On Sat, 1 Feb 2003 22:07:48 -0000, "Jim Wilson" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote in message <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>:
> Jon Berndt <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> said: > > > > > During ascent there was some ice that broke loose and impacted the > > left wing underside near the elevon and the ice chunk disintegrated > > on impact. There was some concern that the protective tiles that > > cover the surfaces which are exposed to the most heat during reentry > > might have been damaged. That concern was addressed and dismissed by > > NASA before entry. However, in hindsight, perhaps that might end up > > being viewed as premature. There are other "criticality 1" items > > that could have played into this, though. > > > > No doubt now that the focus will be on the left wing. But I'm > wondering, is there anything that could have been done had the > assessment gone the other way? > > ..heavy sigh... ..I don't know, but we could try model it right now, to see if there _are_ viable options, such as abandoning the launch, jettisoning the tank and boosters somewhere (out towards the sea) and return for a rather prompt landing, it would have prevented re-entry heat loads to the airframe. -- ..med vennlig hilsen = with Kind Regards from Arnt... ;-) ...with a number of polar bear hunters in his ancestry... Scenarios always come in sets of three: best case, worst case, and just in case. _______________________________________________ Flightgear-devel mailing list [EMAIL PROTECTED] http://mail.flightgear.org/mailman/listinfo/flightgear-devel
