It has been one problem after the another for NASA as they have had to overcome countless months trying to fix foam insulation problems on the the fuel tank.  With a possible liftoff of Discovery set for Saturday July 1st, 2006, NASA is dealing with many of the same problems it faced almost a year ago.  The agency contends that progress is being made and that they are much smarter than they were a year ago.  The problem with foam continuing to drop off the shuttle last year caused the fleet to be grounded until a solution could be found.  NASA has spent at least $1.2 billion US, on changes to the shuttle since 2003.  Engineers have modified the tank even further by removing about 35 pounds of foam in areas where a foam chunk dropped off in 2005.  The removal has been described by NASA as the greatest aerodynamic change ever made to the shuttle's launch system.  NASA managers have acknowledged that another fatal mistake could ground the three remaining shuttles before the International Space Station is finished being built.  This mission will be considered a test flight for the shuttle Discovery crew.  Astronauts will loaded up with experimental tasks, trying different methods of inspecting the vehicle for damage.

Image Credit: NASA

'More From: Spaceflight.nasa.gov'