Shuttle Launch Is Set in Spite of Concerns

NASA decided Saturday to schedule the launch of the shuttle Discovery for July 1, despite the concerns of some top safety officials that the space agency has not yet solved the problem with flaky insulating foam, which brought down the Columbia in 2003.

Two of the 25 shuttle management team members -- the chief engineer and the head safety officer -- recommended the launch be delayed because of worries that foam on 34 brackets attached to the shuttle’s giant external tank could fall off and pose a hazard to the craft.

But at the end of the two-day flight readiness review, they were outvoted by the rest of the management team. The team thought that even if foam came off a part of the tank known as the ice frost ramps, it would not endanger the seven-person crew.

After going on record as having recommended a delay, the dissenting officials said they did not oppose launching on July 1.

The two officials “recommended that we not fly, but they do not object to us flying,” Bill Gerstenmaier, associate administrator for space operations, explained to reporters at Kennedy Space Center in Florida. The officials are NASA’s chief engineer, Chris Scolese, and the head of the office of Safety and Mission Assurance, Bryan O’Connor.

NASA officials acknowledged that recommending against a launch but not opposing it sounded contradictory. Shuttle program manager N. Wayne Hale Jr. said this was proof that NASA had changed.

After the Columbia disaster, it came out that some officials had been worried about the 1.7-pound piece of foam that could be seen hitting the left wing during launch. Their concerns had been brushed aside.

Now, Hale said, every voice is heard, even if it sends a somewhat confusing message to the public.

“People concerned about culture change ought to take heart,” Hale said. “The agency has really changed.”

About 35 pounds of insulating foam have already been removed from the fuel tank after a 1-pound piece of foam came off during Discovery’s launch last year. That foam was in two large chunks along the side of the tank. After extensive wind tunnel testing, engineers said losing that foam that would not endanger the air-worthiness of the shuttle.

But concerns remain about the potential loss of foam from the ice frost ramps. Some engineers want those pieces of foam taken off before the launch. NASA decided to leave them in place, at least until they see how the shuttle performs during this mission.

NASA Administrator Michael D. Griffin said no large pieces of foam had ever come off the ice frost ramps during 114 shuttle missions. “We do not believe we are risking the crew,” Griffin said.

Hale noted that work was going on now that could lead to a redesign of the ice frost ramps.

“I think it is acceptable for a number of reasons to go fly for a limited number of flights until we come up with a new design,” Hale said.

The fleet of three remaining shuttles is scheduled to be retired in 2010. NASA hopes to get 16 more flights out of the vehicles.