Discovery and seven astronauts, fresh from an extended visit to the International Space Station, are set to return to the Earth this afternoon but it remains unclear where they will land. NASA managers may have to decide between three imperfect choices to select a landing site for the shuttle.
The three possible sites are:
1. Kennedy Space Center
Location— Orlando
Weather forecasts — clouds and showers
Possibility— Less
Reason— the weather is expected to be unacceptable at Kennedy, NASA’s preferred site since it would save the agency the time and cost of shipping the shuttle to Florida from the backup sites in California and New Mexico.
Location– California
Weather forecasts — high crosswinds
Possibility— Less
Reason— Crosswinds at Edwards are expected to be just about 20 miles per hour, more than three miles per hour above the 17 mph limit permitted under safety rules.
3. White Sands
Location— New Mexico
Weather forecasts — All clear
Possibility— Less
Reason— NASA does not have the same caliber of facilities there (like the cranes) to hook the orbiter to the top of its modified 747 jet for the flight home.
However, longstanding safety practices dictate using the final backup day only if needed for a serious, surprise technical problem with systems needed to successfully re-enter the atmosphere and glide to a landing.
