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Re: Apollo 13, Meteorites, and Nininger

Martin (and list)

> Anyway, here are my thoughts: The date of the article is April 13, or two
>  days after liftoff. I presume Nininger's comment was made shortly after
>  problems with the space flight were first reported.

Actually the date date is April 14, one day after the accident (which occured
in the evening of the 13th).

>If the dates I have are accurate, then suspecting a meteorite as the
>culprit at this stage, especially from Nininger, is not only completely
>understandable, but also should be expected (IMHO that is).

Nininger's remarks led me to believe that he went beyond suspecion - that he
was certain the SM had been hit by a meteorite.  Unmanned earth-orbiting
satellites during the 60s (launched specifically for the purpose of  assesing
micrometeorite impacts) indicated the likelihood of meteorite impacts
resulting in that much damage as being extremely small (dare it say it -
astronomical).  Even given Nininger's stature and interests, I would have
thought that he would have at least considered a mechanical malfunction as a
possible source.

As an aside, that oxygen tank was also damaged a couple of years before the
flight when it was dropped and, if I am not mistaken, the contractor installed
the wrong amperage fuse which allowed a relief valve assembly to become
damaged during a ground test before it was installed.

-Walter