Shuttlecrew look for damage

THE crew of the US shuttle Discovery were last night examining the vessel for any signs of damage.

Nothing serious was reported, but officials said it was much too early to draw any conclusions.

The only unusual thing found, at least for now, was a whitish splotch on Discovery’s right wing that looked like a bird dropping. And there was one on the wing a few weeks ago at the launch pad, said flight director Tony Ceccacci.

Mr Ceccacci said it was on target for a linkup with the International Space Station today.

Live video of Discovery’s Independence Day launch had showed some small chunks of debris falling from the external fuel tank, at least one hitting the shuttle.

Using new inspection techniques implemented after the 2003 Columbia disaster, the astronauts yesterday were taking more images with laser, digital and video cameras that can spot damage as small as an eighth of an inch.

As they hurtled towards the rendezvous with the space station, the astronauts manoeuvred a 15-foot boom, with cameras attached, to inspect Discovery’s right wing and nose cap.

It was only the second time a shuttle crew had conducted such an intensive inspection, though NASA managers had said after reviewing the launch video that they weren’t particularly worried.

“We saw nothing that gives us any kind of concern about the health of the crew or the vehicle,” said Wayne Hale, shuttle programme manager.

Yesterday’s inspections, which were expected to take about six and a half hours, were ordered after a chunk of hard insulating foam from the external fuel tank struck Columbia on liftoff in 2003 and damaged its wing, allowing fiery gases to enter the spacecraft during reentry. All seven astronauts were killed as the shuttle broke up over Texas.