Shuttle launch will not occur until after Thanksgiving

There had been a scheduled shuttle launch on Wed, Nov. three. It did not happen. There are more problems than just the initial leak in fuel. Tentatively, the release won’t occur until right after Thanksgiving. The date is set for November thirty. There were similar issues before. This will be the final flight of the shuttle Discovery.

Shuttle launch has a gas leak causing delays

The International Space Station had been expected to see the shuttle Discovery Wednesday November 3 with a launch. NASA engineers found a leak in the fuel tank of hydrogen gas though, reports Fox News, causing a delay. This came after a delay until Friday, Nov. 5, due to bad weather. The gas used by NASA for rockets is liquid hydrogen which is kept at 450 degrees Fahrenheit below zero. It is hard to maintain the temperature which causes gaseous hydrogen to come off the fuel. The problem is said to be deeper than expected by NASA engineers. This causes the Discovery launch to be postponed more than just a couple days. The "tanking" procedure, where the fuel tank is filled with liquid hydrogen and oxygen, is when the leak was found.

The final Discovery flight

There could be two more launches for the shuttles to go through. Two more space Shuttle flights are scheduled. This means the program won't be over for just a little longer. The Discovery orbiter which has been a shuttle longer than any, will be going on its last flight with the Discovery launch. The Endeavour shuttle can be the last flight in the space shuttle program to be launched. The International Space Station is where both missions are planned ongoing.

Thanksgiving will come before the launch now

The proposed date of the next NASA launch is tentatively scheduled for Nov. 30. NASA is unwilling to send a shuttle into space without knowing why the leak happened. The shuttle program was scuttled by then president George W. Bush within the wake of the explosion of the shuttle Columbia.
Citations

Fox News

foxnews.com/scitech/2010/11/05/fuel-leak-delays-launch-space-shuttle-discovery/