Shuttle Safety Changes Made -- After Columbia's Fiery Fallout, Smaller Crowds, White Sands Landings
Posted on: Thursday, 24 March 2005, 12:00 CST
CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - NASA said Tuesday it will institute strict crowd control for space shuttle launches and landings, and rely more on a seldom-used touchdown site in New Mexico, to better protect the public once flights resume in a few months.
Columbia's breakup during re-entry forced a re-evaluation of the space agency's public safety policy. More than 85,000 pounds of debris rained down on Texas and Louisiana as Columbia headed toward its Cape Canaveral landing strip in February 2003. No one was injured by the falling pieces.
"Philosophically, what we're trying to do ... is to ensure that whatever it is we're doing, does not add significantly to the overall risk that the public already accepts," said Bryan O'Connor, chief of safety and mission assurance and a former shuttle commander.
No one on the ground has ever been hurt by a U.S. spaceflight.
O'Connor said that when Discovery lifts off on the first post- Columbia flight, as early as mid-May, it will be the first shuttle mission in which public safety is factored into deciding where to bring the spacecraft home.
Kennedy Space Center will remain the primary landing site, but only if the shuttle has no problems that might endanger people on the ground, such as a problem with the flight-control system or damage to the ship's thermal skin.
In that case, the shuttle would be directed to White Sands, N.M., a remote, dusty missile range that has seen a shuttle landing only once, back in 1982.
As for shuttle launches, the number of people allowed to gather at the three- to four-mile safety perimeter will be greatly reduced, as will the size of the crowd at the Kennedy runway for landing. NASA will also bar people from being beneath the final glide path.
In unveiling the 288-page plan, NASA said it is looking increasingly difficult to stick to the May 15 launch date for Discovery, which is still in the hangar undergoing last-minute repairs and inspections.
Source: Commercial Appeal, The
Related Articles
- Shuttle Discovery may land in California
- Andrews Space Wins NASA Exploration Contract
- Commonwealth of Kentucky Launches Public Safety Network With Harris Stratex Networks
- NASA Clears Shuttle Atlantis for Landing This Morning
- Motorola Announces Point-to-Point 49400 Wireless Ethernet Bridge for Public Safety Sector
- Sprint Emergency Response Team Provides Comprehensive Suite of Public Safety Communications to NASCAR
- Ceterus Networks Joins SAIC Public Safety Integration Center
- NASA Plans Changes for Public Safety
- Cartel Delivers Secure and Reliable Solutions Designed to Ensure Public Safety
- Breakthrough Technology Bridges the Gap Between Public Safety and Homeland Security
 |
 |
User Comments (0)
RSS Feeds