From NASA engineering film: Sequential pix of debris hitting Columbia's wing

NASA via CNN Online & Yahoo News ^ | 2/3/03 | Wolfstar

[Wolfstar]

Released Monday morning, a high-speed NASA engineering film shows a piece of debris falling from the large external tank on the space shuttle Columbia's liftoff and hitting the orbiter's left wing. Bear in mind that these are extreme close-ups of a high-speed event. In the top couple of photos, you see only the top of the broken-off piece. Most of it is in the shadows. Depending on which clip you see and how slowly it is run, to the uninitiated person's eye, it can look either like the debris strikes the wing hard enough to pulverize the debris, or the debris strikes a glancing blow and bounces off in the direction of the main and booster engine exhaust.

[Howlin]

I heard the director in Washginton say today that they DID discuss it with them, just like they discuss everything with them.

I'll go with the director.

[Fred Mertz]

I'll go with Sally Ride.

[TLBSHOW]

she is something huh wrong 100% of the time....lolrof

[GGpaX4DumpedTea]

Gee, if we had to limit the size of the crews, it would mean that we would have to say NO! to the teachers, Senators and others and limit the experience AND the risk to bonified, trained, apolitical USA members of the NASA flight teams.

[GGpaX4DumpedTea]

Perhaps a stupid question . . . why is this foam insulation necessary? Does it reduce the amount of hazardous ice formation that could be even more damaging? Is there any way to "permanently" insulate the external tank and cover it with a metallic coating that would prevent the foam from disintegrating?

[DugwayDuke]

Please share with us your theory as to why this completely bogus and thorougly discredited photograph was removed.

[CCWoody]

We would need to do laboratory tests involving insulation colliding with the wing sections. I'm sure they have tested a lot of collision scenarios, but I'll bet they never did that test. ~ the_doc

Actually, I do think that they have done that specific test. I think that they have specifically taken chunks of insulation and fired them at tiles in a machine similar to the one that the wind engineers use to test their building designs against tornadoes.

I also think that these results were a factor in their determination that the insulation did not cause a problem for Columbia. If memory serves, insulation has actually struck the space shuttle before and this was also factored into their decision.

I'm actually wondering if this powdered insulation if left on the wing would be able to cause either, enough damage to tiles to cause them to fail or cause them to super-heat and then fail.

Woody.

[the_doc]

Thanks for that info!

[LenS]

Gee, I'm convinced now because you used such a large font. Clearly you have the superior argument.

Not.

Do you work for NASA? Because you clearly have an weak excuse for everything and spend all your time looking for reasons why not, instead of why we could. Pathetic.

Heroes. Why? For getting the taxpayer to finance half a billion dollar joy rides to nowhere? For being the victims of antiquated technology and a bureaucracy that never learns from it's mistakes? For running useless schoolkid experiments? For becoming convenient matyrs enabling NASA to continue to waste money instead of building real space vehicles and getting us based on the Moon and Mars?

Heroes are our fighting men and women in the war. Heroes are the emergency workers on 9-11. Heroes are the passengers on Flight 97. Ilan Ramon was a hero for his piloting efforts. The rest were nice and intelligent people who lost the gamble that they weren't on the one in fifty flight that fails.

[anymouse]

Actually a spectral analysis of that debris cloud could show what the material content was. I bet it would show that it was mostly ice particles with some insulation foam. If it showed up with quartz/silica, then it would be of concern. That would indicate that part of the tiles had been knocked off.

Frankly unless you see chunks of tiles flying off, I think it is remote that the wing was damaged beyond minor scuffing. The tiles are a bit more sturdy than that and they are held on pretty good with a strong adhesive.

[zingzang]

I don't know all of the details, but I've heard that inspection and repair in space is not possible. Someone told me that Sally Ride was talking about that very thing on the news the other day, and she explained it as being too short of a time window when they aren't facing the sun to get the work done. Plus, I've also heard from another report that NASA investigated the option in the early 80's and found it too expensive. I certainly agree that it's amazing they don't have rescue vehicles and/or the ability to make repairs while in space.

[zingzang]

Rather than post some goofy saying, why don't you post an option that was available to NASA and/or the crew?

[zingzang]

Yeah, too bad you weren't in charge, then none of this would have happened, right?

[zingzang]

That is a good point. It seems fairly straightforward. Has NASA made any mention of this option?

[bvw]

"Layman's understanding"

In other words, unless you are an official NASA certified "expert", go fluff Motel 6 comforters. Well, that's a piss and death attitude. That attitude is why NASA shut be shuttered at "T-Zero" -- now!