Astronauts Finish Experiments, Prepare for Return to Earth

Space shuttle Columbia’s astronauts wrapped up experiments Thursday in preparation for a return to Earth this morning, bracing for a barrage of questions about a runaway science satellite.

NASA is forming an investigation team to look into the botched solar mission and plans to impound the satellite as soon as the shuttle lands and is unloaded.

Flight director John Shannon said NASA still doesn’t know why the Spartan satellite never received a crucial computer command before its release from Columbia on Nov. 21. Managers suspect bad software or crew error.

“The crew will be part of the investigation,” Shannon said at a news conference.

Astronaut Kalpana Chawla, who was in charge of the satellite, said earlier this week that to the best of her memory she sent all the necessary commands to the spacecraft.

The $10-million Spartan satellite was supposed to spend two days observing the sun’s charged outer atmosphere but never got so much as a glimpse. It malfunctioned within moments of its release, and, when Chawla tried to grab it with the shuttle robot arm, she bumped it and sent it into a slow spin.

Two spacewalking astronauts eventually hauled the satellite back on board.

While acknowledging Spartan was a big disappointment, Shannon noted that Columbia’s other experiments were successful.

They included tests of a crane, a flying camera and science experiments.