For an agency traumatised by the loss of the space shuttle Columbia in 2003, then chastened when last year's high-profile return-to-flight of Discovery nearly proved as perilous, you would think that the triumphant relaunch of the shuttle on 4 July would prompt wild jubilation and a massive sigh of relief. Instead, the celebrations have been muted. NASA this week displayed only quiet resolve following the successful flight thus far of Discovery, which launched on Independence Day, in what is widely considered the safest mission in the shuttle programme's 25-year history.
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