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Columbia Board May Take 6 Months on Job

Posted on: Wednesday, 26 February 2003, 06:00 CST

Associated Press -- The head of the Columbia Accident Investigation Board told members of Congress that it may take six months to learn all the factors involved the destruction of the space shuttle, but information on the direct cause will be released as soon as it is discovered.

Rep. Sherwood Boehlert, R-N.Y., chairman of the House Science committee, met with retired Navy Adm. Harold Gehman Jr., head of the investigation panel, on Wednesday and said the board is still uncertain what caused Columbia to break apart over the skies of Texas on Feb. 1. A number of theories are still under consideration, he said.

"They are not jumping to any conclusions," said the congressman.

Boehlert said Gehman estimated that completing the Columbia investigation will take "two to six months," but that the root cause of the accident may be found earlier.

The congressman quoted Gehman as saying, "If we can find out what went wrong that will be released immediately." This would enable NASA to start fixing the problems and allow the other space shuttles to fly sooner, Boehlert said.

The accident board plans to probe deeply into the management policies and engineering decisions that may have affected Columbia's safety.

"They're going back and have a hard look at the assumptions that NASA has made over the years" about the safety of the space shuttle, said Boehlert.

He said he was satisfied that the Gehman board is completely independent of NASA and will steadily become even more so as members are added. The 10-person board is expected to announce appointment of new members within a week, the congressman said.

He quoted Gehman as saying: "I am independent and will remain that way."

This NASA handout photo shows a single thermal protection system tile from the Space Shuttle Columbia. The tile was recovered near Powell, Texas, more then 330 miles west of Dallas. AP/NASA/Reuters

A piece of tile thrown off from the doomed shuttle Columbia as it re-entered Earth's atmosphere and recovered in Texas bears deformations consistent with the kind of hot plasma flow that entered the shuttle through a breach, investigators said on Tuesday. (AP photo)

Boehlert said that a video tape compiled by board investigators, using clips from a number of sources, suggests that Columbia began disintegrating far to the west of Texas.

"The orbiter was shedding debris much earlier than previously believed," said Boehlert.

Gehman is determined to release important data as the board discovers it and will keep the investigation "a very public process," the congressman said.

Boehlert said this is in direct contrast to the Rogers Commission that investigated the 1986 Challenger accident. That panel kept everything secret until the report was issued, he said.

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