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HOUSTON (Reuters) - Astronauts aboard shuttle Discovery prepared to leave the International Space Station on Friday while ground control teams revamped landing plans to handle a small leak in one of the ship's power generators. Managers believe the leak is inconsequential but because there is not enough proof, they are proceeding cautiously. [snip] The shuttle has three power units needed to move the body flaps, speed brakes and other critical landing gear. It can safely land with just one, though two or more make for greater control, Shannon said. One unit has a tiny leak, about six drops per hour,...

The protruding gap filler is located toward the tip of the starboard wing, about five tiles back from the leading edge RCC panels, and is between panels 16 and 17. Difficult location to reach.

NASA may push back plans to launch its next shuttle mission until March 2006, allowing engineers more time to solve an ongoing foam shedding problem with orbiter external tanks. A September launch attempt of the space shuttle Atlantis and its STS-121 mission – NASA’s second orbiter to fly since the Columbia disaster – is all but out, with space agency officials stating last week that chances were slim they would make the four-day window that opens on Sept. 22. Shuttle managers are discussing whether to push past a brief, four-day launch window in November, and even switch shuttles – launching...

Waiting in the Wings: Expedition 12, Space Tourist Olsen Prepare By Tariq Malik Staff Writer posted: 11 August 2005 06:44 am ET HOUSTON—As the crew of NASA’s space shuttle Discovery celebrates their safe return to Earth, two astronauts are gearing up for their own launch toward the International Space Station (ISS). NASA astronaut Bill McArthur and Russian cosmonaut Valery Tokarev are set to ride a Soyuz spacecraft to the station in October on the twelfth expedition to the ISS. McArthur will command ISS Expedition 12, with Tokarev serving as flight engineer. Physicist Gregory Olsen, a paying spaceflight participant whose trip...