BREAKING: NBC News finds Jan 30 NASA Memo showing serious concern about tile damage!

NBC News | February 3, 2003 | Jay Barbree

[justshe]

TLB-----I posted this to you:

To: TLBSHOW
No.....until proven differently, Don Nelson is NOT a hero. You do NOT know the accuracy of his report. You just THINK you do.
To me, at this time, Don Nelson is no different than a Scott Ritter---in the early days of his rantings. And apparently, you think the same as you are completely, 100% convinced that all that Don Nelson says is the absolute truth. You need to learn the benefits of cognitive thinking and try developing some independent, analytical skills rather than reading something and KABOOM...it becomes YOUR truth.
I, at least, am willing to give the experts the time necessary to gather and analyze data. You are just rubberstamping without analyzing. One has to wonder if this is an "intellectual processing" problem on your part, or whether you just glom onto ANY theory that purports to discredit this administration(since the memo was sent to the WH)---and NASA.
I can't even feel sorry for you anymore.
733 posted on 02/03/2003 3:52 PM PST by justshe

---

TLB-----you pinged Gracey to respond to me so she could 'fill me in' on Don Nelson. For emphasis here is her response.

To: justshe
I agree with your thinking. It's always easy to agree with the Don Nelson's AFTER an occurrence. Nothing he proposed would have saved the Orbiter, if the foam caused the problem. Don Nelson does not understand cost/benefit anaysis.
I'm on my way to Houston for the Memorial.
813 posted on 02/03/2003 7:57 PM PST by Gracey

TLB--------will you KINDLY shut up now?

[Chad Fairbanks]

In additin to the fact that the shuttle orbits 'upside down', which means all we'd see, if we could, would be the top... ;0)

[justshe]

Say a prayer for me.....thanks, Gracey.

[Fred Mertz]

But watch.....he'll still say the shuttle was on fire when it was over CA.

I have read at least two eyewitness accounts that saw some apparent anomalies happening 50+ miles over the skies of California. And you try to deflect the argument to temperatures...nice try.

[Gracey]

Will do. Also, a prayer for our wonderful President Bush. He is under so much pressure these days with the Iraqi, North Korean and now the Space Shuttle situations.

He has inherited many problems from PAST administrations. Let's pray for our wonderful country....:-)

[Alberta's Child]

I understand, but I can't fault anyone for engaging in "CYA shenanigans" at a time like this.

You see, the level of "CYA shenanigans" is directly proportional to the amount of Monday-morning quarterbacking that we see in the aftermath of any event like this.

[Magnum44]

In additin to the fact that the shuttle orbits 'upside down', which means all we'd see, if we could, would be the top... ;0)

Actually, it usually orbits in gravity gradient mode, which consumes the least propellant, but if the idea was to get pictures, it could be maneuvered to any favorable attitude for the photo ops.

[Chad Fairbanks]

In theory, yes...

[rboatman]

"NASA's abilities are judged on performance. They have just had a failure. If it turns out to be a foam problem, it is then a problem they have known about for years and may in fact have been excerbated by a polically correct decision to use an "environmentally friendly' foam."

As we found out from 9/11 and afterward, political correctness can kill.

[Chad Fairbanks]

and yes, I DO know what gravity gradient mode means :0)

[justshe]

Thanks, gracey. And I'll join you in a prayer for President Bush.

[Howlin]

I'm not trying to divert anything. Todd said it was ON FIRE.....and it wasn't.

[Poohbah]

The Columbia was not equipped for 14 more days of spaceflight beyond January 30th, which the date of the memo...

[VRWC For Truth]

Lynch mob, please. This is called accountability, and isn't accountability a Conservative mantra? If one of your loved ones was killed on the ground, you'd be singing a different tune and you know it.

[Fred Mertz]

There seems to be reliable evidence that small things (that could have been on fire) were beginning to fall from Columbia over the California skies.

You said nothing like that happened. Would you like your crow marinated?

[Chad Fairbanks]

Lynch mob, please. This is called accountability, and isn't accountability a Conservative mantra? If one of your loved ones was killed on the ground, you'd be singing a different tune and you know it.

So, what you are saying is, is that you know me well enough to believe that I would want 'closure' by demanding a scapegoat, or someone's head on a pike?

You don't know me at all...

[Chad Fairbanks]

But were those things that were falling off ON FIRE??????

[TLBSHOW]

Howlin give it up

[VRWC For Truth]

Guess what, if someone at NASA screwed up, they should be replaced. Isn't that what a Conservative would say? Your pretzel logic reminds me of the Klinton Koolaid drinkers.

[Alberta's Child]

There's another angle to this whole argument.

Even if NASA had identified the damaged tiles as a potential problem, had another shuttle on a launch pad ready to go, and had the means to transfer the crew from one shuttle to the other, it would not have been that simple.

Someone at NASA would have had a serious decision to make. He would have had to determine the risk of such an unusual, untested space rescue, estimate the odds of the Columbia having a safe re-entry with the damaged tiles, estimate the odds of having a catastrophic event during the rescue mission, and make a decision based on those odds.

But even then it isn't that simple -- because once you send up another shuttle on a rescue mission, you have the lives of at least two additional crew members at risk. So the assessment is now based on the odds of nine crew members being lost on a rescue attempt versus the odds of the Columbia disintigrating on re-entry with seven astronauts on board.

I don't know one way or another what the odds would have been -- but I do know that it wouldn't have been an easy decision. And I am damned sure that if nine astronauts died on Saturday instead of seven and two shuttles were lost instead of one, there would be a bunch of people here on this thread complaining that NASA "botched it."