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BREAKING: NBC News finds Jan 30 NASA Memo showing serious concern about tile damage!
NBC News | February 3, 2003 | Jay Barbree

Posted on 02/03/2003 6:03:22 AM PST by Timesink

Developing. Watch MSNBC for latest. Internal memo shows some engineers believe there was up to a 7 1/2-inch gash from the foam breakoff at launch. Memo was serious enough to go out to all NASA centers two days before disaster.


TOPICS: Breaking News; Crime/Corruption; Government; News/Current Events; US: Florida; US: Texas
KEYWORDS: columbia; columbiatragedy; feb12003; msnbc; nasa; nbcnews; shuttle; shuttletragedy; spaceshuttle; sts107
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To: Timesink
" They're not airplanes; you can't just open the hangar door and have them off the ground twenty minutes later"

Well, if NASA had built them to the original spec you could have one ready for take of in 24/48 hours...
241 posted on 02/03/2003 7:36:19 AM PST by Karsus (TrueFacts=GOOD, GoodFacts=BAD))
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To: rintense
Another person said there was no way to get them from Columbia TO Endeavor if, and it was a big if, another shuttle would have gotten there before they were out of air.
242 posted on 02/03/2003 7:36:20 AM PST by Howlin
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To: anniegetyourgun
Sadly...even if true, there is almost nothing that could have been done once launched. I hope we can learn for the future.

That's pathetic govt. employee ass-covering. How about:

leave shuttle in orbit, send second shuttle to fix first then reenter both

send astronauts to space station for pickup by second shuttle

effect ad-hoc repairs via a spacewalk (they carry some tiles one assumes)

We managed to get the Apollo mission home, in part because we tried. This "nothing could have been done" refrain is PATHETIC.

243 posted on 02/03/2003 7:37:02 AM PST by Jack Black
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To: Miss Marple
No doubt. On the first day, in the first hour.
244 posted on 02/03/2003 7:37:32 AM PST by Howlin
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To: need_a_screen_name
I'm given to understand that most of the heavy lifting in construction of the ISS has been the Russians.
245 posted on 02/03/2003 7:37:44 AM PST by Mamzelle
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To: Kevin Curry
Actually, I think the affliction is not risk aversion, but hubris.
246 posted on 02/03/2003 7:38:07 AM PST by anniegetyourgun
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To: Howlin
BTW, I just heard the NBC report. It's INCHES, not feet.

I believe they said 7 1/2 by 30 inches .. and not Feet that was posted earlier

247 posted on 02/03/2003 7:38:10 AM PST by Mo1 (I Hate The Party of Bill Clinton)
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To: Anticommie
Perhaps nothing could be done to save the shuttle, but the crew could be saved by joining the orbiting space station.

And just how do you get the crew there? Beam them up? Too much Star Trek. The Shuttle didnt have the fuel to get to space station. Its basically a glider. Even if it miraculously got there, there is no way to get from the shuttle to the ISS. There is no docking collar on the Columbia and there is no teether so they couldnt do a space walk (had to make room for all those valuable science fair experiments). There are no space back packs with rockets to shoot you from one vehicle to the other.

248 posted on 02/03/2003 7:38:27 AM PST by Dave S
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To: Centurion2000
"Seeing something like this and then knowing they tried to land it anyway ..... it's tragedy but this looks almost criminal."

I agree fully.
249 posted on 02/03/2003 7:38:50 AM PST by yonif
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To: SarahW
Tiles fall off on every single shuttle flight.
250 posted on 02/03/2003 7:39:01 AM PST by Howlin
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To: john316
Assuming that the image is of the underside of the wing, the image shows the shuttle with its top facing earth and its belly facing space. The only thing that could take that picture would have been either a satellite or the ISS that was further out in space. If the image is of the top of the wing the same holds true, since there are no windows that could give this view. Is there information on where the image was taken from?
251 posted on 02/03/2003 7:39:21 AM PST by SolaScriptura
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To: Jack Black
BUMP

it should never of been sent into space to start with 20 days ago.
252 posted on 02/03/2003 7:39:27 AM PST by TLBSHOW (God Speed as Angels trending upward dare to fly Tribute to the Risk Takers)
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To: Kozak
Each (unmanned) Soviet supply ship contains a replacement Soyuz escape capsule. They rotate the emergency escape capsule with each supply voyage. One was just sent, so they would have had 2 at their disposal (up to 6 seats?) to return most of the crew. They could have junked Columbia, returned one set and then another set on the latest capsule on the current supply rocket.

Or left the non-essential on the ISS and sent a minimul crew back, just in case.

There were other options...

253 posted on 02/03/2003 7:39:34 AM PST by Dubh_Ghlase
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Comment #254 Removed by Moderator

To: Jack Black
yes, I did not read all the way to post 220 before posting, I see some of these scenarios have been considered.
255 posted on 02/03/2003 7:40:36 AM PST by Jack Black
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To: Mamzelle
The Russians launched one today.

Yes they did. But the calculations for that transport have been in the works forever. They can't just make a pit-stop.
256 posted on 02/03/2003 7:41:04 AM PST by Desdemona
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To: al_c
Sure there was. Dock at the space station and return on the Soyuz capsule.

Not possible! First of all the space station was at a higher altitude than the shuttle had fuel to reach ....meaning basically the shuttle could not reach the station.

Secondly (even if it could reach) the shuttle Columbia did not have a docking mechanism to meld witht he station, and there would have been no way for the astronauts to bail ship.

The shuttle was doomed the moment it lifted off.

257 posted on 02/03/2003 7:41:16 AM PST by spetznaz (When i say i am perfect people say i am arrogant .....but i am just being darn honest!)
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To: Jack Black
I don't know why they didn't heed your messages with all these solutions. You figure those pathetic NASA employees simply wanted some good snuff video?
258 posted on 02/03/2003 7:41:40 AM PST by anniegetyourgun
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To: Howlin
Well this time it burned didn't it. It should never of gone up there was enough warnings about it.
259 posted on 02/03/2003 7:41:59 AM PST by TLBSHOW (God Speed as Angels trending upward dare to fly Tribute to the Risk Takers)
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To: Jack Black
leave shuttle in orbit, send second shuttle to fix first then reenter both

send astronauts to space station for pickup by second shuttle

effect ad-hoc repairs via a spacewalk (they carry some tiles one assumes

Please educate yourself about the realistic options available and then tell us what could've been done.

(What's pathetic is the number of people who are complaining without even knowing the basic facts.)

260 posted on 02/03/2003 7:43:16 AM PST by PBRSTREETGANG
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