CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - For the first time in history, NASA reversed a space shuttle's slow trek from its launch pad Tuesday, sending Atlantis back into position after deciding that the spaceship could ride out Tropical Storm Ernesto.
The surprising reversal means Atlantis would ride out Ernesto's high winds and rain on the pad. Assuming that the storm does no damage, launch director Mike Leinbach told reporters that the shuttle could lift off for the international space station on Sept. 6 or 7.
The change came after weather forecasters determined that the storm wouldn't hit NASA's Kennedy Space Center as forcefully as they once thought. Its peak winds were expected to be less than 79 mph (126 kilometers per hour), NASA spokesman Bruce Buckingham said.
Comment