Shuttle Mission to Launch Galileo Probe Safe, NASA Argues in Court

Exhaustive tests show that atomic generators scheduled for launch aboard the space shuttle Atlantis next week are safe and efforts by anti-nuclear groups to block the flight should be denied, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration argued in federal court papers filed Friday.

The space agency said efforts to ground the showcase mission represent “an attack on the judgment and integrity of the scientists, engineers and public officials who, after extensive and careful deliberation and consideration of risks and benefits, have determined that this important mission can be undertaken safely.”

Atlantis and its five-member crew are scheduled for blastoff from the Kennedy Space Center Thursday to launch the $1.4-billion Galileo probe on a six-year voyage to explore Jupiter.

Galileo is powered by two radioisotope thermoelectric generators, each loaded with about 24 pounds of plutonium 238 dioxide. The generators are scheduled to be moved to launch pad 39B and bolted to Galileo today.

But three citizens groups--the Foundation on Economic Trends, the Christic Institute and the Florida Coalition for Peace and Justice--filed an unprecedented lawsuit in U.S. District Court in Washington Sept. 28 seeking a temporary restraining order to block the launch.

The activists assert that NASA has underestimated the risks of a plutonium release in the event of a launch catastrophe.

A hearing is scheduled Tuesday, just two days before Atlantis’ scheduled launch and one day after the start of its countdown. If the legal effort fails, the activists have vowed to trespass at the Kennedy Space Center to disrupt the countdown.