14 DAY TRIAL // Nobody's made out of stone and unpredictable events do happen from time to time, when you less expect them, even if you work for NASA. The Columbus module installation has been delayed with one day, due to certain medical issues experienced by European Space Agency astronaut Hans Schlegel, who is to be replaced by U.S. astronaut Stanley Love during the first scheduled spacewalk which is supposed to take place today.
NASA avoided to talk about the nature of the medical issue, but it stated that the life of the German astronaut is in no immediate danger, nor that of the crew on board the International Space Station and the space shuttle Atlantis. Schlegel fell ill somewhere between the launch of the space shuttle on 7 February and the first spacewalk to install the Columbus space module on the ISS. He is expected to fully recover until the second spacewalk that will take place later this week. To recover for the lost time, NASA decided to extend the mission to 12 days.
ESA Crew Medical Support Office, Volker Damann writes that Schlegel was in perfect health condition when he went into space, developed a mild illness which did not affect the health of the other crew members, and is currently feeling much better, but his state is incompatible with a spacewalk, thus will be replaced in the first spacewalk.
NASA STS-122 shuttle flight director Mike Sarafin says that, for now, they are planing to carry out the mission as scheduled and the one day delay will not affect the result of the mission. Schlegel will most likely participate in the second spacewalk programed for 13 February along with astronaut Rex J. Walheim.
Due to the unexpected delay, for the rest of the day NASA planned another inspection of the heat insulating shield on the Atlantis space shuttle. Such procedures have become standard practice ever since the Columbia disaster, when the space shuttle disintegrated into Earth's atmosphere during re-entry, due to a gap in the shuttle's heat shield. During the inspection which took place last week after the launch, astronauts observed that the insulating heat shield presented a torn insulation blanket which might have posed a potential threat. In the final inspection, it was decided that the small piece of insulator, located near the rear right side of the shuttle next to the engine pod, did not have vital importance for the shield.
John Shannon, deputy shuttle program manager at NASA, stated that the crew has completed the inspection of the heat-resistant carbon composite shield and, except for a few chipped heat-resistant tiles around the shuttle's windows, the spacecraft seems to be in perfect condition, including the nose and the leading edges of the wings.