Nasa consider space walk

Nasa are weighing up whether to give the go-ahead for a risky spacewalk to repair damage to a thermal panel on the exterior of space shuttle Endeavour.A chunk of insulating foam hit the Endeavour at lift-off last week in an unlucky ricochet off the fuel tank. An inspection revealed that a 3.5-inch gouge has penetrated the thermal shielding on the shuttle's belly.The damage appears to have exposed the shuttle's aluminium frame.Mission managers will decide in the next 24 hours whether to send astronauts out to patch the gouge after assessing whether they feel the marred area can withstand the searing heat of atmospheric re-entry at flight's end.A hole, if large and deep enough, could lead to another Columbia-type disaster.Columbia was destroyed in 2003 when hot atmospheric gases seeped into a hole in its wing and melted the wing from the inside out. A foam strike at lift-off caused the gash.© Independent Television News Limited 2007. All rights reserved.

ITN | August 13, 2007

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