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The seven-astronaut crew aboard the space shuttle Endeavor performed today the final heat-shield verification using the standard NASA sensor-laden inspection pole before Friday's attempt to land at the Kennedy Space Center, in Cape Canaveral, Florida. The stakes are very high, so the crew took their time wielding the observation instrument under the belly and wings of the spacecraft, looking for any damage, no matter how small, that might have come to the heat shield. The construct is designed to sustain the fiery temperatures of atmospheric reentry, but can only do so if it is intact, Space reports. Having undocked from the International Space Station (ISS) yesterday, the craft is currently on its way home, circling the Earth until the right landing window opens up. The late inspection has become a standard part of shuttle flight since the 2003 space shuttle Columbia accident, which was lost with its entire crew due to damage the heat shield had sustained during its fligh!
t in low-Earth orbit. Micrometeorites and other types of space junk, such as debris from satellites already in orbit, can cut through the shuttle like knife through butter, as they travel at speeds of thousands of kilometers per hour. The check-up is also currently performed immediately after the shuttles reach their orbit, so...
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http://news.softpedia.com/news/Astronauts-Complete-Shuttle-Heat-Shield-Inspection-Test-117872.shtml
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