Re: latest foam tests.etc.......


Bob Haller wrote:
http://www.spaceflightnow.com/shuttle/sts121/060413update/

Tank foam lost during shuttle wind tunnel test
BY WILLIAM HARWOOD
STORY WRITTEN FOR CBS NEWS "SPACE PLACE" & USED WITH PERMISSION
Posted: April 13, 2006

[...]
The proposed fueling test would not prevent a July 1 launch, engineers
say, because of contingency time built into the schedule following a
March 15 decision to delay launch from May 10 to July 1. But the
concern about subjecting the tank to unnecessary thermal stresses by
loading it with super-cold rocket fuel remains.

Engineers now believe the expansion and contraction of the tank during
multiple fueling cycles contributes to the formation of tiny cracks and
other defects that can lead to foam loss during flight. Opponents of
the fueling test believe the health of the ECO sensors can be confirmed
through electrical testing without the need for a fueling cycle.

This issue raises thorny questions about how NASA will conduct future
launch campaigns. In the past, the agency routinely fueled space
shuttles for flight even when forecasters predicted bad weather. In
some cases, the forecasters were wrong and the shuttle was able to fly.
But in others, they were right and NASA was forced to drain the tank
and try again another day.

Hmmm, sounds like a good opportunity to review the ding list and see if
flights with more scrubs had more dings.

/dps

.

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