Will Discovery Be 'Go for Launch' or Forced to Roll Back?
id="attachment_60199" class="wp-caption aligncenter" style="width: 590px">
href="http://www.universetoday.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/03/Discovery-alan-wide.jpg">
src="http://www.universetoday.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/03/Discovery-alan-wide-580x387.jpg" alt="" title="A wide angle view of Discovery and the payload canister on the rolled back Rotating Service Structure. Credit: Alan Walters (awaltersphoto.com) for Universe Today" width="580" height="387" class="size-medium wp-image-60199" />
class="wp-caption-text">A wide angle view of Discovery and the payload canister on the rolled back Rotating Service Structure. Credit: Alan Walters (awaltersphoto.com) for Universe Today
Over the weekend, NASA engineers will conduct additional tests to determine if Discovery can launch "as is" or have to be rolled back for repairs — which would mean a three-month delay for the STS-131 mission. Helium regulator assemblies downstream from a failed isolation valve in the shuttle's right rear maneuvering engine pod must work perfectly to provide a system redundancy that would justify proceeding with the flight. If they don't, then the regulator assemblies and the valve would need to be repaired or replaced, and neither can be done at the launchpad ? meaning Discovery would have to be rolled back to the Vehicle Assembly Building, de-mated from the SRBs and external tank, and sent to the Orbiter Processing Facility for repairs. But if the regulators check out, and no other problems arise, mission managers could give the 'go' to launch Discovery as is on April 5, 2010.
Today on the launchpad, said NASA Payload Manager Joe Delai was optimistic about the tests. "It's looking good," he said. "They will do a test on Saturday to make sure the two valves farther down the line work, and if that looks good, we'll put the payload on board."/> (...)
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