By PETE SAMSON, US Editor
A BAG of cocaine has been found in a Space Shuttle hangar - sparking a Nasa investigation.
US space chiefs fear an employee was seeking a different kind of out-of-this-world experience in the restricted area at Kennedy Space Centre, Florida.
About 200 staff and contractors have access to the hangar, which houses the shuttle Discovery.
Six astronauts including Briton Nick Patrick are due to blast off in March. But space chiefs insisted the mission goes ahead as planned.
The US space agency started testing and interviewing all staff on Wednesday.
Drug sniffer dogs were also brought in to find the culprit. Three years ago, Nasa was forced to deny allegations of boozy parties after an official report claimed two astronauts had flown into space while drunk. The discovery of drugs in a hangar before a mission raises safety concerns and will embarrass new Nasa chief Charlie Bolden.
Nasa spokesman Allard Beutel said: "There are no obvious indications of anyone acting oddly or under the influence. People know how serious this is - it's not acceptable."