No significant damage found following tool incident

Technicians completed a walk down of NASA Kennedy Space Center’s Launch Pad 39A today to evaluate potential damage after a feeler gauge, which came apart last night, fell from the work area. Feeler gauges consist of 13 pieces of metal about the thickness of a piece of paper held together by a retainer screw. It was being used by a technician to take measurements on the external fuel tank's ground umbilical carrier plate (GUCP) for space shuttle Discovery.

Engineers have identified minor foam damage to the backside of the external tank, which will not need repair. All components from the gauge have been located.

The Space Shuttle Program plans to hold its Flight Readiness Review Thursday morning as scheduled to assess the readiness of Discovery, the crew, flight and launch control teams, to proceed toward the target launch date of Thursday, Feb. 24. The meeting typically concludes with a recommendation to proceed to the agency Flight Readiness Review scheduled at Kennedy on Friday, Feb. 18.

This article was sponsored by Forensic Science Books.