SPACEPHOTOS

(01/26/2001) -- Blue skies and a blue Atlantic Ocean provide a colorful backdrop for Space Shuttle Atlantis as it rests on Launch Pad 39A after its 3.4-mile trek from the Vehicle Assembly Building. The Shuttle had returned to the VAB from the launch pad a week earlier in order to undergo tests on the solid rocket booster cables. A prior extensive evaluation of NASA’s SRB cable inventory on the shelf revealed conductor damage in four (of about 200) cables. Shuttle managers decided to prove the integrity of the system tunnel cables already on Atlantis, causing return of the Shuttle to the VAB. The Shuttle will undergo preparations for a rescheduled launch Feb. 7 at 6:11 p.m. EST