Wake up and smell the astronaughts burning...

Argiod

6th August 2006 - 06:02 PM

http://www.physorg.com/news73854117.html

We already know this foam is unstable. We"ve lost precious astronaughts to it. Why, then are we still using it? No matter what "assurances" are issued, it still does not make sense to keep using this faulty material on our rockets.

Chromodynamix

7th August 2006 - 02:03 PM

I have some experience of cryogenic storage tanks (LOX, LIN, LAR) and they are a bugger to maintain. The main problem with the main shuttle tank are the feed lines. Anywhere there is a gap in insulation, moisture in the air will condense and freeze. The foam itself is not as dangerous as foam combined with hard ice.
Using a double walled vacuum tank is not an option due to weight constraints.
The solution could be to coat the foam with plastic and hermetically seal it from the humid atmosphere of Florida.

adoucette

7th August 2006 - 06:26 PM

QUOTE (Argiod+Aug 6 2006, 02:02 PM)

http://www.physorg.com/news73854117.html

We already know this foam is unstable. We"ve lost precious astronaughts to it. Why, then are we still using it? No matter what "assurances" are issued, it still does not make sense to keep using this faulty material on our rockets.

Actually it does.

As the article says, the foam may shed, but it won't matter.

Why?

The astronauts are above the foam in a capsule and there are are NO brittle tiles to be damaged by any shedding foam.

Arthur

Chromodynamix

9th August 2006 - 10:05 AM

QUOTE (adoucette+Aug 7 2006, 06:26 PM)

The astronauts are above the foam in a capsule and there are are NO brittle tiles to be damaged by any shedding foam.

Arthur

The last disaster was directly attributable to foam damaging the tiles leading to subsequent burn up of The Columbia.

http://caib.nasa.gov/news/report/default.html

At least some work is being done to develop some safer alternatives.

http://www.physorg.com/news74276328.html

555Joshua

10th August 2006 - 06:07 PM

The Columbia burned because a large piece of foam knocked off a large quantity of the fiberglass tile, resulting in a hole in the heat shield. As long as there are no holes, the foam and fiberglass is quite good. That's why NASA goes through all the trouble to make sure the shield has no holes.

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