Y2KevSE

iTrader: (13)

If any other thread is started, it will be deleted/locked/moved.


Let me make this clear... feel free to discuss ONLY in this thread.

CKNY

iTrader: (1)

RussMaxManiac

Thought I share some pictures that were taken back in the mid 80s by my oldest brother of the Shuttle.

Columbia visits Kelly AFB in the mid-1980's:

http://www.sah2o.com/silverbullet/shuttle/shuttle1.jpg

http://www.sah2o.com/silverbullet/shuttle/shuttle2.jpg

http://www.sah2o.com/silverbullet/shuttle/shuttle3.jpg

http://www.sah2o.com/silverbullet/shuttle/shuttle4.jpg

Columbia heads skyward on mission STS-50, June 25, 1992:

http://www.sah2o.com/silverbullet/shuttle/shuttle5.jpg

Batman518

in my heat transfer class, there was a very morbid coincident. my professor, whose done work on the shuttle tiles before, wanted to demonstrate, through the use of a program, how quickly the space shuttle would go bye bye. Ofcourse he decided it would be in bad taste to continue with the demonstration, but he was obviously a bit shooken up by the thing and just needed to discuss it with the class today. An astronaut who graduated from my school (UC Davis), was scheduled to take off March 1, and invited my prof to VIP viewing of the launch. The launch is ofcourse cancelled til further notice. As a future mechanical engineer, its just sad to see how something (assuming the debris was a tile falling off) so preventable can be overlooked. They do space walks all the time, and could have easily did at least a visual inspection of the ship since they obviously noticed the debris during launch.

Virus

iTrader: (1)

I want to make this clear before I rant. I have great admiration for those who perished and wish their families the best.

However, I don't understand why everyone is focusing on 7 lives being lost. When an airliner goes down 100 or more lives are lost and it only gets a blip on the news. Another thing that's bothering me is why they are focusing on the Israeli that perished and in the back burner the story about the Indian woman. Who gives a rats butoot what nationality you are? There's no reason to focus on nationality over and over again.

joaquink

Bat, I agree on how it's frustrating that it, so far, appears to be caused by something so readily preventable (they were warned in like 1994) and/or repairable (astronauts trained for tile replacement in a water tank). However, the decision was to send up this crew without the suits and associated equipment required for a spacewalk. In a previous post to another thread I noted that I hoped the root cause wasn't something stupid and preventable like the O-ring for Challenger and it looks like that'll be the case now.

Virus, I agree with you to a certain extent. The significance of nationality here is that he is the first Israeli-born person to fly into space. The first for anything is always significant. I do not know whether the woman is the first Indian to fly into space but you could easily argue that they are making a point about the diversity of the space program and so forth.

As for a jetliner crash, well, yep, more people die there for sure. I think the case here is that any shuttle mission is a high-risk endeavor. The shuttle program is a source, for many, of national pride. NASA and the exploration of space perhaps aren't as mesmerizing to us as they are/were for our parents. One reason, we're not in a heated space race with the Russians. Another reason, it's not brand new to us. The shuttle has been in progress or flying for all but the first few years of my life. For me, they died in service to us and for the advancement of science. Those would generally be considered noble causes; like the death of an infantryman or public servant dying in the act of helping/saving others. Not to diminish their loss or importance in the world, but people flying on a jetliner generally can't be said to fall into the same category.

Batman518

well said

99maxi

iTrader: (2)

it is a high risk mission for the advancement of the nation. because we see shuttles take off and land often we don't realize it is very dangerous. accidents do happen and hopefully we will learn how to prevent them from happening again..

NickStam

iTrader: (3)

I can't seem to think of anything that has inscreased the quality of life from space travel. Can anyone help me out here?

joaquink

Velcro and tang come to mind, not to mention Tempur-pedic beds.

Mustang1999

Just a few:

Personal Computers
Colorization of black and white movies
"Sound Guard" record cleaner
Solar powered calculators
Aluminized bags for snack food
Weather satellites
Halogen lights for cars
Sports domes
Microwave Ovens
Pocket calculators
"Velcro"
Phone calls by satellite
"Teflon"
Laser guided missiles
"Mylar" balloons
"Blue Blocker" sunglasses
Digital watches and thermometers
"DirecTV", "Dish Network", etc
"Kevlar" for bullet proof vests and fishing line
"Mini Mag" flashlights
Fiber optics for phone calls
"Vortec" engines in GM cars
"Ovation" guitars and helicopter blades
Pacemaker batteries that last 20 years and can be recharged through the skin.
Compact Disks
M R I medical scanners
Electronic ignition in automobiles
Laser scanners in stores
"Bulb Miser" devices for long life light bulbs
Weather Maps on television
Juice boxes for "Hawaiian Punch", etc
"The Patch" medical device
Breathing systems for Mt. Everest climbers, Scuba divers and firefighters
"Flexon" eyeglasses and dental braces
Cellular phones and beepers
Cable Television, H B O, Showtime, etc
Sunglasses that block 99% of U. V. light
Pens that write upside down and under water
Anti corrosive paint for bridges, boats,
Scratch resistant coatings on sunglasses & the Statue of Liberty
Football helmets for the NFL
GPS Navigation Systems

Jeff92se

iTrader: (82)

Carbon fiber? High tech adhesives and plastics? Lightweight insulation products(tile technology)? High tech Mil spec connectors and wire technology?

99maxi

iTrader: (2)

space travel will not really effect us drastically but it will help humans as a whole in the future, lets say we suck up all the resources of earth, then we can get resources from some other planets.

joaquink

Don't forget about a demonstration to Moscow that we also have the
ways and means of matching them *** for tat with satellites, ICBMs
and surveillance. Those were major factors in the early stages of
the Cold War. Sputnik was a terrifying demonstration of
technological superiority at the time and it brought with it the
potential threat of launching a bomb, nuclear or conventional, from
Moscow, which could hit targets in the US.

And don't forget about that Tang.

Jeff92se

iTrader: (82)

GPS

Maximajism94se

this is all very sad, but it did make me think...i keep up on some of the news goin on and ive heard for a long time about the cutting of programming to nasa back in the clinton days (kinda like the cuttin of cia and defense stuff b/f 9/11) and i wasnt very surprised...i was a little shocked to see how bare bones the missions are (one chance 2 land, no equipment is taken unless needed such as docking to the space station or spacewalks, no extra fuel or supplies) but by looking at their budget situation im not surprised.
regardless of what nasa physically brings us, i feel the space program gives us all a sense of pride that no other country can match...how would people here feel if the us discontinued their space program and just watched the russians, japanese, and chinese take the lead?

joaquink

Yep yep yep, I agree that there is an intrinsic value in the program
that can't be measured by what real-world products the program begets.

Good point!

Quicksilver

iTrader: (1)

There really aren't the words to describe how I feel. I couldn't even post anything until now. It just kills me to see lives lost for the advancement of all mankind. Sure, it's our shuttle, but how many things from their experiments and missions have made life easier or better for us? We may never really know all of the things that NASA and all of manned spaceflight has provided for us. Dying in the armed service for your country is heroic and great. Dying to save/advance humanity as a whole is on a different level all together. Man, this sucks even talking about it...