Space Forum / Shuttle / July 2005

I'm after a high res version of this image:
http://www.nasa.gov/images/content/122979main_launch.jpg
But I don't seem to be able to find it on NASA's site. Anyone know where I
can get it?

Hello, peanut gallery here.  As I recall, the external tank used to be
painted, but the paint was later left off to save weight.  Is it
possible that the paint contributed to the integrity of the foam
insulation during liftoff on those early flights?

At this stage of the game I would not be to concerned about the failure
of the new foam formulation of the main fuel tank. Rather, it would seem
extremely important to determine the status of the protective tiles on
the shuttle.

The best one:
http://www.nasa.gov/images/content/123625main_s114e5070_high.jpg
Look how far foward the location is, that the large piece of foam
originated from. Good thing it came off after SRB sep when the dynamic

I hadn't heard this designation until Jim Oberg asked about the implications the
foam shedding had for the preparations for it. Maybe everybody already knew
the name here, but it's the designation for Atlantis' "Launch on Need" rescue
flight.

Why does it have "carbon" twice in the name, and if it's been reinforced,
why couldn't it withstand a hit from the flying foam?  What are the chances
of reinforcing it some more, so that it could withstand such a blow in the
future?

Both the BBC and CBC used "Cape Canaveral" as the location of the shuttle launch.
I was under the impression that Cape Canaveral is a different facility and
that the shuttle is launched from Kennedy Space Center. Is this accurate ?
Or has NASA made a PR decision to start using "Cape ...

I don't understand why they don't just turn the thing (fuel tank) into
a huge disposable thermos.  Putting a metal skin on top of the foam
would seem to solve most problems?
The problem is dealing with condensation, not pieces of foam breaking

Are the main engines cooled by liquid hydrogen, or by a mixture of wate
and something else? I am pretty sure that they use hydrogen bled of
before injection, but a guy here at work seems to think otherwise
--

New images offer wealth of shuttle insight
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/8717609/
But what we didn't see is as important as what we did
ANALYSIS // By James Oberg, NBC News space analyst

4 Astronauts Will Be on Emergency Standby
Four Astronauts Will Be on Emergency Standby, Ready to Rush to the
Rescue of Next Shuttle
By MARCIA DUNN

Just heard CAPCOM (who is she, by the way?) give a short briefing to
the CDR about "two events" on ascent that they're looking into, both
about the time of SRB sep.  The first was something detected on radar,
the second was apparently the object we all saw on the ET cam (which

In <http://www.nasa.gov/images/content/123615main_s114e5008_high.jpg>,
-- the spot on the ribbing that looks like a torn can  -- is that one
of the attach points?
Comparing with

http://msnbc.msn.com/id/8720825/
And from cnn.com:
BREAKING NEWS
NASA grounds the space shuttle program while engineers determine the

What do we know about the chase planes, what height are they when the
shuttle launches, how long can they chase the shuttle.