spacetoday.net: Seal repairs could delay next shuttle launch

Seal repairs could delay next shuttle launch

Posted: Tue, Sep 18, 2007, 1:55 PM ET (1755 GMT)

A decision to replace leaky seals in the space shuttle Discovery could delay its launch next month, shuttle managers said Monday. The seals, in the strut of the orbiter's right main landing gear, failed a hydraulic fluid leak check during preparations prior to its transfer to the Vehicle Assembly Building. Shuttle managers decided Monday that the problem was significant enough to warrant replacing the seals, a process that will delay the orbiter's transfer to the VAB by about a week, potentially delaying the launch by two or three days, once slack in the schedule is taken into account. Discovery is currently scheduled to launch on October 23 on the STS-120 mission to the ISS; during that mission the shuttle crew will install a new node module, Harmony, on the station, as well as reposition a solar panel truss segment.