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At that speed the air friction--even at that altitude--is heating the exterior of the shuttle to thousands of degrees. Stick your hand out of a car window at 5 mph, then 30 mph, then 60 mph, and if you dare and can a get a ride--200 mph. Try to move your hand and feel the force against it at each speed. Has the air really gotten any denser? No. Has the force (air friction) against your hand increased? You betcha. Many times over.

A spacecraft with the size and surface area of the Challenger travelling at 12,500 mph is going to experience unbelievably powerful forces from the atmosphere even at 200,000 feet. It will not survive even a split-second at 90 degrees off beeline-center.

Thanks for the informed post. I actually have stuck my hand out of an aircraft doing about 125 kts. Actually an RH-53 helo flying off the coast of N. Carolina. As soon as I stuck my hand out the mixture of the air passing and the down draft from the rotor immediately pushed my hand backward. Needless to say I didn't do that again. Thanks for joging my memeory. ;)