Observations by Dr. Dan L. Crippen, Dr. Charles C. Daniel, Dr. Amy K. Donahue, Col. Susan J. Helms, Ms. Susan Morrisey Livingstone, Dr. Rosemary O'Leary, and Mr. William Wegner
"NASA's leaders and managers must break this cycle of smugness substituting for knowledge. NASA must be able to quantify risk, even if imperfectly, set requirements and expectations, and hold organizations and individuals accountable, Analytical models - while valuable tools - cannot substitute for engineering judgment and conscience. Rigor must be re-established throughout the Agency. Opinion, no matter how well informed, cannot replace objective evidence. Flight history, while critical for informed judgment, cannot substitute for it. "We've been lucky" is a statement that should never be associated with the human spaceflight programs."
"Well, certainly we were lucky. If it had broken off earlier and if it had followed a different trajectory, it could have hit the orbiter, as any piece of foam could, and could have done some damage." - Dr. Mike Griffin.
NASA has announced that a news conference will start at 16:00 GMT (12:00 EDT), 18TH August, in the agency's Webb Auditorium, 300 E Street SW, Washington.
Bill Gerstenmaier, NASA's associate administrator for Space Operations, will update the media about plans for the next Space Shuttle mission (STS-121). The press conference will be live on NASA TV, and reporters at participating agency locations may also ask questions. The press conference will last approximately one hour.
This press conference replaces the media teleconference scheduled for Monday, August 22.
