The Nation : Atlantis Blastoff Set for Next Thursday

Technicians replaced a faulty rocket computer and NASA managers cleared the shuttle Atlantis for blastoff next Thursday from the Kennedy Space Center in Florida on a showcase flight to launch the nuclear-powered Galileo probe to Jupiter. In Washington, meanwhile, anti-nuclear activists who fear a radiation release in the event of a launch disaster filed court papers seeking a temporary restraining order to keep Galileo on the ground. A hearing is scheduled for Tuesday, just two days before Atlantis’ five-member crew plans to blast off. National Aeronautics and Space Administration managers completed a formal flight readiness review last Tuesday but put off confirming the launch date when one of two computers on board Galileo’s “inertial upper stage” booster malfunctioned.