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[i]After more than a year of delays, Columbia, stacked next to its external tank and solid rocket boosters, was rolled out of the Vehicle Assembly Building on December 29, 1980, and sent to Launch Complex 39 at the Kennedy Space Center. Though the fully assembled Space Shuttle sat on the pad, ready for launch, it would not happen for another four months. After the external tank was filled with hydrogen fuel and oxidizer, NASA discovered that 32 panels of insulation on the tank had peeled off. The insulation was designed to keep ice from forming on the outside of the massive fuel storage unit, because the frozen moisture could break off and damage heat-shield tiles during launch. Though Columbia's engines were successfully test fired on February 16, 1981, NASA delayed the mission until the week of April 5. That target date would also be scrubbed.[/i]
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