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| |  | | | | Discovery's Solid Rocket Boosters in the Ocean
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12.10.06
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KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. -- The two jettisoned solid rocket boosters from the launch of Space Shuttle Discovery have splashed down close to each other in the Atlantic Ocean. Discovery lifted off from KSC's Launch Pad 39B at 8:47 p.m. EST on mission STS-116. Recovery teams from the SRB retrieval ships are onsite to prepare the boosters under water to float horizontally and be towed back to Port Canaveral.
For more information about the process of retrieval, go to http://www-pao.ksc.nasa.gov/kscpao/nasafact/pdf/SRBships06.pdf and http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/shuttle/behindscenes/recovery_ships.html.
This was the second launch attempt for mission STS-116. The first launch attempt on Dec. 7 was postponed due to a low cloud ceiling over Kennedy Space Center. This is Discovery's 33rd mission and the first night launch since 2002. The 20th shuttle mission to the International Space Station, STS-116 carries another truss segment, P5. It will serve as a spacer, mated to the P4 truss that was attached in September. After installing the P5, the crew will reconfigure and redistribute the power generated by two pairs of U.S. solar arrays. Landing is expected Dec. 21 at KSC. Image Credit: NASA
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