Shuttle Cleared to Land -- at Last

Sept. 20, 2006 -- -- After scanning the Shuttle Atlantis for missing parts that might put it in danger on landing, NASA this afternoon gave it an all-clear to come home early Thursday morning.

"Nothing was found to be missing from the thermal protection system -- the heat shield -- or, for that matter, from any other part of Atlantis," said Wayne Hale, the shuttle program manager in Houston.

Barring any further changes, the six shuttle astronauts will try for a landing at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida at 6:21 ET Thursday morning, with a second opportunity, one orbit later, at 7:57 a.m.

Weather in Florida is forecast to be good for a landing.

The all-clear came after a doubtful 24 hours, during which Atlantis' crew reported seeing several small objects floating slowly away from the ship in orbit.

Mission managers on the ground had them shoot extensive video images of the ship's exterior, looking for potential damage.

Their return to Earth was delayed a day in the meantime, partly because of the mysterious objects and partly because the weather this morning near the shuttle's landing strip would have been iffy at best.

Two small objects were spotted by the astronauts Tuesday, and three more this morning.

Engineers could not say what they were, but said they were not worried.

The crew looked at one with binoculars and a telephoto lens before calling Mission Control.

"The best way I can describe it was some kind of reflective cloth, or some metallic-looking type of cloth of a structure that's definitely not rigid," said the commander, Brent Jett.

"Doesn't look like anything I've ever seen on the outside of the shuttle, that's for sure."

This morning's inspection was something the shuttle crew had already done twice since launch.

It is tedious and time consuming, because the astronauts -- and those who analyze the pictures on the ground -- are looking for the tiniest signs of damage to the shuttle's wings or underside.