Thu, 09 Dec 2010 07:39:04 -0600
At NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, technicians at Launch Pad 39A have installed an environmental enclosure on space shuttle Discovery's external fuel tank for a tanking test planned for no earlier than Wednesday, Dec. 15.
The test will help verify repairs associated with cracks on the tops of two 21-foot-long, U-shaped aluminum brackets, called stringers, on the external tank and help engineers determine what caused the cracks in the first place. Technicians repaired the cracks and reapplied foam insulation on the stringers last month.
Tanking test plans call for recording temperature and strain gauge measurements in the intertank region near the top of the external tank where the stringers are located.
Managers determined last week more tests and analysis were needed before proceeding with Discovery’s STS-133 mission to the International Space Station. Discovery’s next launch opportunity is no earlier than Feb. 3 at 1:34 a.m. EST.
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