Gas Leak Delays Discovery Until Monday At Least

Space shuttle Discovery’s last launch will wait until Monday at least due to a gaseous hydrogen leak, NASA announced. Monday is the end of the current launch window, dictated by sun angles at the International Space Station with which Discovery will dock. The next launch window opens on November 30.

Today’s launch was scrubbed because of the gas leak at an attachment point between the shuttle’s external tank and a 17-inch pipe that vents the gas away from the shuttle orbiter. NASA reported that “Shuttle launch director Mike Leinbach characterized the leak as ‘significant,’ similar to what was seen on STS-119 and STS-127, although today’s rate was higher in magnitude and occurred earlier in the fueling process.”