Computer problem delays Endeavour's launch

Computer problem delays Endeavour's launch
ASSOCIATED PRESS

CAPE CANAVERAL, FLORIDA, FEBRUARY 1: A last-minute problem with a critical computer delayed space shuttle Endeavour's launch on Tuesday on a mission to map a still-unknown planet: Our own.

NASA held the countdown at the 20-minute mark while engineers scrambled to solve the problem. Endeavour would not have lifted off on time anyway because of rain and dark clouds.

Shuttle managers had two hours on Tuesday afternoon to get Endeavour off the ground with six astronauts and 13 tons of radar equipment, but it didn't look good, at least from a weather perspective.

"See you tomorrow," Air Force Capt Clif Stargardt, a meteorologist, jokingly told one reporter. "I don't think we'll launch."

The computer in question is needed to send signals to separate the two rocket boosters and external fuel tank following Endeavour's launch. There are two such computers on board, and only one malfunctioned. Both are required for launch, however.

Earlier, following an 11th-hour engine review, NASA had cleared Endeavour forlaunch on its quest to create the most accurate and complete topographic map of earth ever produced.