BEIJING, Aug. 29 (Xinhuanet) -- No new details are expected when NASA releases a report Wednesday on an internal investigation into whether two astronauts were drinking heavily just before a launch.

Top NASA officials said in recent weeks they could find no factual incidents of drunken astronauts about to fly after examining what happened before launches during the last 10 years.

In July, an independent panel said there were at least two unverified and unidentified instances of astronauts drinking heavily before a flight. The panel was formed to look at astronaut health issues because of the bizarre case of astronaut Lisa Nowak, who was arrested and charged with attempted kidnapping of a romantic rival.

"Interviews with both flight surgeons and astronauts identified some episodes of heavy use of alcohol by astronauts in the immediate preflight period, which has led to safety concerns," the panel's report noted last month.

One instance involved a shuttle astronaut that a colleague claimed had had to much too drink; the colleague alerted others only after the launch was delayed because of mechanical problems.

The other involved an astronaut drinking alcohol before flying on a Russian Soyuz capsule to the international space station. Drinking, especially toasts, are common in the Russian space program.

In both cases the report said that flight surgeons and/or fellow astronauts raised safety worries with nearby officials in charge, yet "the individuals were still permitted to fly."

The panel didn't have the ability to investigate further, so NASA's safety chief, Bryan O'Connor, a former astronaut and shuttle accident investigator, was asked to investigate. O'Connor spent much of his time in Houston, where astronauts work, said NASA spokesman David Mould.

(Agencies)