Posted: Tue, Mar 20, 2001, 11:15 AM ET (1615 GMT)
Inclement weather forecast for Florida tonight could require NASA to divert the shuttle to a California landing for the second straight mission. The shuttle Discovery is scheduled to land at the Kennedy Space Center, Florida, at 12:56 am EST (0556 GMT), with a second landing opportunity at 2:31 am EST (0731 GMT). However, the current forecast calls for clouds, rain, and winds that would prohibit a landing. There are also two landing opportunities Thursday at Edwards Air Force Base, California: 4:02 am and 5:38 am EST (0902 and 1038 GMT). While NASA shuttle managers would normally have the crew spend an extra day in orbit to allow for a second try at Florida, worsening weather forecast later in the week in California, with only a modest improvement in Florida, could prompt them to bring the shuttle down at Edwards tonight.
