NASA Seeks to Resolve Shuttle Malfunction
NASA struggled to understand a fleeting but perplexing problem with one of space shuttle Endeavour’s key navigation devices.
One of three inertial measurement units aboard Endeavour malfunctioned, setting off an alarm after the astronauts had gone to bed. It was immediately taken off-line, another unit took over and shuttle commander Dominic Gorie was told to go back to sleep.
The unit started working again, even though it was not being used to guide Endeavour, flight director Wayne Hale said.
If another one fails, the shuttle would be forced to return to Earth because there no longer would be any redundancy.
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