Discovery Thermal Protection System Damage Appears Minimal
NASA switched to a Freon-free insulating foam for the external
fuel tanks starting with the STS-87 flight of the Shuttle Columbia
in 1997. This flight received dramatically more damage then
previous flights. Subsequent shuttle flights using the new foam
continued to result in up to 11 times more damage then previous
flights with the original foam.
The switch to the environmentally friendly foam was made as part
of a NASA effort to reduce the environmental impact of space
flights. EPA regulations banning CFC's including Freon were put in
place due to a suspected link to high altitude Ozone layer
depletion.
Examination of the extensive inspection photographs of Discovery
has found only small damage to the thermal protection system. NASA
has admitted that it was simply luck that one piece of foam almost
as large as the one blamed for the destruction of Columbia missed
the leading edge of Discoveries wing, and has grounded the
remainder of the shuttle fleet until a solution is found. If that
piece of foam would have fallen off just 30 seconds sooner in the
flight it may have hit the shuttle with similar force as the one
that doomed Columbia.
A detailed search through the pictures and video taken during
Discovery's launch has found a much smaller piece of foam that
apparently deflecting off the wing. Other items found during the
inspection include a piece of damaged tile on the critical nose
wheel door and a piece of gap filler, which insulates between the
tiles, which is protruding located slightly farther back on the
belly of the shuttle. These areas are being examined in great
detail.
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