Posted on 02/02/2003 4:48:38 AM PST by SLB
An Australian astronomer in California could be a key eyewitness to solving the mystery of today's space shuttle disaster.
Anthony Beasley, an Australian working at an observatory north of Los Angeles, said he saw what could be tiles falling off the Columbia as it flew over California and on its way to the scheduled landing in Florida.
Most video footage and eyewitness reports of the shuttle breaking up came from witnesses in the central US state of Texas.
If Beasley is correct, it indicates the shuttle began to disintegrate on the west coast above California.
Beasley telephoned US television network ABC to tell of his sighting.
"After the first few flashes I thought to myself that I knew the shuttle lost tiles as it re-entered and quite possibly that was what was going on," Beasley, speaking live, told ABC news anchor Peter Jennings.
The Australian told how he saw "a couple of flashes" and "things clearly trailing" the shuttle.
"I think that after the particularly bright event I started to wonder whether or not things were happening how they should," Beasley said.
Two US space experts who were listening to Beasley's description said the information was highly valuable.
They said tiles falling off the shuttle would be too small to be picked up by NASA radar.
"This says that something was coming off the shuttle far earlier than what happened over Texas would suggest," former space shuttle astronaut, Norm Thagard, told ABC.
"It leads in the direction that tile loss or some type of structural loss like that was likely to be a cause. But it still doesn't rule out other possibilities."
Former NASA engineer, Jim Oberg, described Beasley's eyewitness report as "an extraordinary account".
"If the left wing is losing tiles you then not only have over-heating in that wing but you have extra drag and it's like flying along and having your wing run into something," Oberg said.
"It could violently turn, twist the nose of the ship to the left and that would be it. That would be the point where it would be torn apart."
Has anyone postulated that it could have been shot down by a spy satellite? Does North Korea or China have any particle beam or any other type of satellites up there capable of such things?
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------- That is probably the most inane declaration I have seen today on FR. You get the prize.
And what is ironic about his statement, is that the astronomer, Anthony Beasley, lives in one of the most conservative counties in California...where the County Sheriff advertises concelled carry permit classes over the radio.
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