Shuttle Discovery is set to be launched by Nasa on July 1st. First launch in about a year.I would love to go up in a space shuttle. It would be so awesome.
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July 1st Shuttle Launch
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They head safety dude on the project doesn't think the shuttle is ready to go, since the thermal tiles are vulnerable on lift-off, but he was overruled, since everything, including science, engineering, and medicine is a Bush administration political football. But he's OK with it, since if the shuttle breaks on the way up, they can dock with the International Space Station and wait to be rescued.
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> Bryan O'Connor, NASA's lead safety official, and Christopher Scolese, its chief engineer, voted "no go" on Saturday when agency officials meeting at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida cleared Discovery for a planned July 1 liftoff.
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> The two officials said they were concerned that the insulating foam that covers 34 metal brackets on the shuttle's external fuel tank might dislodge during the launching and damage the spacecraft's protective heat shield beyond repair.
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> Even though such damage would not endanger the crew, which could stay in a "safe haven" aboard the International Space Station until rescued by another shuttle, the officials said they were concerned about losing an irreplaceable shuttle like Discovery.
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> "My no-go was based on loss of vehicle risk," Mr. O'Connor said.
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[NYT, 22 June]
This stuff costs a lot of money.