A sad day for Nasa and the space programme!!!!

Yet again Nasa has lost one of its space shuttles (Columbia) this time on re-entry........breaking up over Texas with the loss of all 7 crew :O(((((

really?

i heard that they feared they were dead



Sim

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yeah very sad

i heard that they feared they were dead

If a space shuttle explodes at the height of 60km and the debris is spread over 3 (three!!!) states - Texas, New Mexico and Arkansas - chances are high that nobody has survived.

It is a very sad day for NASA, indeed. And it is a sad day for all space faring nations, since this tragedy will endager the further progress of the ISS as well.

It might even turn out to be very dangerous for the people living in the area where shuttle came down. Since they did all sorts of experiments on board, the debris could be conterminated with toxic chemicals; not to speak of the fuel which is pure poison for humans and animals.

At least we can rule out the thought of a terrorist's attack. No ground missile can fly that high. 60km are 38 miles or around 200.000 ft - this is almost 6 times as high as jumbo jets go.



Post Edited (02-01-03 18:47)

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shall i comment

if its anything thats not appropriate then have a heart and shut your face

shut the **** up daveb (is that ballard? if its not then ignore me :P)

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ALso, if you are travelling at 12,500 MPH, you are not gonna survive not matter what technology you have in your space suit.



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The very moment the cockpit broke the people were dead due to the pressure equalisation.



Post Edited (02-01-03 20:27)

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REHAB IS FOR QUITTERS

very sad sympathy to the freinds and family of those onboard

Just heard about this from here on this board. Jeez... I guess the chances are very slim indeed, that anyone related to the astronauts are gonna pass through here... But, none the less - I feel for you.

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It's only after we've lost everything, that we are free to do anything.

They just said at the moment of the catastrophe the shuttle was travelling with mach 18 (sonic speed x 18). That is pretty fast (around 6,5 km/s - taking 357 m/s as the value for sonic speed, which might not be correct since in a height of 60 km* the air is so thin that sound has a different speed)

The outer frontier of the atmosphere, the exosphere, is at 1000 km, but 99% of the mass within the atmosphere is in the lower 40 km.



Post Edited (02-01-03 21:52)

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REHAB IS FOR QUITTERS

My condolences go out to everyone involved in the whole shuttle program, especially the families of those lost.

at least the astronourts didnt suffer (i hope they didnt)

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yes, a very tragic event, and one that will unfortunately set the space program back a long way

- and dUmAsS, maybe this isnt the best topic for your sig pic (!)



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Apparently there are some worrying thoughts that this could be sabotage. The amount of money invested in something like this would mean an attack by terrorists cannot be ruled out, and afaik it is not being ignored that terrorism could be a part.

It is shocking that some people can have such a slight regard for life. Even if this is just complete speculation I am sure people understand what I am talking about.

Baz



Post Edited (02-02-03 02:02)

At least we can rule out the thought of a terrorist's attack. No ground missile can fly that high. 60km are 38 miles or around 200.000 ft - this is almost 6 times as high as jumbo jets go.

As I said, sabotage wasn't being ruled out, as there was probably no other way of attack, it would have included someone on-board the shuttle.

It's a worrying situation when everything has to be considered, including terrorism. What a world we live in.

Baz

They all died heroes, they will never be forgotten, just like those who lost their lives in the Challenger disaster and in the Apollo program. Space is a dangerous business and those that take part know the risks. The whole world grieves with the families of those that lost their lives. ;-/

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Since one of the astronauts was an Israeli they already had increased security to a maximum. I don't think it was sabotage. It is rather what happens when routine comes into the game and you think you master a technology or can cope with any problems that may arise. Already at the start a few heat deflector tiles had fallen off the bow of the shuttle, but NASA thought it was nothing to worry about and everything was still all under contro. Apparently this was not the case and the bow was ripped apart when re-entering the lower atmosphere.

Bush made clear that this will not mean the end of the space program. After the challanger disaster - anoher example of sloppiness - the NASA stopped all flights to space for two years. This time it won't take that long. If the NASA quits the program (or even delays it) the Europeans and Russia will build the ISS alone and this is something the USA will not really like to happen.



Post Edited (02-02-03 03:08)

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REHAB IS FOR QUITTERS