Storms scuttle shuttle shot

CAPE CANAVERAL - Florida's turbulent summertime storms kept space shuttle Endeavour on the ground for yet another day, the latest in string of delays for the space station construction mission.

Skies over Cape Canaveral were mostly clear all day, but one pesky storm rolled in from the west and stayed just close enough to violate NASA's launch rules, the second weather-related delay in two days.

Thunderstorms on Friday pounded the launch pad with lightning. Eleven strikes hit within 1,800 feet, giving engineers enough concern to delay the planned Saturday evening launch for an extra day of electrical system reviews.

Now, the shuttle's seven astronauts – including four rookies – will have to wait another two days to try again.

The delay is their fourth – before Saturday's lightning review, a fuel leak scrubbed two overnight launch attempts last month.

Engineers traced the problem to a misalignment on the giant orange fuel tank, and their repairs seemed to work perfectly on Sunday, providing further frustration for a space agency facing a 2010 deadline to retire the shuttle fleet.

The STS-127 mission's primary goal is to complete construction of the Japanese portion of the international space station. The arrival of the seven crewmembers would also bump the station's population to 13 for the first time.

NASA will not launch a shuttle if there are storms within 20 miles of the runway at Kennedy Space Center just in case the orbiter has to make an emergency landing immediately after launch.

Tomorrow's launch attempt will be at 6:51 p.m.