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Shuttle makes second run at landing today

Members of the Discovery crew answer questions from U.S. television networks on Sunday. Monday was largely a "free day" in space.

By CURTIS KRUEGER
Published August 9, 2005

CAPE CANAVERAL - NASA was hoping for clear skies over Florida this morning to give the seven astronauts aboard Discovery a better chance of landing at Kennedy Space Center, instead of flying to California.

The astronauts were prepared to glide down to Earth early Monday, completing the first space shuttle flight since the 2003 Columbia disaster. But Mission Control backed off because of low clouds over Cape Canaveral.

"We're going to enjoy another day on orbit and we'll see you on Earth tomorrow," Commander Eileen Collins said to Mission Control after the decision.

NASA will try again to land Discovery at either 5:07 a.m. or 6:43 a.m. this morning at Kennedy Space Center.

Discovery would cross Florida's west coast south of Port Charlotte if the first landing time is selected. It would cross the coast north of Tampa Bay if the second landing time is selected.

On the second landing time, Tampa Bay area residents would be able to hear a sonic boom, although it would be louder in the Orlando area.

If bad weather persists, however, NASA could send Discovery to land at either 8:12 a.m. or 9:47 a.m. Eastern time today at Edwards Air Force Base in California.

"Edwards is going to be in the mix," said NASA spokesman Bruce Buckingham. "Edwards wasn't in the mix today."

Forecasters expected scattered clouds and a chance of showers at Kennedy Space Center this morning, which is similar to what the weather was early Monday. The forecast at Edwards was for clear skies.

NASA prefers to land space shuttles at Kennedy Space Center because it also serves as the launch site. Landings at Kennedy mean the agency does not have to transport shuttles across the country from California. But Edwards Air Force Base, in the California desert, tends to have clear skies. A third potential landing site is in New Mexico.

NASA made the call not to land in Florida on Monday after chief astronaut Kent Rominger flew overhead in a shuttle training aircraft, a plane designed to behave aerodynamically like the shuttle.

"I just couldn't quite get comfortable with the overall conditions of the day," entry flight director LeRoy Cain said at Mission Control in Houston.

Like passengers snowed in at the airport, the astronauts added an unexpected extra day onto their trip.

"They'll basically have a free day in space," Buckingham said. "They might have some time to look out the window."

The astronauts spent 13 days working on such tasks as inspecting Discovery for damage, conducting an unprecedented repair on the bottom of the shuttle and replacing a gyroscope on the international space station.

A 0.9-pound chunk of foam that fell off Discovery's external tank upon launch has prompted NASA to ground the shuttles from future flights for now. The space agency doesn't believe the foam damaged Discovery, but a similar incident led to the destruction of Columbia in 2003.

"The mission on orbit has been accomplished," Buckingham said. "Now it's the mission to get them safely on the ground."

Astronaut Mark Polansky, who is not on Discovery's crew, said he didn't think the astronauts would be overly stressed about having to wait another day before coming back and seeing their families.

"It's much, much harder for the people on the ground," he said.

[Last modified August 9, 2005, 05:01:00]