Wednesday, June 21, 2006
What? Me, Worry?
Let's review. Columbia burned up on re-entry due to an unanticipated foam strike. That was February 1, 2003. NASA grounds the shuttle, and works on the foam problem for over two years, tells everyone it's solved, and launches Discovery on July 26, 2005. A pound of foam tears off strikes the TPS (thermal protection system) and shuttles are grounded again.
On July 1, 2006, they say they'll be ready to fly again. On Saturday, it was just the insignificant safety and engineering departments that opposed flight. Now, we learn that, although JSC, KSC, and MSFC all signed on the dotted line, Marshall Space Flight Center had some dissent within its ranks. Luckily, it was only the Safety Engineering Review Panel. And oh yeah, the Propulsion Systems Engineering and Integration teams (combined) from Johnson Space Center, Kennedy Space Center and Marshall Space Flight Center.
On March 1, 2006, loud noises were heard on the barge shipping the tank, but no cause was ever found. On March 3, a technician working on Discovery's thermal tiles smashed a heat lamp, spraying glass shards all around. While cleaning that up, technicians crashed into Discovery's robot arm. NASA took a safety time out. But dinged the external tank a few days later anyway, knocking off foam.
If that wasn't enough, the crew patch is a thinly disguised anarchy symbol.
On July 1, 2006, they say they'll be ready to fly again. On Saturday, it was just the insignificant safety and engineering departments that opposed flight. Now, we learn that, although JSC, KSC, and MSFC all signed on the dotted line, Marshall Space Flight Center had some dissent within its ranks. Luckily, it was only the Safety Engineering Review Panel. And oh yeah, the Propulsion Systems Engineering and Integration teams (combined) from Johnson Space Center, Kennedy Space Center and Marshall Space Flight Center.
On March 1, 2006, loud noises were heard on the barge shipping the tank, but no cause was ever found. On March 3, a technician working on Discovery's thermal tiles smashed a heat lamp, spraying glass shards all around. While cleaning that up, technicians crashed into Discovery's robot arm. NASA took a safety time out. But dinged the external tank a few days later anyway, knocking off foam.
If that wasn't enough, the crew patch is a thinly disguised anarchy symbol.
