US space shuttles will remain grounded because of the Columbia disaster until at least the start of 2004, NASA said today.
The announcement was made as the head of the shuttle program Mr Ron Dittemore resigned from the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), though he insisted he had planned to quit before shuttle disintegrated on re-entry February 1st, killing all seven crew on board.
"I think flying within a year of the event is possible," said Mr Michael Kostelnik, NASA's deputy associate administrator for the shuttle program. "Will it be likely or not, we'll have to wait and see what the board determines to be the cause, and the recommendations they make."
Concern has been expressed that a prolonged suspension of the shuttle flights could affect the orbiting International Space Station (ISS). "If we are able to return to flight in the January, February, March time frame, which hopefully is possible, that would take a lot of pressure off having to resupply" the ISS, the NASA administrator said.
The Orlando Sentinelnewspaper in Florida has quoted internal NASA reports blaming the accident on a piece of foam insulation that dislodged from the shuttle on takeoff and damaged some of the shuttle's heat shield tiles.
According to the report, the damage allowed the super-heated gases generated on re-entry into the atmosphere to penetrate the shuttle skin causing the disintegration.
AFP