The crew of the US
shuttle Atlantis woke up to prepare their ultra high-speed re-entry into Earth''s atmosphere, uncertain
if the weather would allow Thursday''s scheduled
landing. The astronauts were then to start preparing to break out of orbit at some 300 kilometers (186 miles) altitude. NASA warned that bad weather could delay the return to Earth, however. The
shuttle needs good visibility to land, without power and no second chance to approach the runway.
If the weather is clear enough, Houston is due to give the green light to leave orbit at 1650 GMT, prompting the shuttle to plunge back to Earth and land at 1754 GMT at the Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Florida.
The shuttle plummets to Earth 20 times faster than a commercial airliner and hits the ground at 344 to 364 kilometers (214 to 226 miles) per hour, with a drag chute to stop it.
If it misses the first scheduled landing opportunity, Atlantis will get another chance at 1930 GMT, then four other chances on Friday. It needs to land by Saturday before the hydrogen batteries providing its electric power run out.
Bad weather could delay the return to Earth of space shuttle Atlantis and its crew of seven after a successful mission to the International Space Station, a NASA spokesman said Wednesday.
"No landing is easy, but I am always optimistic, I know the weather is a no go right now, but clearly weather changes," Norm Knight, NASA''s official in charge of shuttle landings, told reporters. NASA''s greatest concern is visibility for landing the shuttle, all 113,398 kilograms (250,000 pounds) of it, without power and no second chance to approach the runway.
The silver lining to the gloomy forecast, the spokesman said, is that the weather in Florida at this time of the year can change quickly.
"As we get closer, we''ll get a better handle on the forecast,".
People from all over the world are praying for the safe return of the Atlantis crew whose dogged determination is fighting the continuous rechonological and natural causes.
They will definitely come back to Earth to their dear ones.