[meteorite-list] Investigators Look At Debris That Hit Columbia At Launch

From: Ron Baalke <baalke_at_meteoritecentral.com>
Date: Thu Apr 22 10:18:24 2004
Message-ID: <200302032054.MAA02783_at_zagami.jpl.nasa.gov>

http://www.cnn.com/2003/TECH/space/02/03/sprj.colu.shuttle/index.html

NASA focusing on 'Achilles' heel' of shuttle

Investigators look at debris that hit Columbia at launch

CNN
February 3, 2003

JOHNSON SPACE CENTER, Texas -- NASA officials Monday concentrated on whether a
piece of foam insulation that was dislodged during the launch of the space
shuttle Columbia may have struck a seam on a landing gear door, a retired
NASA engineer told CNN.

A top NASA official said engineers who reviewed the incident shortly after launch
determined it "was not a safety of flight issue," but thought there could have been
some damage to the shuttle's heat protection system.

Meanwhile, a section of Columbia's cabin, measuring 6 to 7 feet long, was identified
Monday by authorities in east Texas.

Debris from the shuttle is spread over such a wide area -- more than 28,000 square
miles -- that a second debris collection site was being established at Carswell Air
Force Base near Fort Worth, Texas, NASA officials said.

As a massive investigation sought clues to unlock the mysteries surrounding the final
moments of the shuttle, investigators took a closer look at the spot where the
insulation appeared to hit the shuttle's left side 80 seconds after liftoff on
January 16.

The former official said the landing gear door, which protects vital wiring and
sensors, is perhaps the most vulnerable part of the shuttle.

"Nature always finds the Achilles' heel, and for the shuttle, the Achilles' heel is
this," the former official said.

If the insulation struck at the seam, it could have created a fissure in the seal
that protects the wheel well and the sensitive wiring that is housed in that area.
NASA is exploring whether impact there may have created a blowtorch-like effect
that could explain the increase in heat and the failure of the sensors in that
location.

In its final minutes, the shuttle experienced an unusually high temperature increase
on its left side, lost a series of sensors on the left wing and then rolled
unexpectedly to the left, according to a NASA data analysis.

NASA is also looking at what may have caused the insulation to fall off the external
fuel tank. The tank that was used on Columbia was heavier than the tanks that
have been used more recently on shuttle missions to the international space station.
Investigators will be looking at whether any failure in the process of affixing foam
insulation to the tank or in the storage of the tank prior to use may have weakened
the bond, the retired official said.

Michael Kostelnik, deputy associate administrator of space shuttle programs, said
debris coming off a shuttle's external fuel tank during launch was "not a new
phenomenon."

"The best and brightest engineers we have, who helped design and build this system,
looked carefully at all the analysis and the information we had at this time and
made a determination this was not a safety of flight issue," Kostelnik said.

Independent investigation begins

Meanwhile, federal, state and local officials worked to recover thousands of pieces
of debris spread across Texas and Louisiana, and NASA engineers pored over mounds
of data, trying to understand what happened in the moments before Columbia
disintegrated 40 miles above Earth on Saturday morning.

The independent panel investigating the Columbia disaster met for the first time
Monday at Barksdale Air Force Base in Louisiana.

"We have begun our work and we will work diligently and rapidly until this matter
is cleared up," Retired Navy Adm. Harold Gehman Jr. said as he took the reins of
the Columbia Accident Investigation Board.

Remains of some of the astronauts began arriving late Sunday at Barksdale, where
they will be examined by pathologists from the Armed Forces Institute, a NASA
spokeswoman said.

The astronauts killed in the disaster were commander Rick Husband, pilot William
McCool, payload commander Michael Anderson, mission specialists David Brown,
Laurel Clark and Kalpana Chawla, and Israel's first astronaut, Ilan Ramon.

In a statement Monday, the astronauts' families thanked NASA for its support
while telling the agency "the bold exploration of space must go on."

NASA chief: Safety comes first

The New York Times reported that five of the nine members of NASA's advisory
panel were removed last year after they warned of looming safety troubles for
the shuttle fleet.

NASA's administrator said Monday that any concerns that the advisory panel had
raised about shuttle safety were focused on the future process rather than
upcoming flights, and Columbia would never have been allowed to lift off without
passing a rigorous inspection.

"We're worried about safety every single day in this agency," Sean O'Keefe said.
"There's not a single flight that takes off without going through a very, very
rigid, extremely methodical safety regime."

O'Keefe said that, to his knowledge, the advisory panel members left only because
their tenures were up.

O'Keefe briefed President Bush and members of Congress on Monday about the
investigation into the Columbia disaster.

The White House said President Bush and first lady Laura Bush will attend a
memorial service for the shuttle crew Tuesday in Houston.

Space shuttle flights have been put on hold until NASA can learn what caused the
disaster. NASA said the international space station, where two astronauts and a
cosmonaut remain, has enough supplies to last the crew until June. An unmanned
Russian supply ship was launched to the space station Sunday.

Authorities again warned the public not to touch any debris from the spacecraft
because it could be contaminated with toxic residue from the shuttle's fuel
system and could be crucial to determining what happened to Columbia.
Received on Mon 03 Feb 2003 03:54:58 PM PST