Women Drivers...astronauts inspect shuttle wings, nose for damage(from 2007)


Shuttle Discovery astronauts checked the orbiter's wings and nose for damage on Wednesday using lasers and a camera atop its robotic arm, a day ahead of its rendezvous with the International Space Station.

At first glance, the shuttle does not appear to have suffered any major damage to its heat shield, which protects its from scorching temperatures during its return to Earth, said shuttle flight director Rick Labrode.

"Nobody has seen anything significant," Labrode told reporters. "Things are going extremely well."

Damaged thermal tiles caused shuttle Columbia's breakup on reentry in 2003, killing its seven astronauts.

The inspection with lasers and a special camera mounted atop the shuttle's robotic arm was conducted from inside the shuttle and lasted five-and-a-half hours.

Discovery's two-week mission includes delivering and attaching the Harmony module to the International Space Station. The module will allow two future Japanese and European scientific laboratories to be attached to the ISS.

Discovery is scheduled to dock with the ISS at 1235 GMT Thursday.

The shuttle blasted off Tuesday from Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Florida, with seven astronauts on board, including two women -- one of them shuttle commander Pamela Melroy -- and an Italian astronaut from the European Space Agency.