Shuttle astronauts searched for evidence of the origin of the universe Thursday and fielded a little boy's question about why they had to launch so late at night.
Endeavour's crew members, now starting their second week of the two-week voyage, pointed the three shuttle telescopes toward a quasar some 15 billion light years away as part of a mission-long search for intergalactic helium.Astronomers say confirming that the substance exists could validate the theory that the universe began with a "Big Bang."
Crew members also answered three questions posed to them on the Internet. For the first time, NASA is providing public computer access to virtually all aspects of the mission on the World Wide Web. Several hundred thousand people have logged requests for information; a small number were chosen to be relayed to the astronauts.
"Why did they schedule the liftoff for 2 a.m.?" asked Thomas Maier Jr. of Decatur, Ga. "I like to watch and it is past my bedtime. I am 9 years old you see."
Astronaut Tamara Jernigan assured Thomas that "we had a very good reason for launching early in the morning" that was dictated by the astronomy studies.
Endeavour, launched last Thursday, is due home March 17 after the longest shuttle mission to date.
Meanwhile, NASA researchers are working overtime to keep up with a secondary experiment that Endeavour commander Stephen Oswald is conducting on new spacecraft designs.
While his crew points ultraviolet telescopes toward scores of celestial objects, Oswald has kept busy with a 5-foot assembly of rods, motors and gyroscopes.
The study is designed to explore new satellite or spaceship designs that mitigate the effects of movements or unexpected vibrations.
Such motion can cause problems for delicate science instruments. Before the Hubble Space Telescope was repaired, it had trouble tracking stars because of jittery solar panels.
In the experiment, mock satellite instruments are attached at either end of a flexible rod. Computer commands cause one end of the free-floating contraption to vibrate. A gyroscope in the middle is designed to compensate for the movement and keep the other end still.