Word: foamingly
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...knows why the foam flaked off in such large chunks. Since 2003, engineers have improved the way it's applied and contoured, and they eliminated it altogether in some tricky spots. That was supposed to ensure that no debris heavier than 0.03 lb. broke free. Cameras aboard Discovery suggest that the biggest chunk this time weighed just under a pound--nearly 30 times the limit. "The cameras worked well," said NASA chief Michael Griffin. "The foam...
...chipped thermal tiles could be an even more serious problem. It's not certain whether foam caused any of that damage, but it's bad news all the same, particularly the 1.5-in. ding that is located on the edge of the door covering the nosewheel well. Any breach there could cause superheated gases to stream into the enclosed space where the landing gear is stowed, forming a vapor bomb inside the ship. NASA, however, is confident that all the chips are minor and is saying so with uncommon certainty. "It looks extremely good," says Shannon. "We don't have...
...clear how NASA is going to fix the other birds in the shuttle flock. The tiles on Discovery seem relatively clean, with 80% fewer chips than shuttles usually sustain--a tribute to the strides the engineers have made. But had the big piece of foam broken off lower in the atmosphere, it would have slammed into a wall of thicker air and could have crashed far harder into the ship. NASA doesn't want to rely on luck again...
...minimum, the PAL ridge will have to be redesigned. Currently, foam in that area is applied by hand instead of machine, which had seemed like the better method but clearly may not be. Engineers might also replace the ridge with a metal guard. "There is a very good chance the impact on the next flight could be minimal," says Phil Engelauf of the mission operations team. Still, the September flight of Atlantis will almost surely be delayed. How badly the schedule will back up after that is unknown...
ANATOMY OF A FLAW NASA spent more than two years and $1 billion to make sure that the accident that doomed Columbia in 2003 couldn't happen again. Despite assurances that it was safe to launch Discovery, several pieces of foam broke free during takeoff last week, forcing an embarrassed NASA to put all future flights on hold...