Jul 8 2003
From The Space Library
After numerous delays, NASA launched Mars Explorer Rover-B (MER-B) aboard a Delta 2 rocket from Cape Canaveral, Florida, in time to meet the 15 July deadline. If NASA had not met that deadline, it would have had to wait an additional four years to launch the craft. MER-B, nicknamed Opportunity, was an exact duplicate of MER-A, known as Spirit, which had launched on 10 June. Bad weather, a failed battery cell, and a problem with the cork insulation, which had failed to adhere to the aluminum rocket, had caused the launch's delay. NASA released documents showing that the Columbia accident was not the first time that superheated gas had invaded an orbiter's wing when it reentered Earth's atmosphere. The documents showed that in 2000 Atlantis had entered orbit with a 0.25-inch (0.64-centimeter) breach in its wing's leading edge, allowing plasma to enter the wing during the orbiter's reentry. The incident had caused only minor damage. Improper insulation installation during Atlantis's overhaul in 1997 had caused the gap to form. Instead of filling up the gap, the insulation had been “folded up and pushed away,” leaving an exposed cavity. (John Schwartz and Matthew L. Wald, “Earlier Shuttle Flight Had Gas Enter Wing on Return,” New York Times, 9 July 2003.
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