NASA, We've Got A Problem

This doesn't sound good:

A couple short strips of fabric dangling from Discovery's belly may require an unprecedented repair by spacewalking astronauts, if engineers determine there's even a possibility that the problem could endanger the shuttle during descent, NASA said Sunday.

Teams of experts were scrambling to understand just how serious the problem was, with "strong arguments" raging on what to do, if anything.

The trouble has nothing to do with foam or other launch debris, but rather the accidental slippage of ceramic-fiber cloth used to fill the thin gaps between thermal tiles, which some engineers worry could trigger potentially treacherous overheating during re-entry.

It will be Monday before the analysis is complete and mission managers decide whether to have the crew's two spacewalkers cut or pull the two hanging strips.

If NASA's spacewalking specialists come up with a relatively easy solution, "Why worry? Why would you not just go take care of it?" deputy shuttle program manager Wayne Hale said Sunday evening. "Why should I lose sleep over these gap fillers if we can take care of them that easy?"

It's time to gut NASA, top-to-bottom. To have this kind of issue on the first flight since Columbia is an indication that the space agency is rife with incompetence.

If we can't launch a space shuttle into low-Earth orbit and safely return the crew and the equipment, how are we going to get to Mars?