NASA mission managers today cleared shuttle Discovery's heat-shield for atmospheric reentry pending a now standard late inspection.
Senior shuttle program manager LeRoy Cain said managers and engineers have reviewed all launch imagery as well as data from an orbital inspection and photographs taken during Discovery's approach to the International Space Station.
More than 400 "regions of interest" were examined and no significant damage was detected on the shuttle's composite carbon wing panels, nosecap or the thousands of thermal tiles that protect the underside of the orbiter from extreme heat encountered during reentry.
Discovery's astronauts will conduct one final inspection later in the mission to make certain shuttle heat shield components are not damaged by micrometeoroid or orbital debris between the initial and final inspections.
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