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US Space Shuttle Cleared for Landing

update

The U.S. space agency NASA has cleared the space shuttle Discovery for landing after an inspection of the orbiter's heat shields found no damage.

NASA says Discovery will have two chances to land Monday at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida.

The intended landing time is 9:14 A.M. local time, but if weather is a problem, Discovery could wait and land about an hour and a half later. The weather forecast calls for a chance of rain, which would postpone the landing.

If both Monday times are missed, NASA would wait until Tuesday for the next opportunity.

On Sunday, the astronauts checked the orbiter's landing systems and packed equipment to prepare for landing.

Engineers who had been investigating a power generator leak said the leak was very small, and the unit will be operated as normal for landing.

Some information for this report was provided by AFP, AP and Reuters.

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