Shuttle foam impacts create only minor damage
Posted: Tue, May 13, 2003, 8:53 AM ET (1253 GMT)
A series of tests where foam like that used on the shuttle's external tank is fired at shuttle tiles shows that the impacts cause only minor damage. The tests, carried out using a powerful air cannon at the Southwest Research Institute in San Antonio, were designed to simulate the impact of a falling external tank insulation on the landing gear door on the underside of the shuttle's wing. CBS News reported last week that the tests on a landing gear door taken from the shuttle prototype Enterprise revealed that in, most cases, a glancing high-speed impact of foam on the door caused little or no damage. Researchers plan to perform similar impact tests on reinforced carbon-carbon panels from the leading edge of the wing — the location where investigators now believe a hole allowed hot plasma into the shuttle during reentry — next month.
A series of tests where foam like that used on the shuttle's external tank is fired at shuttle tiles shows that the impacts cause only minor damage. The tests, carried out using a powerful air cannon at the Southwest Research Institute in San Antonio, were designed to simulate the impact of a falling external tank insulation on the landing gear door on the underside of the shuttle's wing. CBS News reported last week that the tests on a landing gear door taken from the shuttle prototype Enterprise revealed that in, most cases, a glancing high-speed impact of foam on the door caused little or no damage. Researchers plan to perform similar impact tests on reinforced carbon-carbon panels from the leading edge of the wing — the location where investigators now believe a hole allowed hot plasma into the shuttle during reentry — next month.| <<previous article | next article>> |
|
news in brief
|
|
|
|
news links
|
|
Tuesday, February 25
Days away from landing attempt, Blue Ghost spacecraft shares stunning close-ups of the moon
CNN — 4:53 am ET (0953 GMT) Eutelsat claims world’s first successful 5G NTN trial
Telecoms.com — 4:53 am ET (0953 GMT) Tuberville: ‘No doubt’ Trump still moving SPACECOM to Huntsville
1819 News — 4:52 am ET (0952 GMT) US speeds up integration of partners like NZ into military space operations
Radio New Zealand — 4:52 am ET (0952 GMT) Space Force stands up planning team to assess tech for Trump’s ‘Iron Dome for America’
Defensescoop — 4:51 am ET (0951 GMT) |
