More shuttle trouble

The space shuttle seems to have suffered some launch damage to its re-entry heat shield–again.

"On Sunday, the astronauts will use a robot arm and extension boom, tipped with a laser and camera, to determine the exact size and depth of the gouge… Experts will then decide whether the damage warrants repair. If it cannot be fixed, the crew would have to remain at the space station until a rescue shuttle could be launched…"

These things are getting old, obviously. Retirement can’t come too soon.

UPDATE  There’s enough worry for NASA engineers on the ground to start running heat tests to see if the gouged tiles can withstand re-entry temperatures, or if a fix in orbit is required.