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 CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (AP) - Atlantis returned to the launch pad Tuesday with white spots on its external fuel tank the only evidence of 2 1/2 months of repairs from hail damage that postponed the year's first space shuttle flight until June.
The 3.4-mile trip from the Vehicle Assembly Building to the launch pad took less than seven hours aboard the shuttle's massive crawler-transporter.
When the spacecraft rolled out before dawn Tuesday, the orange tank had hundreds of white speckles at the top showing where technicians sprayed on new insulation foam, hand-poured foam on other areas and sanded down spots.
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