Submission + - Shuttle Repairs Not Needed
camperdave writes: Apparently, the astronauts won't have to fix the gouge in the heat shield tiles after all.
From what I understand, there is a structural support frame directly behind the gouge and the NASA folks seem to think this will conduct enough heat away from the shuttle's hull to prevent a melt through."After a week of intense scrutiny and a battery of tests, mission managers concluded that the small, but deep, divot in Endeavour's undercarriage will not require repair during a planned Saturday spacewalk, said John Shannon, chairman of NASA's STS-118 mission management team."