NASA announced a second 24 hour delay in plans to launch the shuttle Discovery on Saturday, aiming for Wednesday instead of Election Day.
Wednesday’s lift off from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center is targeted for 3:52 p.m., EDT.
The weather outlook includes a 70 percent chance of favorable conditions. There is a slight concern for low clouds and isolated rain showers that could force a weather scrub. Wednesday’s launching period spans 13 minutes to set up Discovery’s rendezvous with the International Space Station within four days. The shuttle countdown is scheduled to get under way on Sunday at 2 p.m., EDT.
Originally set for a Monday lift off, the launching was delayed until Tuesday so launch pad technicians could address small nitrogen and helium leaks in the system that pressurizes the shuttle’s tail mounted orbital maneuvering engines.
On Saturday, NASA Test Director Jeff Spaulding said the work would take longer than originally anticipated to accommodate a two-step re-pressurization of the OMS fuel tanks. The entire process, which is scheduled to wrap up early Sunday, will keep other personnel away from the launch pad, slowing overall preparations. The 11-day mission will be Discovery’s 39th and final flight.
The shuttle’s six-member crew is trained to deliver and equip the station with a new storage compartment, external spare parts and Robonaut 2, a humanoid robot. R2 will under go a long running series of tests to assess its performance outside as well as inside the space station.
NASA has daily launch opportunities through Nov. 7. At that point, the space agency would have to wait until early December, when the solar heating cycle on the orbital plane of the space station drops to levels the shuttle can accommodate.
The launch weather outlook remains favorable through at least Friday, according to Kathy Winters, the shuttle launch weather officer