[Tennessee_Bob]

Anyone know what that stove pipe sticking up there is?

[Blood of Tyrants]

Are they suggesting that NASA either didn't see this or that they ignored it? Impossible. I am sure that NASA did everything possible to determine if this was enough damage to be a problem.

[TheDon]

Did Nasa know about this and therefore kept their silence, not telling the astronauts?

From Dittemore's (sp) statements alone one can infer that to be the case.

Are these the type of threads that keep getting yanked?

[Mike Darancette]

BUMP

[yonif]

I read some more and it says that one of the leaders of the Israeli Space Agency says that the Crew aboard the Columbia was not informed of the problems, and given a chance to look at the wing with their own eyes as a result. They were told of problems only a few minutes before entering the atmosphere.

[First_Salute]

Bump.

[John H K]

A. That doesn't look like a wing

B. The circled items look like they're scratches/debris on the inside or outside of window GLASS, not on the outside of the orbiter.

[Future Snake Eater]

Ok, I'll say it...

What did NASA know, and when did he know it?

[Jhoffa_]

If those black squiggles are cracks and that's the Shuttle wing I do not for a minute believe they would risk allowing that thing to land in it's current condition without AT LEAST informing the astronauts.

WHY? Why would they knowingly withold this information? And who in their right mind could look at that and not call it a structural problem? Do you honestly think a NASA engineer would poo-poo a thing like that?

Maybe they overlooked it, but I seriously doubt this was witheld intentionally.. Not after Challenger, not with Dubya wanting to increase their funding and send them on more missions, not with the worlds first Israeli astronaut onboard and the whole world watching.

NO WAY.

[First_Salute]

Some other pics from that website:

[Justa]

Wow, I can see that the damage was far greater than NASA had let on. Not only were there gouges and cuts in it but it had broken off and floated into view of the orbiter's windows.

[Ramius]

I don't know what that's a picture of, but it sure doesn't look like a shuttle wing to me.

That, and I don't even think you can get a clear shot out any of the windows of the *top* of a wing. The angle is all wrong. The crew windows are all way forward.

[yonif]

And they could have told the crew that they should do a spacewalk in order to try to closely examine the affected areas.

[yonif]

The front page of the Fed. 3 2003 Maariv Newspaper. The Headline: The Wing of Death

[shadowman99]

This pics looks like a (poorly) photoshop-ed fake. That "wing" has features that do not corespond to the wing of the shuttle.

[Chad Fairbanks]

Any idea if this is credible? Or an Israeli version of National Enquirer?

[E=MC²]

Did Nasa know about this and therefore kept their silence, not telling the astronauts?

Huh? Assuming this picture is what it claims to be (which it isn't), the astronauts took the pictures...how could NASA not tell them something they already knew??? (By the way, critial heat tiles are on the BOTTOM of the shuttle, which is not viewable through windows.)

[Rain-maker]

Maybe that's why mission control played a famous bagpipe funeral march song on the last day of the shuttle's orbit. Rather strange taste in music, unless you knew something.

Flight Day 17 Red Team STS-107 crew wake up call, Flight Day 17, Red Team - "Scotland the Brave" by The Black Watch and the band of the 51st Highland Brigade...

And also gospel music:
Flight Day 17 Blue Team STS-107 crew wake up call, Flight Day 17, Blue Team - "If You've Been Delivered" by Kirk Franklin

http://spaceflight.nasa.gov/gallery/audio/shuttle/sts-107/html/ndxpage1.html

[montag813]

The Maariv photo has been retouched! The real photo has been revealed by secret sources!!!

[TLBSHOW]

August 25, 2002

Office of the President of the United States
Mr. George W. Bush
Subject: Executive Order for a Moratorium on Space Shuttle Flight
Mr. President,
I am a recently retired NASA aerospace engineer and it is my duty to inform you that our space shuttle astronauts are in eminent danger. Your intervention is required to prevent another catastrophic space shuttle accident. NASA management and the Aerospace Safety Advisory Panel have failed to respond to the growing warning signs of another shuttle accident. Since 1999 the launch system has experienced the following potential disastrous occurrences:
July 1999 - Space Shuttle Columbia delayed by hydrogen leak.
December 1999 - Space Shuttle Discovery was grounded with damaged wiring, contaminated engine, dented fuel line, and paper work errors.
January 2000 - Space Shuttle Endeavor is delayed because of wiring and computer failures.
March 2000 - Space Shuttle Atlantis main engine must be replaced because of paperwork errors.
August 2000 - Inspection of Space Shuttle Columbia reveals 3,500 defects in wiring. Wiring defects plague entire fleet.
October 2000 - The 100th flight of the space shuttle was delayed because of a misplaced safety pin and concerns with the external tank.
April 2001 - NASA failed to keep adequate watch on safety operations of a major contractor.
July 2002 - The inspector general reports that space shuttle safety program not properly managed.
April 2002 - Hydrogen leak forces scrub of the Atlantis flight.
August 2002 - Shuttle launch system grounded after fuel line cracks are discovered in all the fleet!
Mr. President, as you are painfully aware NASA management has been lacking for a number of years. Unfortunately, your new NASA Administrator has failed to recognize the eminent space shuttle danger and has accepted the consul of the pre-existing NASA shuttle management. These managers still pursue a management philosophy that has stagnated the safety upgrades efforts and perpetuates the staggering launch costs.
The space shuttle or any space transportation vehicle without crew escape modules will never be safe to transport humans. To incorporate crew escape modules in the space shuttle requires that the piloting function be removed from the vehicle. Unfortunately, the background of the shuttle management is that of former flight controllers and astronauts. They have been trained to never trust automated flight control systems. Therefore, they are adamantly opposed to automation of the space shuttle. Efforts by NASA engineers and contractors to automate the shuttles are met with stern rebukes and reprimands in some cases.
Mr. President, to prevent another shuttle disaster it is requested that an Executive Order be issued that places a moratorium on space shuttle operations. This moratorium must limit shuttle missions to flight crews that do not exceed four members. The moratorium must remain in effect until crew escape modules can be incorporated.
This moratorium will serve as a catalyst to kick-start the resisting NASA management into action. The lives of our astronauts and the future of our space program must not be ignored. The warning from the Thiokol engineer was ignored and the Challenger exploded. The terrorist training warning from FBI agents was ignored and we had the 9-11 disaster. When the next shuttle explodes...and Murphy’s Law says it will, we can exclaim with pride a loud "YES!" as the crew escape module carries our astronauts to safety... or if this moratorium is ignored...we can watch in horror and shame as the astronauts face certain death.
Don A. Nelson
Retired NASA Aerospace Engineer


Reply from the President's OSTP: "I do not think that it is appropriate for the President to issue a moratorium on

Space Shuttle launches at this time" Dec. 4 2002.

Comment: Dec. 12, 2002 another Shuttle propellant leak found!