Columbia disaster investigators recommend that before resuming flights, NASA develop a program for astronauts to test and repair the thermal protection system while in orbit
Columbia disaster investigators recommend that before resuming flights, NASA develop a program for astronauts to test and repair the thermal protection system while in orbit.
On Friday, the researchers' third preliminary conclusion was delivered in preparation for their progress towards the final report expected in about a month.
During Columbia's deadly mission, the lack of repair options was repeatedly cited as one of the reasons for the decision to do nothing while the shuttle was in orbit," said one of the members of the investigative committee. The shuttle managers refused a request from engineers to photograph the shuttle in orbit using intelligence satellites to examine the damage caused to the shrapnel wing. Foam weighing 600 grams that fell from the external fuel tank and hit the wing during launch.
Immediately after the disaster, NASA engineers insisted that even if they had known about the crack in the leading edge of the wing, the astronauts could not have done anything due to the fact that they did not have a repair kit.
The members of the investigative committee recommend that the shuttles be inspected in space on every mission, whether or not anyone suspected that the spacecraft had been damaged. The investigation will include the use of cameras, robotic arms, telescopes or even a closer examination by going outside. The committee leaves the details to NASA.
The researchers recommend performing the tests as soon as possible immediately after the shuttle reaches orbit or the International Space Station. In addition, the investigative committee recommends developing a plan to carry out emergency repairs, most likely through a spacewalk. Shuttles that are damaged on the way to the International Space Station will be able to use the station's cameras and other resources for the repair.
As a partial solution, NASA plans to add a robotic arm and an exit kit that also includes jets toward the astronauts' orbit on each flight. Columbia did not have any of these.
Currently, NASA does not have a recommendation on methods for diagnosing faults and repairing them in space. The thermal system includes the panels made of carbon and the seals that are on the line in the guide of each wing, as well as the tiles made of glassy carbon.
NASA intends to prepare a repair plan, some remember that since the first shuttle flight in 1981 it has never been updated. However, they commented that the technological progress and the access made possible through the International Space Station "expanded the possibility to improve the process".
In a statement issued Friday, committee members said the recommendation "does not diminish the urgency or importance of aggressively reducing all potential sources of injury to ferries."
Planning improvements are still needed to reduce foam falling from the external fuel tank during launches and to strengthen thermal protection in the three remaining shuttles, members of the investigative committee said.
In April, the investigative committee recommended that NASA improve the pre-flight tests of the panels on the wing and required that the shuttles be photographed using imaging satellites on each mission to examine whether any damage had occurred.
NASA Administrator Sean O'Keefe told Kennedy Space Center employees Thursday that the committee's final report would contain no surprises because of all the early announcements, but said: "When the report comes out, it's going to be very, very ugly."
It's not a report anyone will be happy about, O'Keefe said. "It's the whole agency that will be affected by this. Everyone." saying.
