Shuttle launch postponed
Posted: Sat, Feb 21, 2009, 10:30 AM ET (1530 GMT)
NASA announced late Friday night that it has postponed once again the launch of the shuttle Discovery in order to resolve outstanding issues with a key valve. The agency had hoped to clear Discovery on Friday for a launch February 27 on the STS-119 mission to the ISS. However, by Friday evening shuttle managers concluded that they did not have all the information the needed to resolve concerns about a flow control valve that channels gaseous hydrogen in the shuttle's main engines. A similar valve was damaged on Endeavour on the STS-126 mission last year, and engineers are concerned that any debris that breaks off the valve could damage other engine components. NASA did not set a new target launch date Friday, instead instructing shuttle officials to develop a plan by next Wednesday to resolve the concerns and move ahead. Officials said they hope to be able to launch the shuttle by mid-March, after which time they would have to wait until a Soyuz taxi mission to the ISS finishes in early April.
NASA announced late Friday night that it has postponed once again the launch of the shuttle Discovery in order to resolve outstanding issues with a key valve. The agency had hoped to clear Discovery on Friday for a launch February 27 on the STS-119 mission to the ISS. However, by Friday evening shuttle managers concluded that they did not have all the information the needed to resolve concerns about a flow control valve that channels gaseous hydrogen in the shuttle's main engines. A similar valve was damaged on Endeavour on the STS-126 mission last year, and engineers are concerned that any debris that breaks off the valve could damage other engine components. NASA did not set a new target launch date Friday, instead instructing shuttle officials to develop a plan by next Wednesday to resolve the concerns and move ahead. Officials said they hope to be able to launch the shuttle by mid-March, after which time they would have to wait until a Soyuz taxi mission to the ISS finishes in early April.
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