Nasa dismisses Discovery debris concerns
Nasa dismisses Discovery debris concerns
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Wednesday, 05, Jul 2006 10:55
A number of items which fell have been identified for further studies by Nasa engineers, but they are not thought to have an impact on Discovery's voyage.
Concern is particularly high after engineers considered whether to postpone the launch due to the discovery of a crack in the foam insulation just over a day before take-off.
However, shuttle programme manager Wayne Hale told a press conference following take-off that the external tank of Discovery "performed very, very well indeed".
Some of the particles were shed by the orange tank which supplies liquid oxygen and liquid nitrogen to the shuttle's three main engines which are required to make the climb into orbit.
The timing of the debris is also said to be significant, as it fell after two minutes and 15 seconds into take-off – the time considered to be the most aerodynamically-sensitive for the shuttle.
After roughly 15 minutes into the flight the crew filmed a large piece of ice falling away from the shuttle, an occurrence which has been observed on previous flights and is not thought to be a problem.
"We don't see any concern for the orbiter," said Mr Hale.
Taking off at 14:28 EDT (19:38 BST) on America's Independence Day, the launch of the Discovery shuttle came after a series of setbacks and failed take-offs due to unsuitable weather.
The shuttle will repair the International Space Station as well as replenishing it with vital supplies.