New Shuttle Flights Possible?

NASA Chief Says Grounded Fleet Could Fly Again This Year

(CBS/AP)  So far, "no significant damage" has been found, Collins said. "We know we do have some small damage."

That damage, however, isn't any different from the beating shuttles often sustain on the way to orbit, she said.

"We are staying focused on the mission and we know we are in good hands with the people on the ground," Collins said. "I love being in space. It's magical up here."

NASA officials have said Discovery does look safe to fly home in a week, but stressed it will be another few days before engineers can conclusively give the shuttle a clean bill of health.

NASA analysts have identified several areas — including Discovery's wings, nose and belly — they want astronauts to take another look at. Problem areas were being examined Friday using the shuttle's new laser-tipped extension to its robotic arm.

Astronauts Stephen Robinson and Soichi Noguchi were to take a personal look at the other two areas — along the leading edges of the shuttle's wings — during the mission's first spacewalk Saturday. It will be the first of three orbital outings.

During the spacewalks, Robinson and Noguchi will replace a gyroscope, which helps steer the space station; try out new repair techniques for the shuttle's tiles and delicate carbon panels; and install a storage platform on the station.

In television images Friday, Robinson smiled and waved to the camera as he worked weightlessly with Noguchi about the station. They wore yellow plastic hard hats for comic effect. Robinson, with a manual in his hand, wore a hat so tiny it didn't come close to covering his head.

The lighthearted atmosphere contrasted with days of sobering news. NASA suspended future shuttle flights earlier this week after learning about the big piece of foam insulation, which weighed less than a pound.

It was an alarming repeat of the problem that doomed Columbia in 2003, when a piece of foam knocked a hole in its left wing. The searing gases of re-entry melted the wing from the inside out, causing the spacecraft to disintegrate. All seven astronauts aboard died.

The small bit of foam that may have hit Discovery's right wing came off about 20 seconds after the large piece, and was from the same general area, deputy shuttle program manager Wayne Hale said. None of the newly installed wing sensors detected anything unusual.

An earlier inspection with the laser didn't reveal any damage. Camera views during liftoff were inconclusive because the foam tumbled out of sight.

NASA already has run tests showing that if the foam did strike the wing, it would have exerted just one-tenth of the energy needed to cause worrisome damage, Hale said.

"So we feel very good about this," he said.

If the astronauts do find a problem with the shuttle, however, the contingency plan is to consider untested repair techniques that were developed after the Columbia disaster or have the astronauts stay on the space station until a rescue mission can be launched.

"We have always had the option of staying on the space station," Collins said. "I don't think that is going to be the case for us."

NASA said Friday it was trying to come up with ways to leave more water and oxygen aboard the space station than initially planned, given the grounding of its shuttle fleet. Water is generated as a byproduct of the shuttle's fuel cells, which power the spacecraft.