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External fuel tank delays may stall Hubble mission |
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Written by Derek Kessler on
Monday, 24 March 2008
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 NASA is still targeting August 28th as the launch date for the space shuttle Atlantis' mission to service the Hubble Space Telescope, but problems with the redesigned external fuel tank are threatening to delay the mission. Since the loss of the space shuttle Columbia in 2003, NASA has been constantly making design changes to the fuel tank in an effort to minimize the amout of foam insulation shed from the tank during launch. Turns out, that the changes have forced the assembly plant to start from scratch.
The orange foam-covered external fuel tanks are built at the NASA Michoud Assembly Facility in New Orleans, LA. The changes made to the tanks have forced the assembly to abandon older completed tanks and start from scratch, as it was not feasible to modify the existing stock.
While Michoud has been able to churn out new tanks fast enough to keep up with NASA's ambitious launch schedule, the Hubble servicing mission has posed a new challenge. After the loss of Columbia, new safety policies were instituted to scan the shuttle's heat sheild after launch, and if too damaged for safe repair and reentry, the shuttle can stay at the International Space Station until a rescue mission can be launched.
The Hubble mission, however, won't have the ISS safe haven. If the shuttle is damaged, it won't have enough fuel to raise its orbit to the level of the space station, and only three weeks of fuel, batteries, and supplies available. With that in mind, NASA has decided to have a second space shuttle - Endeavour - standing by on the launch pad to launch an immediate rescue mission.
This poses a problem for the Michoud Assembly Facility, who must have two tanks ready and delivered for the mission. Michoud will not publically commit to a possible delivery date.
In the meantime, the torrential rains and storms that ravaged the American south and midwest have delayed the delivery of the fuel tank for Discovery's May 25th mission to the ISS. The tanks, which are shipped by barge, were held at Michoud for four days before being shipped and are currently en route, scheduled for arrival at the Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Florida. The late delivery is not expected to delay the launch in two months.
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