NASA Grounds Space Shuttles

[RichieB16]

Only a day after the launch of the Space Shuttle Discovery, NASA has grounded the shuttle fleet.

[Jimbo]

well as they call it "saftey is paramount"

[ozzy72]

Better safe than dead, but something of a setback.....
I wonder if Burt Rutan would be prepared to offer them a lift? He seems to know what he is doing

[Omag 2.0]

Why wasn't this a problem before? Or did they just ignore the foam-stuff? It has to be possible to replace it I think...

[Hagar]

Why wasn't this a problem before? Or did they just ignore the foam-stuff? It has to be possible to replace it I think...

I think it was ignored before the Colombia incident. 'Out of sight out of mind' as they say & it had never caused a problem before. As I understand it the foam is insulation on the fuel tanks & not part of the Shuttle itself. By becoming detached during the launch a large piece can damage the Shuttle as happened with Colombia.

Forgive me if I speak frankly. It gives me no pleasure to say this. I'm no expert on this subject & have little interest in space exploration so I could be wrong. I get the feeling that NASA has ignored the safety aspects for far too long. It seems to me that the important thing is bringing that crew back safely. I can't imagine the consequences if they get it wrong this time.

[ozzy72]

Alas Doug it is human nature to ignore things if you can get away with them. Look at what happened at the beginning of the Apollo missions. Three astronauts cooked as everyone had got complacent about using a pure oxygen atmosphere What NASA needs is some negative attitude engineers to dream up worst case scenarios and then solve any possible problems.

[RichieB16]

I believe (and I could be wrong) but NASA basically ignored the foam in the past.  They knew about impacts with the shuttle but they were always very small pieces that caused damage that wasn't an issue.  The piece that hit Columbia was substantially larger than any piece that had impacted in the past and hit in the worst possible place.  I think NASA didn't consider the foam a threat because in 112 missions, it was never an issue.  Also, they never had a camara on the tank before to actually observe foam falling off it-so they really didn't know.

NASA has a bad habit of becoming too comfortable-especically with the space shuttle.  They seem to get the idea that space flight is routine and begin launching tons of missions and then suddenly something goes wrong.  In my opinion, what happened to Columbia was simply an accident that happens with the space program, there was no reason for NASA to think that something was wrong with the foam.  Challenger is a different story, when they lost Challenger they broke specific missions rules and launched the mission (against serious concerns from the SRB manufacture) and the crew was killed.  To me, Columbia was an accident that sadily comes with exploration-Challenger was an inexcusible loss.

[Hai Perso Coyone?]

Forgive me for asking, but what is this foam for?

[The Ruptured Duck]

When will NASA start listening to Burt Rutan?  That would fix all this

[Sock]

Forgive me for asking, but what is this foam for?

As insulation, to keep the liquid hydrogen (or is it nitrogen?...  I am stupid.  :P) in the tanks liquid.

[Fozzer]

...... What NASA needs is some negative attitude engineers to dream up worst case scenarios and then solve any possible problems.

If they need a space travel sceptic, I am at their disposal... ...!

Paul...(Call me Major Tom), wearing his lead-lined, anti-radiation suit, munching his calcium tablets, while sitting in his 2-inch thick lead lined space vehicle, contacting Space Recovery Inc on a failing battery, waiting for a tow back home....
(Just bumped into an asteroid)... ...!

[ozzy72]

Paul those Spectrum games and cider are not a healthy mix you know Please send me some cider to ruin my health

[Fozzer]

Paul those Spectrum games and cider are not a healthy mix you know Please send me some cider to ruin my health

Spectrum games are FAB....
...but the cider is now a no-no....too much sugar, you know...  ;)...!

Space travel....
Regarding the Space Station and the Shuttle craft...
I listened to an eminent professor on Radio 4 news today listing all the dangers to human beings of being at an altitude greater that 40,000 feet ASL....!
Something that quite a few of us amateur scientists are already accutely aware of... ...!
I am trying to obtain a copy of the text from the BBC at the moment.....makes interesting reading... ...!
...apparently George W. has been watching too many Star Trek movies.... ...!

Paul....Under an umbrella, avoiding Sun radiation in his back garden at an altitude of 0 Feet AGL... ...!

[Craig.]

Might want to get an spade and start Digging Mr Fozzer. Can never be to safe, so a few feet further below sea level wouldn't hurt
Me, i am back to working out a theory for faster than light travel

[Fozzer]

Might want to get an spade and start Digging Mr Fozzer. Can never be to safe, so a few feet further below sea level wouldn't hurt
Me, i am back to working out a theory for faster than light travel

Fancy a pillion ride on the back of my bike. Craig....?
That'll give you a few tips... ...!
LOL...!

Paul.."Faster than a speeding bullet".... ;...!