3 ms·
> When Columbia's tiles started popping off in a stiff breeze, it occurred to engineers that ice chunks from the tank would crash into the tiles during the soni
by theodorejb 3y ago
> When Columbia's tiles started popping off in a stiff breeze, it occurred to engineers that ice chunks from the tank would crash into the tiles during the sonic chaos of launch: Goodbye, Columbia. So insulation was added to the tank.
I didn't realize this was the reason for the thermal insulation. It's ironic how in the end the insulation popped off and crashed into the tiles during launch, causing the very disaster it was intended to prevent.
- Dylan16807 3y agoDid it do more damage than the raw ice that would have been there instead? If not, then "caused" isn't the right word, it's just an incomplete mitigation and not ironic.
- rob74 3y agoIt did enough damage to cause the heat shield to fail on reentry, so "caused" is warranted. Even if the foam had a purpose, it would have been a reasonable requirement to make sure that it doesn't turn into a risk itself...
- deleted 3y ago[deleted]