News From Space!

Monday’s hailstorm did not only ding the foam on Atlantis’ ET, it damaged some tiles on the Orbiter’s left wing as well. NASA reports…

Atlantis to Roll Back

NASA officials have made the decision that Space Shuttle Atlantis will roll back to the Vehicle Assembly Building for repair on Saturday, March 3 with first motion scheduled for 7 a.m.

Monday’s severe thunderstorm with hail caused what could be 1,000 to 2,000 divots in the giant tank’s foam insulation and minor surface damage to about 26 heat shield tiles on the shuttle’s left wing.

Further evaluation of the tank is necessary to get an accurate accounting of foam damage and must be done in the Vehicle Assembly Building, where the entire tank can be more easily accessed.

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A sudden hailstorm yesterday has caused damage to the Shuttle’s External Tank. This will push the launch of STS-117 back at least a month. NASA reports…

Atlantis to Roll Back

A view of the external tank with hail marks. Photo credit: NASA/KSC
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02.27.07 - 4:15 p.m. EST
NASA officials have announced that Space Shuttle Atlantis will roll back to the Vehicle Assembly Building for repair after Monday’s hail storm.

“This constitutes the worst damage from hail that we have seen on external tank foam,” said Wayne Hale, manager of the Space Shuttle Program.

Hale said that a number of areas need to be repaired and are not accessible at the launch pad.

The vehicle’s slow journey back to the Vehicle Assembly Building will take place over the weekend or early next week. This will give the technicians an opportunity to give the space shuttle an intensive look at the damage and evaluate what it will take to repair it.

“It will be about a month before we can talk about heading back to the launch posture,” said Hale, “given the repair schedule and the ISS requirements.

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February 25, 2007 (RFE/RL) — State television reports that Iran has successfully launched its first space rocket. Fars news agency quotes the deputy head of Iran’s aerospace research centre, Ali Akbar Golrou, as saying the rocket reached an altitude of 150 kilometres, but did not stay in orbit.

http://www.globalsecurity.org/space/library/news/2007/space-070225-rferl01.htm

Soviet Gray Areas of History Explored and Exposed: US intelligence analysts recount that the Russians actively prepared to send cosmonauts on lunar trips ahead of Apollos 8 and 11, and a KGB “special action” attempted to stop Apollo 8 from launching, according to a new article posted to the website Globalsecurity.org.  

 http://www.globalsecurity.org/space/library/report/2007/deep-politics.htm

Has Iran launched a rocket capable of reaching orbit? Or is it “just” a suborbital sounding rocket? Whatever it is, this is going to get ugly. 

CAPE CANAVERAL, Florida (AP) — What would happen if an astronaut became mentally unstable in space and, say, destroyed the ship’s oxygen system or tried to open the hatch and kill everyone aboard?

 http://www.cnn.com/2007/TECH/space/02/23/astronaut.plan.ap/

RedOrbit: Designing Spacesuits with Better Mobility for Astronauts

COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) — The country is not getting its money’s worth out of the international space station, John Glenn said Tuesday, the 45th anniversary of the day he became the first American to orbit the Earth.

• John Glenn marks 45th anniversary as the first American to orbit the Earth
• Glenn says it’s wrong to divert money away from the international space station
• He supports the president’s moon and Mars goals but not at the station’s expense
• Glenn made 3 trips around the Earth inside the Friendship 7 capsule

http://www.cnn.com/2007/TECH/space/02/21/glenn.flight.ap/