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Bernie -> (2/3/2003 9:52:33 AM)
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[QUOTE]Originally posted by tracer
[B][I]If[/I] launch damage was to blame, count on the space program to learn from this and move forward...don't be surprised to see cans of NASA's version of Fix-a-Flat on future flights (at $1400 a pop) :)
For all its resilience and strength, the shuttle is still a fragile vehicle. The workers out at the Cape refer to it as a 'butterfly on a bullet'. [/B][/QUOTE]
I find it dumbfounding to believe that NASA has never had a contingency plan for repairing a damaged shuttle in orbit. We knew from the start that the only thing keeping a shuttle safe during re-entry was the tiles. We worried from the start what would happen if some were lost or damaged. They're telling us now that in the [I]two decades[/I] the shuttles have been flying we still haven't come up with something better than "leave it up there" and send another shuttle to rescue the crew? And they got this by congress?? Yeah, I can hear [I]that[/I] congressional budget meeting... "You mean to tell me, Mr. Director, that if a damaged shuttle, from a meteorite, launch damage, junk debris, whatever, is up in orbit, we can't fix it, or get it back? And these shuttles cost HOW much each?" "Well Senator, we just don't have the capacity to fix something like that in space." "Mr. Director, you will develop and demonstrate a system to do just that, or you will not get another nickle of funding on this project! Meeting adjourned!"
Sheesh! How about a couple of blocks of ceramic based epoxy for a start? Sure, it may not be perfect, but it has to be better than nothing. We're talking about what, 2,000 degrees? I can think of a couple off-the-shelf products that can handle those temps. And for another matter, NASA has long been concerned that if one tile came off the air hitting the exposed edge of the next tile in line might peel it off, and the next, and the next. Well, why not bevel the leading and trailing edges and overlap them? Like a snake's scales?
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