Space Coast here in Florida Today got a treat as the shuttle raced to orbit after fiveShuttle Endeavor soared over the beaches of the Space Coast after it’s sixth attempt, with odds of good weather at 60 percent.
- Space Coast Saw Fireworks as Endeavor reached for the Heavens
Three prior launch attempts were scrubbed because of thunderstorms moving into the area, and hydrogen gas leaks have caused two delays. Endeavour holds the final piece of Japan’s space lab, which should have flown last month.
When spokesman Allard Beutel at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center here on the Space Coast was asked the cost of just one Space Shuttle scrub, the answer approximately one million dollars. With NASA being cash strapped and facing budget problems, this is not what they need as of now.
Crossing our fingers and rolling the walkway away from the Endeavour’s hatch, there is one of the astronauts checking their ipod for the right music for the ride to space, mind freak!
Most people think the shuttle is ready to go on the pad any moment, but there is actually a protocol that must be followed that takes several hours to fill and then drain the external tanks when there is a scrub. Specialized liquid hydrogen and oxygen fuel is use and must be done properly to avoid accidents.
The shuttles are very complicated vehicles that must be constantly checked and evaluated, even while on the pad before launch. One of the covers had come loose, which could have allowed rain to penetrate the thruster nozzle. The rain would have frozen when the shuttle was in orbit and could have had an impact on maneuvers, such as docking Endeavour. You can see just by one simple oversight that doesn’t look like a problem…could become catastrophic in orbit and put the crew in danger or possibly lead to their demise.
The overall 4.5-million-dollar cost provided by information from NASA is “marginal” in Nasa’s overall operating budget, added Beutel. The agency says the space shuttle Endeavour alone, built to replace the shuttle Challenger, cost some 1.7 billion dollars.
Traffic on the space coast slows everything down launch day and it is becoming more of a problem with the remaining launches for the Space Shuttle program coming to an end soon. So be prepared to add additional time when traveling the day of the launch along the space coast.
