Space shuttle launch may be delayed

Preparations for the first space shuttle flight since the Columbia disaster were put on hold for a day while top Nasa officials decided whether to stick to a May 22 launch date.

Nasa spokesman Allard Beutel said the space agency would have no comment on the outcome of the meeting until today. But Nasa and contractors managers were cancelling reservations at hotels near Cape Canaveral and rebooking for mid-July, suggesting the launch had been delayed.