Word: plasma
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...plasma is indeed responsible, it couldn't have done it alone. It needed to make its way through an existing breach in Columbia's aluminum skin. How could that coat have been punctured? There are still only theories, but here is what we do know: new temperature records reveal that the heat in the left wheel well began to increase when the shuttle was still over the Pacific, heading for California. That suggests the ship sustained damage in orbit, but began to feel the effects only when the temperature rose during re-entry. "In a large number of cases," says...
NASA investigators made a major breakthrough last week in their investigation of the Columbia disaster, determining that the shuttle's breakup may have been caused by plasma--superhot gas--leaking into the ship's wheel well. The revelation came as a surprise to many, but not to longtime NASA watchers. They had heard a similar story almost 40 years before...
...cameras in the unmanned Ranger 6 moon probe were blinded during lift-off when plasma seeped into the booster. The failure of the mission caused a sensation at the time, and the space agency took measures to shield its camera systems. How could the new NASA get burned by such an old enemy? Two engineers who submitted reports to the nine-member crash investigation board told TIME last week they believe the problems may be more institutional than technical. With budgets tight, safety protocols may have been allowed to erode over time. When problems or anomalies were spotted, administrators...
...been widely reported that damage to the left wing was visible in the picture, but the resolution turned out to be too poor to reveal anything conclusive. The agency was hopeful that the videotapes might yield more, but skeptics cautioned that even during routine re-entries, bursts of plasma can mimic the appearance of debris...
...makers of plasma sets are also investing heavily to improve the breed. A joint venture between Japan's Fujitsu and Hitachi, the largest manufacturer of plasma screens, spent $40 million in its plasma business this year, and next year plans to double that. Plasma "is much more ready for the market at this moment, especially in large sizes," says Wang Chien-erh, a vice-president at market research firm DisplaySearch. "lcd TV makers are trying to catch up." How successful they'll be "depends on how much and how quickly they improve quality...