NASA "go" for July 1 shuttle launch

NASA today set July 1 as the date to launch the second shuttle mission since the 2003 Columbia disaster, despite objections from its chiefs of engineering and safety.

NASA Administrator Mike Griffin said he made the final call, following two days' worth of "intense" and "spirited" discussions about whether it is safe to fly.

"There were many different viewpoints on the issue of whether we were ready to fly or not. We decided that we are," Griffin said of the Flight Readiness Review held at the Kennedy Space Center.

The administrator went on to make clear the consequences if something goes wrong during the flight and NASA experiences a major problem or accident.

"If we havee another major incident in launching a space shuttle, I would not wish to continue the program," Griffin said. He repeated the statement again later, more bluntly, noting that in the event of an accident, "At that point, we're done."

The agency's chief safety officer and chief engineer both recommended against the flight. The dissenters think NASA should not fly until the agency retools a set of foam ramps on the outside of the tank because they are capable of shedding the same kinds of large launch debris that doomed Columbia and seven astronauts in 2003.

The shuttle fleet has been grounded since the first return to flight mission, last July, because its post-Columbia design changes apparently did not go far enough. Big pieces of foam popped off the tank again, the largest from a thick wedge-shaped ramp that has been removed for this flight.

Discovery and seven astronauts are scheduled to blast off from the Kennedy Space Center at 3:48 p.m. Eastern time on July 1. The ten-minute launch window opens at 3:43, but the optimum liftoff time is 3:48 p.m.