Mon, Feb 17, 2003
Attitude Jets Fired After LOS
Two additional attitude control jets aboard Columbia fired after
voice communication was lost with the shuttle, an analysis of data
from the subsequent seconds indicates. Two other yaw control jets
were known to have fired earlier, but the analysis indicates that a
third and fourth yaw jet also activated in an attempt to maintain
control of the vehicle.
One of five General Purpose Computers aboard Columbia also has
been found among debris shipped to the Kennedy Space Center. The
computer was badly damaged and its battery was missing. General
Purpose Computers have no hard drives, so investigators held out
little hope of extracting additional information.
A shuttle main engine turbopump has been recovered not far from
Ft. Polk in Louisiana. The pump was buried about 14 feet below the
ground's surface.
As of early Saturday, the western boundary of the debris field
remained just west of the Fort Worth, Texas, area. Still, teams
continued to investigate reports of debris as far west as
California. A search for debris is under way in the Sandia
Mountains just east of Albuquerque, based on witness reports of
sonic booms and impact noise in that area.
Investigation Continues To Gear Up
The Columbia Accident Investigation Board Chairman Adm. Hal
Gehman announced over the weekend the appointment of Sheila
Widnall, former Secretary of the Air Force, to the board. Dr.
Widnall is a member of the faculty of the Massachusetts Institute
of Technology. Gehman and some of the board members are scheduled
to hold a news conference Tuesday at 2 p.m. CST at Johnson Space
Center in Houston.
Board members spent part of the weekend at the Michoud Assembly
Facility near New Orleans, where shuttle external tanks are
fabricated. The board planned to return to Houston Saturday
night.
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