News that a window cover had fallen off the shuttle Discovery and damaged its thermal tiles sparked an unwelcome feeling of deja vu Tuesday.
This sentence, from an Associated Press story, didn’t help: “It was not immediately clear why the cover — which was held by tape — came loose.”
Does the idea that NASA — with, I assume, plenty of space-age materials at hand — uses tape to hold on window covers worry anyone else?
Let’s hope that my fears are proved unfounded at the launch.
Posted by Melissa Cooley
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10 Comments
The space shuttle has been a colossal waste of money from the start, and the lives lost because of “design by committee and politics” are at the center of its shame.
I’m not as worried about the tape as I am about the inevitable rubber bands and paper-clips that must be holding the rest of the thing together.
I’m not as worried about the tape as I am about the inevitable rubber bands and paper-clips that must be holding the rest of the thing together.
Space exploration will always be risky. The danger is simply inherent in the endeavor. The American public has lost its stomach for risk. We are forced to take far more time and spend many millions of dollars more than is necessary to make something safe, which it will never be, because the public cannot stomach the noble sacrifices these people make for the sake of exploration.
Every astronaut is aware of the risks and is still willing to make the trip. While I believe safety is indeed important, it should not trump the exploration.
Also, the window cover falling and damaging the tiles was not deja vu. The tiles have been damaged hundreds of times before, as they are quite fragile. Had foam fallen from the fuel tank puncturing a large hole in the tiles… that would be reminiscent of the Columbia tradgedy.
Isopropyl,You are entirely correct, but the decision to use a winged vehicle for the shuttle was only to satify the macho fly boys. No plopping down under a parachute for them. The ungainly concoction that resulted from that decision is ridiculous at first sight, and dangerous, too; as now proved twice.
There were better alternatives proposed when the shuttle design was selected. But the shuttle was supposed to cost only $50 million per shot (Not that anyone believed it). Still, the current cost of $500 million + per shot is beyond undefendable.
Talk about money that would be better spent elsewhere in space exploration!
Space exploration is risky. So what? Crossing the Atlantic to come to America was dangerous (the ship that brought one of my ancestors sank after arriving). Settling the west was dangerous (and our treatment of the indiginous Indians was abominable).Last years space budget was about 14 billion dollars. Compare that to 300 billion dollars for Iraq and 300 billion dollars for the pentagon.And as to the cost in life? Seventeen Americans have died in the American space effort. Compare this with 1700 who have died in Iraq, or 55,000 who died in Vietnam.The point of the last is that while nothing worth doing is easy, doing nothing worthy is easy; or at least we have prioritized it so.Finally, ask any American what they would rather do; fly the shuttle or go to war. I think, I at least hope the answer would be telling.
Well, well, well. Here’s JR with his anti-war blinders on. Got lost in a space blog, didja? Ed must be somewhere close, too, with Israeli commandos close behind.
There’s a name for folks who use the terrorist view of the Bush Doctrine to support their little agendas. It’s called “vicarious terrorism:”
Putting himself forward as a spokesman for the same views the terrrorists hold, JR tells us that if we just appease the Islamic terrorists we can have a much bigger space program.
Yeah, and they can use it to put a permanent crescent moon in space.
Oh and here is SIMON again. Uh Simon? I think the subject was space exploration. Now I know you Simon, I’ve seen your posts more than a few times. Long story short SIMON, to me you are a NUT.Simon? Chickenlittle? I do not feel particularly afraid of terrorists. Now I know I am supposed to be, like you SIMON, either a scared lemming or a willing participant in the mass deception being perpetrated against America at the expense of everything else we can or should do. But ya know what SIMON? To me you are a bigger threat than any terrorist. You are either a victim or a proponent of irrational fear. In either case , you are useless.
Oh and here is SIMON again. Uh Simon? I think the subject was space exploration. Now I know you Simon, I’ve seen your posts more than a few times. Long story short SIMON, to me you are a NUT.Simon? Chickenlittle? I do not feel particularly afraid of terrorists. Now I know I am supposed to be, like you SIMON, either a scared lemming or a willing participant in the mass deception being perpetrated against America at the expense of everything else we can or should do. But ya know what SIMON? To me you are a bigger threat than any terrorist. You are either a victim or a proponent of irrational fear. In either case , you are useless.
Heh