Nasa investigates damage to Endeavour
The shuttle took off from Cape Canaveral in Florida on Wednesday
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Monday, 13, Aug 2007 05:39
Nasa officials are continuing to examine images of damage to the heat shield of the space shuttle Endeavour.
Pictures were taken of what the space agency has described as "five areas of concern", including a square three-inch gouge, while the shuttle performed a back flip near the International Space Station (ISS).
Yesterday astronauts onboard the shuttle used a robotic arm and extension boom in order to take the photographs and determine the dimensions of the damage.
Mission management team chairman John Shannon said a spacewalk would be needed to conduct repairs if the damage was deemed serious.
He added that it appeared the damage to the shuttle had been caused by "an ice impact".
Ice could have struck the shuttle after lift-off on Wednesday from the Cape Canaveral launch pad in Florida, according to Nasa.
Mr Shannon said a rescue shuttle would be sent to bring the STS-118 mission astronauts back home if they could not return to Earth in Endeavour.
Heat shields are vital for protecting shuttles; in 2003 all seven crew onboard the Columbia space shuttle died after the vessel burned up on re-entering the Earth's atmosphere due to heat shield damage.
During the current mission the STS-118 crew will add a new truss segment to the right side of the station which will allow for clearance between sets of solar arrays.
Three days have been added to the mission after the successful operation of the new station-to-shuttle power transfer system, allowing for a fourth spacewalk to be planned.
Endeavour is now scheduled to undock from the ISS on August 20th and land on August 22nd.
It is the first flight for Endeavour in more than four years as it has undergone extensive modifications including safety upgrades.