around and come back to the U.S. While an orbiter has never had to land at a TAL site and the chances of this are very low, it is an important safety measure to have. A TAL would be used if an emergency occurred roughly between two and a half minutes and seven and a half minutes after liftoff.
Comments