Astronaut Tim Kopra trains at NASA's Johnson Space Center. Photo Credit/NASA photo
NASA astronaut Tim Kopra, one of two spacewalkers assigned to Shuttle Discovery’s already delayed assembly mission to the International Space Station, was injured Saturday in a bicycle accident, the space agency said in a statement.
The injuries may impact his assignment to the 11-day mission, which just last week was re-scheduled for a Feb. 24 lift off.
“That possibility is still being evaluated,” NASA said late Saturday.
Kopra, 47, “will be okay,” the space agency said. But NASA did not provide other details of his injuries, citing the flier’s medical privacy.
Kopra has trained with astronaut Alvin Drew for a pair of spacewalks outside the station on what is to be Discovery’s final mission. Discovery’s crew includes six veteran astronauts.
The two men are to clean up the work site on the long solar power truss where station astronauts replaced a faulty cooling system pump in August and perform other chores.
Discovery’s flight has been stalled since early Nov. 5 by small cracks in the shuttle’s external fuel tank. Just last week, NASA identified the root cause for the damage. Modifications are under way.
Kopra spent two months aboard the station in 2009 and conducted a five hour spacewalk.
