Topic: Final Shuttle Flight Will Be Delayed at Least Until Novemeber for AMS Switchout

[sam]

A switch-out of the magnet for a much anticipated particle physics experiment on the International Space Station will force NASA to delay the final flight of the space shuttle until at least November, and change which orbiter and crew will fly the final space shuttle mission. The $2 billion Alpha Magnetic Spectrometer was scheduled to head to the ISS in July of this year, but recent thermal vacuum tests showed the superconducting magnet that was originally planned to power the experiment would have only worked 2-3 years. An ordinary magnet, which doesn't need to be super-cooled will last for a decade or more – and given the ISS has been given a longer life, it seems to be the best option. “I don’t think it’s correct to go there for three years where there is a chance to do physics for 18 years,” said Dr. Samuel Ting, AMS Principal Investor, in an article in the New York Times.

http://www.universetoday.com/2010/04/26/final-shuttle-flight-will-be-delayed-at-least-until-novemeber-for-ams-switchout/

[Clive]

That final Shuttle launch will be the end of an era.   

[sam]

a sad time.