CAPE CANAVERAL, Florida, July 7, 2011 (AFP) - Lightning struck twice near the launch pad at Kennedy Space Center Thursday but NASA engineers said they saw no damage to the shuttle Atlantis ahead of its historic last mission. Lightning struck a water tower 515 feet (157 meters) from the pad at 12:31 pm (1631 GMT) and nine minutes later hit a beach area northeast of the launch area, NASA said. "So far, the data review indicates no issues with any systems, including shuttle Atlantis, external tank, solid rocket boosters, space shuttle main engines or ground support equipment," the space agency said in a statement.
Engineers would hash over the data again during the tanking weather meeting at 1:30 am Friday (0530 GMT), when mission managers will decide whether to go ahead with filling the shuttle's external fuel tank. Liftoff is scheduled for Friday at 11:26 am (1526 GMT), though the US space agency has warned that turbulent weather moving in from the Caribbean has left only a 30 percent chance of good launch conditions. If weather forces a delay, other launch opportunities open on Saturday and Sunday. Atlantis's flight will mark the final mission of the 30-year space shuttle program.
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