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Deep Impact launch postponed more than a week BY JUSTIN RAY SPACEFLIGHT NOW Posted: November 24, 2004 Launch of NASA's Deep Impact spacecraft that will blast a small projectile into the heart of Comet Tempel 1 has been delayed from December 30 to give engineers more time to complete pre-flight work on mission software, the space agency announced today. Liftoff is now targeted for no sooner than January 8 at 2:39:50 p.m. EST (1939:50 GMT) from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station's pad 17B. The mission must launch within a 30-day window that offers the proper trajectory for Deep Impact to reach the comet next July. An 820-pound copper-tipped impactor will be fired from the mothership to slam into the comet's nucleus, excavating a stadium-sized crater that should expose pristine material buried in Tempel 1 since the solar system formed more than four billion years ago. "While there are no significant problems associated with the spacecraft hardware, additional time is necessary to be ready for launch. Spacecraft functional and mission readiness tests continue," a NASA statement said. At launch pad 17B, the Boeing Delta 2 rocket to launch Deep Impact is being assembled. The first stage was erected Monday and three solid rocket boosters were attached Tuesday. The remaining six solids will be installed in sets of three next week, followed by hoisting of the second stage atop the vehicle. The next Delta launch is scheduled for December 10 when the inaugural Delta 4-Heavy flies a demonstration flight for the U.S. Air Force. The giant vehicle will launch from pad 37B at the Cape during a window of 2:31 to 5:27 p.m. EST (1931-2227 GMT). |
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Columbia Report A reproduction of the official accident investigation report into the loss of the space shuttle Columbia and its crew of seven. U.S. - U.K. - E.U. - Worldwide Apollo 14 DVD In January of 1971, Apollo 14 launched on an ambitious mission to land in the Fra Mauro highlands, a region of the moon more challenging than previous explorations. The flight captured in this DVD set.U.S. Apollo 11 Mission Report Apollo 11 - The NASA Mission Reports Vol. 3 is the first comprehensive study of man's first mission to another world is revealed in all of its startling complexity. Includes DVD!U.S. - U.K. - E.U. - Worldwide STS-115 patch The official crew patch for the STS-115 mission of space shuttle Atlantis to resume orbital construction of the International Space Station.U.S. - U.K. - E.U. - Worldwide |
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