At NASA Kennedy Space Center’s Vehicle Assembly Building, operations to attach space shuttle Discovery to its external fuel tank and twin solid rocket boosters are temporarily on hold. During installation of the left-hand main separation bolt on the bottom of the shuttle, the corresponding nut fell into the shuttle’s aft compartment. Evaluations indicate no damage has occurred.
Engineers currently are meeting to discuss the best possible way to obtain access to Discovery’s aft section since there is no way to reach the nut without accessing the internal compartment. The issue is not expected to impact rollout of Discovery to its launch pad on Sept. 20.