NATION IN BRIEF : FLORIDA : Astronauts Practice Computer Landings
From Times Staff and Wire Reports
Columbia’s pilots landed the space shuttle again and again on a computer, said mission controllers at Cape Canaveral, Fla. For the first time, the shuttle carries a laptop computer with graphics and a control stick to simulate landings. The idea is to sharpen pilots’ flying skills while the spaceship orbits. Columbia’s 14-day medical research mission is the longest shuttle flight ever planned.
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