The landing of space shuttle Atlantis was delayed for the second consecutive day due to bad weather
Atlantis had numerous chances on Saturday to either land at its preferred landing site at the Kennedy station or at the Edwards Air Force Base in the Mojave Desert in California. However, the unrelenting weather made the circumstances unfavorable for landing.
"Appreciate your patience," Mission Control told commander Scott Altman. "We're keeping our options open." Altman responded, “Understand. We will hold right where we are."
One of the crew, Gregory Johnson, explained that the weather conditions did not allow a Kennedy landing Saturday. He said, "There's a chance for a landing at Kennedy tomorrow, and we're going to keep that option open. Edwards remains good for tomorrow and Monday, if needed."
Sunday Landing
The next prospect for Atlantis to land comes Sunday. The shuttle will get two chances to land at Kennedy Space Center in Florida and another two at the back up landing site, the Edwards Air Force Base.
To avail the Florida chance, the twin braking rockets of Atlantis would have to be fired at 8:58 a.m. EDT. This will set up the landing for 10:11 a.m. On the other hand, authorities have projected that weather at the California’s Edwards Air Force Base is expected to be good all weekend.
If the latter option is exercised, it could cost an additional $2 million to ferry the shuttle cross-country. The National Aeronautics and Space Administration would prefer to land the shuttle in Florida because of the time and cost factor.
Mission managers claimed that the final decision about when and where to attempt a landing would be taken after thoroughly scrutinizing the weather forecasts for Sunday.
Atlantis has adequate provisions to stay in orbit until Monday.
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