CAPE CANAVERAL -- Endeavour's astronauts inspected their ship's thermal skin Friday for any possible damage from orbital debris, using a laser-tipped boom that will be left behind at the international ...

Now the failure of the tiles is a leading theory for the catastrophic end of Columbia. NASA struggled for years in trying to ensure that the tiles were firmly attached to the shuttle, Paul Fischbeck, ...

DALLAS — The tiles that protect the space shuttle from searing heat are all that stands between disaster and safety for the flight crew re-entering the atmosphere as a hurtling fireball. The ...

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. -- A close-up laser inspection by Endeavour's astronauts yesterday revealed that a 3½-inch-long gouge penetrates all the way through the thermal shielding on the shuttle's belly.

SPACE CENTER, Houston -- While Columbia was still in orbit, NASA's "best and brightest" minds analyzed the potential damage done to its thermal tiles by a piece of debris during liftoff and concluded ...