Shuttle debris 'poses no danger'

The object was seen floating past the shuttle's right wing

Astronauts on the US space shuttle Discovery have been told a piece of floating debris and apparent bump on its tail pose no danger for re-entry.

The shuttle crew had taken a photo of an object, which was 30-45cm (1-1.5 feet) long. They had also reported a bump sticking out from the tail fin.

But the debris was a non-critical clip used to hold down thermal blankets on the rudder and speed brake, Nasa said.

The bump was found to have been caused by lighting and the rudder's position.

Discovery has been on a mission to the International Space Station (ISS) to install the Japanese-built Kibo laboratory.

The shuttle has already detached from the ISS and is conducting safety checks before it is due to re-enter the atmosphere and land in Florida at 1115 Florida time (1515 GMT) on Saturday.

'Pressing ahead'

"After completing a standard day-before-landing test of the shuttle steering jets, the crew indicated they had seen a 1-1.5 foot-long rectangular object floating away from the shuttle from behind the rear portion of the right wing," Nasa said in a statement on Friday.

We're no longer concerned Discovery commander Mark Kelly

"Shortly afterwards, the crew described what they called a 'bump' on the left side trailing edge of Discovery's rudder."

Objects have previously broken off the shuttle, but have turned out to be chunks of ice or harmless items from the payload bay.

Nasa engineers later determined the debris was one of three spring-like clips that protect the back of the rudder and speed brake during launch.

"It's just not a factor for entry," astronaut Terry Virts told reporters at Mission Control afterwards. "We're still pressing ahead."

Experts also studied the slight bump on the shuttle's vertical tail fin and concluded that the angle of the lighting and the rudder's position had made the fin look strange, when it was exactly how it was at lift-off, Mission Control said.

"We're no longer concerned," Discovery commander Mark Kelly said.

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