NASA keeps an eye on Alberto

NASA officials are keeping a close eye on Tropical Storm Alberto, but the first named storm of the 2006 Atlantic hurricane season is expected to pass well north of the Kennedy Space Center.

Meteorologists expect winds at the spaceport to peak Tuesday at 30 knots, well below the threshhold for moving shuttle Discovery off its launch pad and back into the KSC Vehicle Assembly Building.

One to three inches of rain are in the forecast at KSC. The strongest winds from the storm are expected to remain north of the Interstate 4 corridor.

NASA's hurricane plan calls for a shuttle to be rolled back from the pad if there is a possibility that wind could exceed a sustained velocity of 60 knots. A rollback would have to be complete before the wind reaches 40 knots.

NASA is readying Discovery for a planned July 1 launch on the agency's second post-Columbia test flight. A crew of seven astronauts led by veteran commander Steve Lindsey will fly on the mission, which also will serve as a supply run to the International Space Station.