Crew on Edge During Reentry
The seven Discovery astronauts acknowledge having thoughts about the ill-fated Columbia while landing at Edwards Air Force Base.
By John Johnson Jr. and Alan Zarembo, Times Staff Writers
EDWARDS AIR FORCE BASE — Once they were safely on the ground, the seven astronauts of the shuttle Discovery acknowledged some tense moments as they prepared to reenter Earth's atmosphere.
Their worry grew as shuttle commander Eileen Collins readied the craft's thrusters to initiate its descent toward the Mojave Desert...."For me, most of the trepidation came when Eileen hit the de-orbit burn," said pilot James Kelly at a news conference seven hours after the landing.
His thoughts were with the seven astronauts aboard the ill-fated Columbia, which was destroyed on reentry Feb. 1, 2003.
"I was hoping we would make it further than they did," Kelly said....
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Relief at Discovery's safe landing was evident on the faces of top NASA managers at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida, where the shuttle had been scheduled to land....
http://www.latimes.com/news/science/la-sci-landing10aug10,0,7664354.story?coll=la-home-science