[Leisler]

Well better said.

Shuttle HD pics.

In this photo provided by Kroll Ontrack Inc., a data drive that fell from the space shuttle Columbia when it was destroyed in 2003 is shown. During Columbia's fateful final mission, the drive had been used to capture data from a scientific experiment on the way xenon gas flows. (AP Photo/Kroll Ontrack Inc.)

[Erasmus]

Looks like the drive got hot enough to desolder the surface mount IC shown in the foreground.

Interesting that the heat didn’t demagnetize the platters.

[Question_Assumptions]

I wonder whether it was the shock of impact, the heat melting the solder, or both that caused that IC chip (bottom of the second picture) to become loose like that.