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Endeavour engine repaired, launch set for Wednesday BY WILLIAM HARWOOD STORY WRITTEN FOR CBS NEWS "SPACE PLACE" & USED WITH PERMISSION Posted: June 4, 2002 Engineers have completed the replacement of a nitrogen regulator in the shuttle Endeavour's left-side rocket pod and topped off the ship's on-board supplies of liquid oxygen and hydrogen, clearing the way for another launch attempt Wednesday afternoon (NASA will release the exact launch time later today). The weather remains a major question mark, however, with forecasters now predicting a 60 percent chance of thick clouds and local storms that could delay liftoff yet again. The outlook improves to 60 percent "go" on Thursday and falls back to 60 percent "no go" on Friday. NASA test director Steve Altemus said today the agency's strategy will be to make three launch attempts over the next four days. As it now stands, NASA has booked June 5 and 6 with the Air Force Eastern Range, the agency that provides required radar and tracking support for all Florida launchings. June 7 and 8 currently are reserved for tests of an Atlas rocket at the nearby Cape Canaveral Air Force Station. But Altemus said NASA managers are optimistic they can work with the Range and Atlas-builder Lockheed Martin to adjust the schedule to support additional shuttle launch attempts if necessary. NASA has been hoping for a break in the weather since last Thursday when Endeaovur's first launch try was scrubbed due to approaching storms. During the initial countdown, engineers noticed problems with a valve in a regulator that supplies the pressurized nitrogen gas needed to operate propellant valves in the shuttle's left-side orbital maneuvering system rocket pod. Engineers ultimately resolved the problem only to see launch scrubbed by the weather. Over the weekend, during subsequent testing, engineers noticed more unusual behavior in the suspect regulator. NASA managers then ordered its replacement, triggering what turned into another two days of delay. "We had to take off the heat shield and go up by the OMS nozzle and actually reach in there and remove three bolts to get that regulator out," Altemus said. "The regulator is about nine inches long, maybe two or three inches in diameter. The test setup to get the nitrogen flow and leak checks done, that was the most challenging part of the whole operation. But we got through those successfully and we're pleased with the results. "I can't say enough about the team at the launch pad," he added. "They're heroes. Those folks who work out at the launch pad do amazing things with that vehicle, they're ace mechanics, they know that vehicle inside and out and when we get in a tough spot, they always seem to pull us out of it." The regulator supplies nitrogen gas to an accumulator, or tank, that is "charged" with pressurized gas for launch. The gas in the accumulator is routed to a pair of propellant valves that allow the OMS engine to fire. Altemus said the accumulator was fully charged last Thursday and even if the regulator had failed during ascent, Endeavour's left-side OMS engine would have worked normally to help put the shuttle in orbit. Had problems developed after that, the astronauts would have been able to manage the on-board nitrogen supply to complete a normal mission. "We felt confident we could manage it on Thursday," he said. "In the turnaround, when we went to do some regulator flow checks on Friday, we saw a different signature. So not understanding, then, how that regulator would behave during the next terminal countdown, and not sure we would be able to get a sufficient accumulator charge to activate those valves during ascent, we opted to change out the hardware. "If we had that failure during ascent, we would essentially lose our GN2 (gaseous nitrogen) pressure to activate those bi-propellant valves and we would have a less than nominal OMS assist to orbit. (But) we could have managed with a single OMS assist to orbit, so really there was no safety of flight kind of consideration in this failure."
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Hosted by Corbin Bernsen, this award winning documentary marks the 50th anniversary of the U.S. space agency and features exclusive interviews with veteran astronauts.Expedition 21 The official embroidered patch for the International Space Station Expedition 21 crew is now available from our stores.On to Mars A wide variety of papers presented at the first four years of the Mars Society's annual conference are collected together in this volume.Get e-mail updates Sign up for our NewsAlert service and have the latest news in astronomy and space e-mailed direct to your desktop (privacy note: your e-mail address will not be used for any other purpose). Apollo 12 tribute DVD set ![]() New! Featuring the jovial crew of Pete Conrad, Dick Gordon and Alan Bean, the Apollo 12 mission was struck by lightning shortly after liftoff but proceeded on the second successful exploration voyage to the lunar surface. This three-disc DVD brings the mission to life with extraordinary detail. U.S. - U.K. - E.U. - Worldwide Fallen Heroes special patch This special 12-inch embroidered patch commemorates the U.S. astronauts who made the ultimate sacrifice, honoring the crews of Apollo 1, Challenger and Columbia.U.S. - U.K. - E.U. - Worldwide Women in Space Women of Space: Cool Careers on the Final Frontier is for girls, young women, and anyone else interested in learning about exciting careers in space exploration. Includes CD-ROM.U.S. - U.K. - E.U. - Worldwide Mars rover poster This new poster features some of the best pictures from NASA's amazing Mars Exploration Rovers Spirit and Opportunity.U.S. |