The Nation - News from Aug. 9, 1988

NASA officials at Kennedy Space Center in Florida said that a new valve has tested out satisfactorily in the space shuttle Discovery’s engine compartment and they rescheduled the ship’s oft-postponed main engine test firing for Wednesday. The engine test was halted Thursday in the last second when a sensor reported that a valve had not closed as it was supposed to. Engineers determined that the sensor, not the valve, was malfunctioning but decided to replace both parts as a unit. The changeout was completed by midnight Saturday. The work of reconnecting and testing all parts and removing the work platforms continued. All three of Discovery’s engines will be fired while the shuttle remains bolted to the launch pad.