كارگاه فكر

CAPE CANAVERAL, Florida (AFP) - Bad weather Sunday complicated the return of the space shuttle Endeavour to Earth as NASA officials were forced to cancel its first attempt to land in Florida.

A second window for landing was approved for 1954 GMT, but the US space agency may also consider a third option of landing the shuttle back at Edwards air base, California, later in the day.

With time running out for the shuttle, space officials were consulting Florida weather reports for Monday but they did not promise much improvement in the conditions.

Endeavour must land back by Tuesday because by then it will have almost exhausted its supplies of oxygen and water as well as its hydrogen which supply electricity.

But NASA never waits until the last minute to bring a craft back to Earth.

Just after the Endeavour undocked Friday from the International Space Station (ISS), a final inspection of its nose cap and wing leading edge panels was conducted by camera and laser device.