Discovery News: Space Diary

Shuttle Flights On Hold Due to New Foam Loss Problem

2009-07-16T18:29:58-04:00

About the last thing NASA needs right now is a new problem to solve, but that’s exactly what landed on its plate following Wednesday’s launch of Endeavour on a space station construction mission.

It’s a new twist on an old nemesis -- the insulating foam on the shuttle fuel tank. NASA redesigned the tanks after losing shuttle Columbia and its seven-member crew in 2003 due to a heat shield breach triggered by a piece of foam debris that fell off the fuel tank and hit the ship’s wing during launch.

Endeavour’s launch was marred by the loss of several pieces of foam from a new area of the tank, a part that had not previously been a problem.

“We have a bit of a mystery on the foam loss,” shuttle program manager John Shannon told reporters on Thursday. "It's from an area that we typically don’t expect foam to be lost."

During Endeavour’s climb to orbit on Wednesday, several pieces of foam were seen peeling off the inter-tank area, a section between the hydrogen and the oxygen tanks. Shannon said the foam in that area is thin, machine-sprayed and not subject to the intense cold affecting other parts of the insulation.

The foam fell off Endeavour’s tank late during ascent, when atmospheric forces were minimized, so that the debris did not have enough force to slam into the orbiter and cause damage. But if the shedding had occurred earlier during the flight, it could have been a different story.

"We're not worried about this one (Endeavour), but we need to understand what's going on for the next flight,” Shannon said.

NASA is targeting its next shuttle launch for Aug. 18. The agency is trying to wrap up seven more missions after Endeavour’s to complete construction of the space station and retire the shuttle fleet.

The goal is to have the work done by Sept. 30, 2010, the end of NASA’s next fiscal year.

After a month of delays launching Endeavour, there’s not much flexibility left in the schedule to handle new problems.

Shuttle soars on 6th launch try

2009-07-15T14:54:10-04:00

Update: 6:11 p.m.

Space shuttle Endeavour made its long-delayed 8.5-minute flight into orbit today to complete construction of Japan's Kibo laboratory at the International Space Station.

NASA waited out three days of bad weather before skies cleared enough for Endeavour's 6:03 p.m. blastoff.

The flight previously was postponed by hydrogen fuel leaks.

The crew is scheduled to spend the rest of the month in orbit, conducting five spacewalks at the station to install Japan's experiments platform and preparing the station for operations after the shuttle fleet is retired next year.

Update: Beautiful launch!

Update 5:56 -- Clear to launch .. "The weather is finally cooperaing so it is now time to fly," launch director Pete Nickolenko radioed to the crew shortly before liftoff. "Persistence pays off. Good luck and god speed."

Update 4:35 p.m. : Looks like NASA has a real shot at it today -- all the weather concerns have been lifted. Right now there are no impediments for launching at 6:03 p.m. EDT.

Lightning, thunderstorms, rain ... looks like another launch day in Florida.

NASA is hoping this time around the clash of the sea breezes, stemming from opposite sides of the peninsula, will be positioned a little more inland, leaving a hole for Endeavour to fly through on its way to the space station.

Never a good sign when you need umbrellas to get to the press site, but perhaps the clouds will blow over before 6:03 p.m. when NASA needs a 20-nautical mile patch of clear skies to launch. Florida weather is notoriously dynamic.

The crew appears in good spirits as they make their way into the shuttle. Lunch was a simpler affair this time around -- no lobsters on the menu on Wednesday. Grilled cheese sandwiches, BLTs and tenderloin steaks top the list.

(Launch day blues at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida. Credit: NASA)

Next Launch Attempt for Endeavour on Wednesday

2009-07-13T10:32:18-04:00

Update: Well, I have an addendum to my post about covering 100 shuttle launches -- never count your missions until they're off the ground.

Another long and tedious day at the Kennedy Space Center, watching the clouds roll in, having your hopes raised when the sky clear, then like a game of cat-and-mouse, a triple killer at the end of the day: lighting, electric fields warnings and thunderstorm clouds. And so, it's launch scrub No. 5 for Endeavour on NASA's 127th shuttle mission, and a 48-hour stand-down.

The next attempt won't be until Wednesday, which will give the launch team a rest and allow time for technicians to replace a protective cover that's partly peeled off one of the shuttle's thruster rockets.

The weather is supposed to be a bit better by then, with a 60 percent chance conditions will be suitable for launch. If Endeavour is delayed again, which would tie for the most-delayed mission in shuttle program history, NASA likely will stand down until July 27 to allow time for Russia to launch a Progress cargo vehicle to the station.

And the beat goes on ...

(Shuttle crew was hoping to see black skies in space -- not at the launch site. Credit: NASA)

After a disappointing last-minute scrub on Sunday due to bad weather, NASA is ready to try again today to launch shuttle Endeavour on a 16-day construction mission to the space station.

The forecast isn't terribly optimistic -- 60 percent chance of thunderstorms and rain at 6:51 p.m. EDT, the time the shuttle would be launched to meet up with the station two days later. But the odds have been worse ...

As the commander Mark Polansky wrote on his Twitter feed this morning, "While we all hope that today's the day, we have a saying that you never know for sure until the solid rockets light off."

Fueling is under way. Fingers are crossed.

Shuttle Fueled, No Leaks

2009-07-12T14:18:05-04:00

Update: Scrub for today -- thunderstorms, clouds over shuttle launch site. Next opportunity: Monday 6:51 p.m. EDT

Update: Endeavour's seven astronauts are aboard the shuttle and NASA is not working any problems that could delay launch at 7:13 p.m. EDT.

NASA completed filling shuttle Endeavour's external fuel tank with 500,000 gallons of liquid oxygen and liquid hydrogen that will feed its three main engines during the 8.5-minute climb to orbit. Unlike the last two previous launch attempts, there were no leaks of the hydrogen venting system, clearing NASA to proceed with a launch at 7:13 p.m. EDT.

The crew, led by two-time shuttle veteran Mark Polansky, is awake and just finished lunch. Polansky dined on steak and lobster tails. Mission specialists Chris Cassidy and Timothy Kopra opted for steak and mashed potatoes, Tom Marshburn ate lobster and salad and the rest of the crew -- pilot Doug Hurley, Canadian Space Agency astronaut Julie Payette and lead spacewalker David Wolf -- ate cheeseburgers.

The astronauts are scheduled to begin donning their pressurized flight suits around 3 p.m. and head out to the launch pad to board Endeavour about an hour later.

The weather looks good for launch, with forecasters expecting a 70 percent chance conditions will be suitable for liftoff.

Endeavour is carrying the last part of Japan's Kibo laboratory to the International Space Station and tons of spare parts that will be needed to keep the station operational after the shuttles are retired next year.

Shuttle Cleared for 3rd Launch Try

2009-07-12T09:49:41-04:00

Confident a series of lightning strikes near the launch pad on Friday did no harm, NASA managers on Sunday cleared space shuttle Endeavour for a third launch attempt on a mission to deliver a porch to the International Space Station for external science experiments.

Liftoff is targeted for 7:13 p.m. and meteorologists are predicting a 70 percent chance conditions will be suitable for launch.

The shuttle is carrying an external experiments platform that is to be attached to the front of Japan's elaborate Kibo complex.

NASA tried twice to launch the shuttle last month, but were stymied by hydrogen fuel leaks. Technicians found a slight misalignment in a hydrogen venting line and made repairs. NASA conducted a practice fueling to make sure the repair worked.

The agency is trying to finish up eight remaining shuttle missions in the next 15 months and retire the fleet so it can move on with developing a new spaceship that can travel to the moon as well as to the station, which orbits 225 miles above Earth.

(NASA reported 11 lightning strikes within 0.3-nautical miles from the shuttle launch pad on Friday, including this hit on the launch pad lightning mast that was detected by a remote television camera. Credit: NASA)

Shuttle Launch Reset for Sunday

2009-07-11T10:44:35-04:00

Update:

NASA is reporting 11 lighting strikes within .3 nautical miles of the the launch pad, including two at 110 volts. The shuttle is protected from direct strikes by lighting masts and catenary wires that divert currents to the ground, so while there's no concern that the shuttle was hit by lighting, engineers do need to comb through its hundreds of electrical systems to make sure nothing was affected by electromagnetic fields related to the strikes. Of particular concern are the pyrotechnic devices that separate the shuttle's twin solid rocket boosters from the external fuel tank two minutes into flight and the electrical systems on the orbiter.

NASA hopes to have the checkout complete in time to begin fueling the shuttle around 9 a.m. on Sunday for a launch attempt at 7:13 p.m.

NASA has canceled today's planned launch attempt of space shuttle Endeavour to allow more time for engineers to assess any possible damage from lightning strikes at the launch pad Friday night. Next launch attempt is on Sunday at 7:13 p.m. EDT

NASA Delays Start of Fueling for Shuttle Launch

2009-07-11T10:25:19-04:00

NASA managers are meeting to assess if shuttle Endeavour is ready to begin a 16-day mission to the International Space Station. Fueling was to have begun at 10:14 a.m., but NASA held off to assess whether a series of lighting strikes at the launch pad Friday night caused any damage. If the all-clear is given, fueling should begin shortly before 11 a.m.

The shuttle remains targeted for liftoff at 7:39 p.m. EDT from Kennedy Space Center.

Together, To Mars

2009-07-08T10:50:28-04:00

Forty years after Neil Armstrong's giant leap for mankind, the United States and Europe took a small step toward a permanent partnership for Mars exploration.

In a joint statement issued today, NASA's space science chief Ed Weiler and the European Space Agency's director of science and robotic exploration David Southwood, said they had agreed to create a Mars Exploration Joint Initiative, (known, of course, by the acronym MEJI) that "will provide a framework for the two agencies to define and implement their scientific, programmatic and technological goals at Mars."

The statement followed a two-day meeting in Plymouth, England. MEJI is intended to address launch opportunities to Mars as early as 2016, with the goal of leading a Mars sample return mission in the 2020s.

NASA and ESA also agreed to subject MAJI's plans for review by ESA member states as well as the U.S. National Academy of Sciences.

You can read the full release here.

Probe Returns First Pictures of the Moon

2009-07-04T08:23:00-04:00

NASA's Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter has returned its first images of the moon.

"Our first images were taken along the moon's terminator -- the dividing line between day and night -- making us initially unsure of how they would turn out," lead scientist Mark Robinson, with Arizona State University in Tempe, said in a press release.

"Because of the deep shadowing, subtle topography is exaggerated, suggesting a craggy and inhospitable surface. In reality, the area is similar to the region where the Apollo 16 astronauts safely explored in 1972," he added.

LRO reached lunar orbit on June 23. The goal of the mission is to map the surface of the moon so NASA can find safe and scientifically interesting landing spots for future excursions. The agency is planning to return astronauts to the moon by 2020.

The images show a region in the lunar highlands south of Mare Nublum, the Sea of Clouds. The older impact craters have softened edges, while younger craters appear crisp. Each image shows a region 1,400 meters (0.87 miles) wide. The image below shows where the two images were taken, relative to each other.

(Credit: NASA)

NASA Selects Nine New Astronauts

2009-06-29T15:04:05-04:00

So what does an agent with the CIA, two Air Force officers with the Pentagon and a couple of medical doctors have in common? Apparently, NASA believes they have the mettle for future space travel.

The agency has selected nine people to join its elite astronaut corps, though they likely won’t be flying anytime soon. The space shuttles are due to be retired next year and a replacement isn’t expected to become operational until about 2015. A few lucky souls may snag seats on the Russian Soyuz capsules, which will be ferrying space station crewmembers to and fro during the hiatus.

The Astronaut Class of 2009 is the first new hires in five years. The nine candidates are expected to report to the Johnson Space Center in Houston this summer to begin a year of basic training. At its peak, NASA added 35 astronauts to the corps (44 if you include nine astronauts from other countries that trained with the group at JSC).

Astronaut pay ranges from $59,493 annually to $130,257, in accordance to federal government pay grades, which are based on academic achievements and experience.

NASA says more than 3,500 people applied for the jobs. The new hires are:

*Serena Aunon, 33, of League City, Texas; a University of Texas Medical Branch flight surgeon for NASA.

*Jeanette Epps, 38, of Fairfax, Va.; a technical intelligence officer with the Central Intelligence Agency.

*Air Force Maj. Jack Fischer, 35, of Reston, Va.; a test pilot and intern with the U.S. Air Force Strategic Policy, Joint Chiefs of Staff at the Pentagon.

*Air Force Lt. Col. Michael Hopkins, 40, of Alexandria, Va.; a special assistant to the Vice Chairman, Joint Chiefs of Staff at the Pentagon.

*Kjell Lindgren, 36, of League City, Texas; a University of Texas Medical Branch flight surgeon for NASA.

*Kathleen Rubins, 30, of Cambridge, Mass.; principal investigator and fellow at MIT’s Whitehead Institute for Biomedical Research.

*Navy Cmdr. Scott Tingle, 43, of Hollywood, Md.; a test pilot and assistant program manager at the Naval Air Station Patuxent River.

*Army Lt. Col. Mark Vande Hei, 42, of El Lago, Texas; a NASA flight controller for the International Space Station.

*Navy Lt. Col. Gregory Wiseman, 33, of Virginia Beach, Va.; a test pilot; department head of Strike Fighter Squadron 103, USS Dwight D. Eisenhower.

(The CIA's Jeanette Epps, Astronaut Class of 2009)