Hydrogen Gas Leak Delays Shuttle Launch
The seven-person crew of the space shuttle Endeavour never even suited up before NASA scrubbed a June 13 launch to the International Space Station due to a potentially dangerous hydrogen gas leak. NASA scratched the launch at 12:26 a.m. EDT, and the 16-day mission will be delayed until at least June 17.
If Endeavour doesn't launch before June 20, the mission will be delayed until July 11 because the late June and early July sun angle on the ISS would create heat issues for Endeavour.
After calling off the launch, NASA began draining Endeavour's external fuel tank to begin an investigation of the leak. A hydrogen gas leak also delayed the March launch of Discovery by four days. NASA patched that leak at a vent line, but the space agency still hasn't determined the exact source of the leak.
Launch Director Mike Leinbach said the Endeavour leak made the risk of a launch pad explosion too high.
"There's no way we could have continued," he said at a news conference. "It's a commodity you just don't mess with."
That date, however, is already booked for the moon-bound launch of an Atlas V rocket carrying the LRO (Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter) and the LCROSS (Lunar Crater Observation and Sensing Satellite). According to NASA, no decision has been made about which launch will have priority.
If Endeavour doesn't launch before June 20, the mission will be delayed until July 11 because the late June and early July sun angle on the ISS would create heat issues for Endeavour.
After calling off the launch, NASA began draining Endeavour's external fuel tank to begin an investigation of the leak. A hydrogen gas leak also delayed the March launch of Discovery by four days. NASA patched that leak at a vent line, but the space agency still hasn't determined the exact source of the leak.
Launch Director Mike Leinbach said the Endeavour leak made the risk of a launch pad explosion too high.
"There's no way we could have continued," he said at a news conference. "It's a commodity you just don't mess with."
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