First full day in space means back to work for Discovery crew

Published 12:00 am Wednesday, July 27, 2005

SPACE CENTER, Houston (AP) &045; Discovery’s astronauts began their first full day of work in space Wednesday with a carefully orchestrated inspection of the shuttle’s wings and nose to detect any damage that may have occurred during liftoff.

NASA officials said Tuesday an object that may have been a 1 1/2-inch piece of thermal tile appeared to break off from the Discovery’s belly during liftoff. Also, a large object &045; perhaps a piece of foam insulation &045; seemed to fly off from the external fuel tank, NASA flight operations manager John Shannon said.

Officials stressed it was too early to say whether there was any danger to the shuttle or its crew. Wednesday’s highly sensitive search, which was expected to take about seven hours, uses a sensor attached to a 50-foot extension of the shuttle’s robotic arm. The astronauts must be careful not to bump the equipment against the shuttle’s fragile exterior.

Email newsletter signup

Flight director Paul Hill considers the inspections among the most hazardous of the new procedures put in place.