`Columbia' set for launch

CAPE CANAVERAL - The US space shuttle Columbia was poised for blast-off on a 16-day science mission beginning today

CAPE CANAVERAL - The US space shuttle Columbia was poised for blast-off on a 16-day science mission beginning today. NASA officials said Columbia, the oldest of the four shuttles, was set to lift off its seaside launch pad at Florida's Kennedy Space Centre at 2 p.m.

(local time) today. The mission had been delayed by 24 hours to fit some missing thermal insulation to the cooling system.

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