Title: The 2003 Columbia Disaster
1The 2003 Columbia Disaster
2 Columbia history
Milestones OV102 July 26, 1972 Contract
Award Nov. 21, 1975 Start structural assembly of
crew module June 14, 1976 Start structural
assembly of aft-fuselage March 16, 1977 Wings
arrive at Palmdale from Grumman Sept. 30,
1977 Start of Final Assembly Feb. 10,
1978 Completed final assembly Feb. 14,
1978 Rollout from Palmdale April 12 1981
Launch Jan 16, 2003 28th and Last
Flight
3Columbia 2003 mission STS-107
- The Columbia disaster occurred on
February 1 - It disintegrated over Texas during
re-entry. - Loss of all seven crew, before concluding
its 28th mission.
- Caused by damage sustained during launch when
a piece of foam - insulation the size of a small briefcase
(loaf of bread) and known as the - Left Bipod Foam Ramp broke off the main
propellant tank.
- The damaged area allowed the hot gases to
penetrate and - destroy the internal wing structure,
causing the in-flight break-up.
4Columbia
- Some foam shedding had been noticed during the
launch - However, foam shedding was a common occurrence
and so it was discounted. - In the aftermath of the Challenger disaster NASA
had still not shaken off elements of the mindset
that contributed the tragedy. - They believed that as it worked, there was
nothing to fix. - They were wrong.
5Thermal Shield
- Primary heat shield made from reinforced
carbon/carbon tiles. - Capable of withstanding 1700oC
- Secondary shield Fibrous refractory composite
insulation (FRCI) tiles, which are flexible and
very tough. - These combine with interior insulation to protect
the crew and vehicle during the atmospheric
braking phase of orbital re entry.
6External Tank Foam Insulation
Oxygen and hydrogen exist as gases at standard
temperature and pressure. Since their density in
this state is quite low, the amount of these
substances required by the Space Shuttle would
take up an enormous volume. The only way to
carry sufficient propellant in a reasonable
amount of space is to increase the density by
cooling and pressurizing them until they become
liquids.
7External Tank Foam Insulation
The liquid oxygen is cryogenically cooled to
-300F (-184C) The liquid hydrogen is chilled
to -423F (-253C). These liquids must be kept
at high pressure and very low temperature or
they will boil back to a gaseous state.
8Foam Ramp
- The Left Bipod Foam Ramp was a one meter cast
ramp made entirely out of foam which weighed just
under 1kg, dry. - Its purpose was to improve the aerodynamic
profile of the forward orbiter bipod mount. - This entire ramp, which was frozen by contact
with the EFT broke away 81.9 seconds after
launch. - The debris struck the leading edge of the left
wing, punching a hole through the carbon/carbon
armour.
9Warnings Ignored
- After Columbia safely reached orbit the NASA
engineering safety team made three requests to
the Department of defence to provide high
definition spy satellite pictures of the
orbiter. - The requests were refused as the DOD was busy
over the middle east. - The engineering team then proposed a space walk
to check the wing. - NASA management refused on the grounds that the
crew schedule was full. - Had the damage been discovered the crew had no
way of making repairs,. - However, Columbia did not have enough fuel to
dock with the ISS. - Despite rumours, Columbia was beyond help of any
kind.
10Re Entry
- February 1st Columbia made a perfect de-orbit
burn and began the aero braking part of its re
entry operation. - 084409 Columbia hit the upper atmosphere at 7.8
km/s17,500mph. - Leading edges quickly heat to 1400oC.
- 084839 A sensor on the left wing leading edge
spar showed strains higher than those seen on any
previous Columbia re-entry. - 84932 Columbia executed a pre-planned roll to
the right. - Speed Mach 24.5.
11Last Moments
- 85346 Signs of debris being shed were sighted
by ground observers. - Speed Mach 22.8.
- Altitude 230,200 feet.
- 85424 The Maintenance, Mechanical, and Crew
Systems Officer notes that four hydraulic sensors
in the left wing failed simultaneously. - Mission Control discuss the instrument failure.
- Over the next few minutes ground observers report
seeing flashes of light from Columbia, this was
debris falling from the orbiter and burning up
in the plasma stream.
12Destruction
- 85915 Engineering note that pressure readings
had been lost on both left main landing-gear
tyres, they tell the crew. - A rapid cascade sensor failure followed.
- The crew response is garbled and before they can
repeat the message ground observers report that
Columbia has disintegrated.
13Survival
- Unlike the Challenger accident there was never
any possibility of survival. - The orbiter pitched left as its wing broke up and
lost aerodynamic flow. - Columbia turned sideways on to the Mach 19.5 air
stream. - The orbiter was never designed to withstand
stress in this orientation and broke up. - A human dropped into an airflow of this velocity
would disintegrate as quickly as the orbiter.
14Now
- Foam strikes at launch are still a problem for
the STS. - Strikes occur because of the nature of the
lifter, and there is no way to avoid the problem. - NASA has investigated many DIY repair methods,
but none have a realistic chance of working. - As of now, when a shuttle launches there is
another ready on short standby.
15The Next Step
- The future appears to lie with truly reusable
space vehicle. - Research worldwide has been leaning towards
hybrid engine space planes such as Skylon and the
X 34. - These overcome most of the disadvantages inherent
in the design of the shuttle. - The technology is ready, all it needs is the will
and the money.
16Flight History
- The first shuttle, Columbia flew on 12 April
1981. - Since then there have been 128 launches of which
2 ended catastrophically. - This gives the shuttle a failure rate of 1.6.
Which makes it 300 times more dangerous then
crossing the road. - Columbia and Challenger were both destroyed in
accidents, they were also the oldest of the five
shuttles on the NASA fleet.
17Columbia 2003 mission STS-107
- The investigation board recommended
improving - photography of launches, using telescopes
to - photograph shuttles while they are in
space, and - adding the ability to repair a shuttle while in
orbit.