Washington (ECN) - Sunday evening of March 15, 2009, NASA is ready to launch a shuttle known as Discovery with a new crew of seven people out to the international space station, from Cape Canaveral, Fla.
There was a first launch attempt on Wednesday, but problems with the shuttles external fuel tank, delayed the launch.
Hydrogen gas had gotten into the air from a line that was connected the one of the fuel tanks.
Technicians were not able to find what exactly caused the leak that halted the first launch.
If problems happen with the launch on Sunday, officials are prepared to halt the countdown.
NASA only has until Tuesday to get the shuttle launched, and get the crew headed out to the space station.
The shuttle has to deliver one of the solar wings and some important parts to the water system in the station.
If the shuttle is not launched by Tuesday then it will have to wait till April to launch, this would be after Russia launches their shuttle.
The push back with the leak NASA had to shorten the shuttle’s flight by a day.
Discovery launches on Sunday, then its flight will last 13 days with three spacewalks.
One of the spacewalks is to install the solar wing that the shuttle is to bring up.
Originally the mission was intended for 14 days with four spacewalks, but since the delays it had to be reduced, and if it gets delayed to Monday or Tuesday then NASA will have to cut even more then just the one day and one spacewalk.
NASA plans to have the about of people in the space station crew to six people at the end of May and if they have to wait to launch Discovery until April, it could risk that plan.
Discovery had already suffered a one month delay from the Hydrogen gas valves that are inside of Discovery.
NASA had all of the valves replace to make sure that it would be safe to fly, after all during the launch in November, one of the valves broke, and no one was hurt.
