Endeavour set for return to Earth

Houston, Aug 21: Space shuttle Endeavour was set to return to Earth on Tuesday after a flight to the International Space Station that was shortened by Hurricane Dean and marred by a recurring debris problem at launch.

NASA said Endeavour and its crew of seven would land at Kennedy Space Center in Florida at 12:32 p.m. EDT (2162 hrs IST) if weather permits.

Forecasts called for a possibility of rain, which can damage Endeavour's delicate heat shield, but flight director Steve Stich said he was optimistic about landing.

''For this time of year, it's pretty good,'' he said of the forecast.

NASA had planned to land Endeavour on Wednesday, but decided to bring it back a day early out of concern that Hurricane Dean, roaring through the Caribbean Sea, could turn toward Texas and disrupt operations at the Johnson Space Center.

The monster storm neared Mexico's Yucatan Peninsula on Monday with (256 kph) winds and was not expected to hit Texas, but NASA did not change its plans.

Endeavour is coming home with a small gash in its belly heat shield caused by a chunk of insulation foam that flew off the fuel tank when the shuttle launched on August 8.

NASA decided the three-inch gouge would not endanger the ship during its fiery return to Earth and did not need repair.

''I can assure you Endeavour is not going to suffer any catastrophic damage,'' Stich told reporters in Houston.

But space shuttle program director Wayne Hale said NASA would once again have to look at the flying foam problem that caused the Colombia disaster in 2003.

The US space agency has made changes to reduce foam loss, but he said it will never be completely eliminated because of inherent design problems in the aging shuttles.

''We will never have a launch with zero risk,'' Hale said. Columbia broke apart before landing because of wing heat shield damage caused by a foam strike as it launched. The seven astronauts on board were killed.

The shuttle program was grounded for two and half years while NASA reviewed and revised its safety procedures. Endeavour arrived Aug. 10 at the space station, where astronauts installed a two-tonne metal beam on the 100 billion dollars outpost, which is now 60 per cent complete, NASA said.

The agency hopes to finish the 15-nation project before the shuttle fleet is retired in 2010.

The Endeavour crew includes Barbara Morgan, a former teacher who originally trained to fly in 1985 as the backup to Christa McAuliffe, a teacher who died in the ill-fated Challenger mission in January 1986.

Reuters>