In the first space shuttle flight since the Columbia tragedy of February 2003, NASA needed everything to go right with the current Discovery mission, in order to help rebuild the American people's confidence in the space program.

While not everything has gone right, NASA merits praise regarding the policy of openness it has maintained throughout the mission. Information about the problems that have been detected since the mission blasted off from Cape Canaveral, Fla., have been quickly disclosed to the public and discussed openly.

Wayne Hale, deputy shuttle program manager, was right when he told reporters, "If we were not to tell you about this stuff (problems), then I feel like we would get in trouble the other way."

Hale was referring to the concern over a large chunk of foam that fell from Discovery's external tank during its climb to orbit; NASA quickly said it would ground future missions until it can find a way to keep large pieces of debris from breaking free during launch conditions and thereafter. He also was referring to the necessity for astronaut Stephen Robinson to embark on a spacewalk beneath Discovery's belly to remove two protruding strips of tile filler that engineers feared might lead to dangerous overheating during the shuttle's trip home.

Likewise, NASA discussed openly the concerns about a torn thermal blanket near a shuttle cockpit window. Mission managers say they cannot guarantee that a piece of the blanket would not rip and slam into the spacecraft during re-entry, but said the chances were slim.

Hale said "the remedy that might be called for to try to make this better would be worse."

"We put the orbiter under a microscope," Hale said of Discovery. "We are out there with every little spot, scuff, ding, you name it. It's not ignored. It's not brushed off. It is evaluated by a large team of engineers who are very knowledgeable."

He said some critics might say a lot seems to be wrong with Discovery, but that is because of the extraordinary emphasis on openness that has occurred during the current mission. There are millions of things that can go wrong during a mission of such scope but, to the space agency's credit, it has displayed cool and expertise in addressing all of the issues encountered - and has not been reluctant to talk about them.

The nation's eyes and concern will be focused on Discovery as it prepares to land at Cape Canaveral before dawn on Monday. Presumably the post-mission information will be shared with the American people as freely as the information provided during these days when Discovery has been aloft.