CAPE
CANAVERAL, Fla. (AP) -- Mission controllers have turned off one of four spinning
gyroscopes
that keep the International
Space Station properly positioned in space because it was vibrating
excessively.
Although
the space station needs only two of the four devices functioning, having one
down could be troublesome in December during space
shuttle Discovery's mission to the orbiting outpost.
During one
of the mission's three spacewalks, two other gyroscopes will be powered down so
astronauts can hook up electrical cables to solar panels that were installed
during last
month's flight of space
shuttle Atlantis.
Planners
need to decide whether to leave the troubled gyroscope off or spin it back up
during the spacewalk, said NASA spokesman James Hartsfield in Houston.
"You
honestly don't want to power off two and have only one operating,'' he said. "Technically,
we are not calling this one failed yet, but whether it's reusable is the
subject of analysis.''
The
vibrating gyroscope was turned off Tuesday.
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