NASA recovers shuttle wing section - found in Fort Worth, Texas

Associated Press ^ | February 7, 2003 | Associated Press Staff

[xJones]

Meek, it is heartbreaking how the Columbia broke up across such a wide area. We can still only hope that the astronauts died quickly.

[TomServo]

Click here.

[VOA]

bump

[Ff--150]

guess I'd better mow, then, before the grass gets too high:o(

[Poohbah]

Is Fort Worth significantly north or south of the Columbia's ground track? That might tell us which wing it is...

[TC Rider]

I've been thinking there would have been good cause to launch some kind of air vehicle capable of IR mapping immediately after the crash. Most of the pieces would be much hotter than their surroundings.

[xJones]

Thanks for your link in #3.

Is Fort Worth significantly north or south of the Columbia's ground track? That might tell us which wing it is...

They will be able to tell which wing it was if they recovered enough pieces.

[DallasMike]

Is Fort Worth significantly north or south of the Columbia's ground track? That might tell us which wing it is...

Somewhat to the north. However, the article only says the debris was found in the "Fort Worth area." That covers a lot of territory.

[brooklin]

We've had aircraft with if capabilities lokking for lost people in the woods. You can find alot of warm rocks.

[Deguello]

I had asked in a previous post the relationship of sonic booms and the Columbia debris with very little response.

That morning in Arlington, Texas, I was in the east by northeast section of town and did not hear any sonic booms. My wife was at home six miles west of my point and had a house shaking boom. An other friend 10 miles east-south east heard the sound barrier broken.

Is there a correlation to sonic booms and Columbia debris? Is mass a function of the sound? Would each partical of debris breaking the sound barrier be relative of the mass of the item to the volume created? Distance of travel of the sonic boom relative of the mass?

[theFIRMbss]

>We can still only hope that the astronauts died quickly.

But just imagine
if they realized as soon
as they hit orbit

that there might be big
damage! They may have all known
for the whole mission

that their chances for
a successful re-entry
were questionable.

(I still can't believe
the military doesn't
have some black ops thing

that could have gone up,
transfered over the crew and
brought them down safely.)

[CPOSharky]

I didn't hear any booms either here in Allen TX about 30 miles north of Dallas. But folks five miles south and five miles east of me did.

[pabianice]

(I still can't believe the military doesn't have some black ops thing that could have gone up, transfered over the crew and brought them down safely.)

You've been watching too much "Stargate SG-1."

[Deguello]

I fugure that with air resistance, an object decelerating to a point below 1100 f/s (impact zone) would not be noticed by the property owner. Other objects (debris) passing overhead above 1100 f/s would break the sound barrier. The volume of the sound (sonic boom)a function of the mass? Triangulation by investigators to look for possible impact sites of sizable items?

[Deguello]

My daughter is leaving this evening for Mid-Winter Church camp in Anthens at the lake. This property may be virgin for the search of Shuttle debris.

[Deguello]

Sub Athens for Anthens.

Dang fingers.

[TC Rider]

We've had aircraft with if capabilities looking for lost people in the woods. You can find a lot of warm rocks.

That would be true, late in the day. If someone had moved fast that morning, it was a cold morning and space debris hot enough to burn the foolish, they would have a good resource now.

[aristeides]

I thought the big parts were being found further east, in East Texas and Louisiana, because of their momentum. If this wing part was found near Fort Worth, could that be because it came off early?

[TC Rider]

(I still can't believe the military doesn't have some black ops thing

that could have gone up, transfered over the crew and brought them down safely.)

That would be a spare shuttle.

This blows to hell all the conspiracy theories involving the mysterious 'black shuttle'. I've heard the Enterprise is still in the assembly building and according to NASA, couldn't be prepped, moved to the tower and launched in time to make a difference. Seems like they could pack in a few dozen MREs for contingencies.