May 1 1980
From The Space Library
Changes made during the past year to the three main engines designated for the first flight of Space Shuttle orbiter Columbia had led NASA to set up further tests, the agency announced. Modifications included high pressure turbopumps, valves, and nozzles. Acceptance-tested between April and July 1979, the engines would be shipped from KSC to NSTL in Mississippi for reacceptance firing and return to KSC. The two- to three-month testing would not affect the timing of the first flight, now scheduled for a date between November 1980 and March 1981. About 6 weeks before the planned launch, the engines would be fired again for 20 seconds on the launch pad. (NASA Release 80-60; JSC Release 80-030)
JSC reported signing a noncompetitive $12.931 million contract with the Charles Stark Draper Laboratory for development of Shuttle avionics software. Draper would perform most of the work under the 21-month contract at Cambridge, Mass. (JSC Release 80-029)
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