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An external tank is suspended
horizontally by a large overhead crane in the transfer aisle of the Vehicle Assembly
Building at NASA’s John F. Kennedy Space Center. The external tank measures
154.2 feet long, is 27.5 feet in diameter, and weighs 58,500 pounds
empty.
The tank is being transferred by barge to the Michoud
Space Systems Assembly Facility near New Orleans where redesign of the external
tank is underway for Return to Flight.
As part of its findings, the Columbia Accident
Investigation Board said two parts of the the orbiter, both related to how
it is attached to the external tank, should be redesigned.
The first is the explosive bolts that hold the rocket
boosters to the space shuttle’s external tank. A subsequent investigation that
included ground testing revealed a potentially catastrophic flaw in the
booster’s bolt catcher assembly, a dome-shaped container designed to capture the
36-kilogram bolt after it is cut to keep any fragments from striking the
vehicle.
Engineers will also redesign the fixture dubbed
the bipod ramp which is located near the attach point between the shuttle’s
external tank and the orbiter during liftoff. Columbia accident investigators
believe insulating foam from Columbia’s bipod ramp broke off during liftoff and
struck one of the orbiter’s wings.
Image Credit:
NASA
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