National Aeronautics and Space Administration officials announced yesterday a delay of over a month for their mission to repair the Hubble Space Telescope, caused by the slow building progress of the fuel tanks needed for the mission. The fuel tanks are being built in a manufacturing facility near New Orleans. The initial launch date for the Atlantis shuttle was August 28 and it was pushed forward to October 8.

The external tank’s design was redesigned under safety concerns after Columbia’s 2003 accident when the falling foam from the tank led to a hole in one of the shuttle’s wings, which led to a catastrophic re-entry caused by the dangerous gases and extreme heat. Its sister ship Endeavour is also being prepared to assist in the event of any unexpected incident.

While the ISS offers up to three months refuge for visiting crews in case of an emergency, as well as ISS crew on hand to help inspect, the Hubble, which orbits the Earth at an altitude of 569 kilometers, offers neither. That means the shuttle would have to survive on its own for up to 25 days, with the second shuttle on stand-by at a separate launch pad for a rescue mission.

The mission involves a team of seven astronauts and specialists sent abroad the Atlantis with the task to upgrade and repair the 18-year-old telescope. The orbiting observatory will receive its last upgrade, as NASA plans to retire the telescope in 2010 in order to set everything up for its successor, the Constellation program.

The NASA officials also rescheduled from the initial November 10 date to October 16 a supply mission set for the International Space Station. The total flights needed to complete the work on the ISS are estimated at seven and another two will be needed to deliver fuel and spare parts.