Lightning Strike Delays Space Shuttle Launch

from WKMG Central Florida TV 6

NASA officials decided to delay the launch of the space shuttle Atlantis by 24 hours to give engineers more time to determine whether a lightning strike a day earlier caused any problems. The launch, planned for Sunday, now won't be until at least Monday.

The lightning didn't hit the shuttle, but it struck a wire attached to a tower used to protect the spacecraft from such strikes at the launch pad. Engineers wanted time to check out some readings on ground and flight systems. The lightning strike was one of the most powerful ever to hit a launch pad at the Kennedy Space Center. NASA managers also had been concerned about storms passing through the area before launch time Sunday.

The six member crew of STS-115 are to resume construction of the international space station by installing a new set of solar panels to the station, which will double the power to the station. Safety checks of the stations robotic arm will be be visually checked as well.