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Laser inspection shows gash went all way through tiles on shuttle
By Marcia Dunn
AP Aerospace Writer
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CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. -- A close-up laser inspection by Endeavour’s astronauts Sunday revealed that a 3½-inch-long gouge penetrates all the way through the thermal shielding on the shuttle’s belly, and had NASA urgently calculating whether risky spacewalk repairs are needed. | Video

A chunk of insulating foam smacked the shuttle at liftoff last week in an unbelievably unlucky ricochet off the fuel tank and carved out the gouge.

The unevenly shaped gouge -- which straddles two side-by-side thermal tiles and the corner of a third -- is 3½ inches long and just over 2 inches wide. Sunday’s inspection showed that the damage goes all the way through the 1-inch-thick tiles, exposing the felt material sandwiched between the tiles and the shuttle’s aluminum frame.

Mission managers expect to decide Monday, or Tuesday at the latest, whether to send astronauts out to patch the gouge. Engineers are trying to determine whether the marred area can withstand the searing heat of atmospheric re-entry at flight’s end. Actual heating tests will be conducted on similarly damaged samples.

“We have really prepared for exactly this case, since Columbia,” said John Shannon, chairman of the mission management team. “We have spent a lot of money in the program and a lot of time and a lot of people’s efforts to be ready to handle exactly this case.”

The damaged thermal tiles are located near the right main landing gear door. In a stroke of luck, they’re right beneath the aluminum framework for the right wing, which would offer extra protection during the ride back to Earth.

This area is subjected to as much as 2,300 degrees Fahrenheit during re-entry. A hole, if large and deep enough, could lead to another Columbia-type disaster. Columbia was destroyed in 2003 when hot atmospheric gases seeped into a hole in its wing and melted the wing from the inside out. A foam strike at liftoff caused the gash.

Teacher-astronaut Barbara Morgan -- who was the backup for Challenger’s Christa McAuliffe in 1986 -- conducted the slow and painstaking survey, along with crewmate Tracy Caldwell. They used the 100-foot robotic arm and extension boom that flew up on Endeavour, steering the instrument to a spot just above the gouge and keeping it hovered there.

Laser sensors and cameras zoomed in on the damage, white and easily visible against the black tiles, from a variety of views.

Four other damaged areas also were scanned. Engineers believe the piece of foam struck the shuttle’s underside, creating the big gouge, then skimmed along the bottom and nicked it in at least three spots. Those smaller gouges pose no threat, Shannon said.

The foam came off a bracket on the external fuel tank 58 seconds after Wednesday’s launch, fell down onto a strut on the tank, then bounced up, right into Endeavour’s belly. Ice apparently formed before liftoff near the bracket, which helps hold the long fuel feed line to the tank, and caused the foam to pop off when subjected to the vibrations of launch.

It’s possible some ice was attached to the foam, which would have made the impact even harder. The debris that came off is believed to have been grapefruit-sized.

These brackets have lost foam in previous launches, a concern for NASA, Shannon said. A switch to titanium brackets, eliminating foam, will not occur before next year.

Shannon said he did not know whether the recurring foam problem would delay the next shuttle flight, currently scheduled for October.

“We have a lot of discussion to have before we decide to fly the next tank,” he said.

The inspection consumed much of the astronauts’ day. On Monday, two of them will go back out for the second spacewalk of the mission to replace a broken gyroscope at the international space station.

Endeavour has been docked at the space station since Friday. It will remain there until Aug. 20 for a record 10-day stay. Mission managers on Sunday approved the prolonged visit based on the successful testing of a new power transfer system flying on Endeavour. The system is drawing power from the station and converting it for use aboard the shuttle.

On the space station, meanwhile, two cosmonauts continued repairs to a Russian computer system that failed during shuttle Atlantis’ visit in June. Condensation from an air conditioning unit apparently is collecting behind the panels where the computer equipment is located.

And a U.S. command-and-control computer that shut down during Saturday’s spacewalk was working again Sunday.

Rasha Madkour and Liz Austin Peterson contributed to this report from Houston.

Take a look
In this image from NASA TV the robotic arm on the international space station is shown as it takes a camera to survey the damage on the underside of shuttle Endeavour, Sunday, Aug. 12, 2007. (AP Photo/NASA TV)
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Reader comments on this story - 12 total

Note: All views and opinions expressed in reader comments are solely those of the individual submitting the comment, and not those of the Pantagraph or its staff.

Major Tom wrote on Aug 13, 2007 6:36 PM:

" How many bridges in the US could be repaired or rebuilt with the money that is spent on the Shuttle and Space Station? This is such a tremendous waste of $$$$. "

Liftoff wrote on Aug 13, 2007 2:12 PM:

" I was able to see the launch...hadn't seen one before and it was most cool. I highly reccommend it if ever possible. "

To Mothman: wrote on Aug 13, 2007 12:58 PM:

" Give me a break. The amount of pollutants put out by the burning of the fuel will do far more damage than the small (relative) amount of freon that is put into the atmosphere. The amount of energy used in a shuttle mission is amazing once you consider all the work that goes into preparing the shuttle, mission control, etc. If you are going to have a program, do it right, and do it safe. If you are worried about the environment, cancel the darn thing. "

Mothman wrote on Aug 13, 2007 12:12 PM:

" TO: 7 lives vs. freon - What about our children? Are the seven lives lost in Columbia disaster worth that? What about our children's children? There must be a happy medium somewhere! "

Wat Tyler wrote on Aug 13, 2007 11:35 AM:

" Better Safe than Sorry. Make the risky repairs, rather than chance catastrophic failure and loss of the shuttle. "

Re: Hmmmm And To: Hmmmm wrote on Aug 13, 2007 10:41 AM:

" Grow up, will ya? These people may not be comming home. pray for them. "

7 lives vs. freon wrote on Aug 13, 2007 10:31 AM:

" I know that Freon is bad, but I don't care. The lives of 7 of our finest far out weight any benefits. Instead of fixing the shuttle with cameras, etc, when Columbia was lost, we should have reverted back to the tried and true system. It makes me sick. "

Fatso wrote on Aug 13, 2007 10:29 AM:

" Yes, but can freon be used to fix the 'gash'? "

Tp Enviromentalists fault wrote on Aug 13, 2007 9:38 AM:

" Good call, but freon is very bad for the atmosphere (OZONE) . So look that up for yourself. "

Environmentalists fault wrote on Aug 13, 2007 7:54 AM:

" Environmental policies mandated a change in the material used to make the foam. The old stuff which was used safely on over 100 missions was made using freon. Isn't it time to change back? If you don't believe me, look it up yourself. "

To: Hmmmm? wrote on Aug 13, 2007 5:55 AM:

" LOL!!!! "

Hmmmm? wrote on Aug 12, 2007 7:20 PM:

" Who'd want to look at some ol' nasty gash!?!?!?! "
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