NASA wants to move up
launch dates for its next two shuttle missions to ensure the second can be sent
up before a window of opportunity closes in late November, officials said
Tuesday.
But it is unlikely NASA can
advance the Oct. 8 launch of a Hubble
Space Telescope servicing mission more than a couple days.
And a proposed six-day move
for a Nov. 10 launch would put liftoff of an International Space Station supply
run on the same day as the 2008 presidential election.
"Whether we get three
days or two days, anything obviously would help at the front end of that
window," NASA spokesman Kyle Herring said.
The sun angle on the
station between Nov. 25 and Dec. 17 will be such that the outpost would not be
able to generate enough power, or dispel enough heat, to support a shuttle.
Consequently, missions
to the station cannot be launched during that period, and NASA prefers not
to launch during the Christmas or New Year's holidays. That effectively means
Nov. 24 would be the last day NASA could launch a station mission in 2008.
Expect launch date
decisions when shuttle managers meet Aug. 14.
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