Discovery launch called off
August 26th, 2009 - 3:52 pm ICT by IBNSCape Canaveral, Aug 26 (IBNS) NASA has called off the launch of space shuttle Discovery because of a bad fuel valve.
Launch officials halted the countdown late Tuesday afternoon, midway through the fueling process.
The seven astronauts had not boarded the shuttle for the scheduled early Wednesday morning flight to the international space station.
A new launch date was not immediately set.
NASA spokesman Allard Beutel said engineers were trying to open and shut the fill-and-drain valve in Discovery’s engine compartment when it appeared to be broken. The exact condition of the valve is not yet known.
The valve is used for the flow of liquid hydrogen from the external fuel tank to the main engines.
It’s the second launch delay in as many days for Discovery. Tuesday’s launch was called off because of thunderstorms.
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Tags: allard, astronauts, beutel, cape canaveral, countdown, discovery launch, engine compartment, exact condition, external fuel tank, fuel valve, ibns, international space station, liquid hydrogen, morning flight, nasa, nasa spokesman, space shuttle discovery, tuesday afternoon, wednesday morning
