Shuttle Contact LOST-No Tracking Data During RE-Entry!

Nasa TV | 02/01/03 | GRRRR

[GRRRRR]

Shuttle has NOT been heard from or seen on tracking radar since 0800Hrs CDT. No contact at Merrit Island tracking station, no voice comm...DEVELOPING.

[areafiftyone]

Haaretz just has one article so far on it: SHUTTLE CARRYING ISRAELI BLOWS UP OVER TEXA

Fox News just showed a piece of the shuttle on the ground.

[Howlin]

Honestly. Very upsetting.

[prognostigaator]

Tribute bump

[Theophilus]

Anyone else here on TV that the

last radio transmission

concerned an unusual change in tire pressure?

Navy Hymn

Eternal Father, Strong To Save,
Whose Arm Hath Bound The Restless Wave.
Who Bidd’st The Mighty Ocean Deep
It’s Own Appointed Limits Keep.
O Hear Us When We Cry To Thee
For Those In Peril On The Sea!

Lord Guard And Guide The Men Who Fly
Through The Great Spaces In The Sky.
Be With Them Always In The Air,
In Darkening Storms Or Sunlight Fair.
Oh, Hear Us When We Lift Our Prayer
For Those In Peril In The Air!

[hole_n_one]

A national tragedy, indeed.

[Victoria Delsoul]

My prayers are for the families and the crew. I'm so sorry to hear that. May they rest in peace.

Thanks for letting me know, Saber.

[clintonh8r]

Under ground is the perfect place for the DUmbasses.

[freedumb2003]

>>Flags to half staff<<

Isn't it traditional to wait for a Presidential order?

Doesn't matter, my heart is at half-staff anyway.

[mathluv]

It is on TV radar - around Athens, Jacksonville, Rusk - still shows what must be debris in the atmosphere.

[Connservative]

"Kindly spare us the DU play by play. Anyone truly intersted should just join the fools."

I know, I know, but these (holding nose) people need to be monitored to see what they are up to.

I just can't help but get pissed over these comments. There are things that transcend politics.

[Merovingian]

King Jan Sobieski God save the KING...

[Inkie]

I think Sabbath is finished over there. Besides, a majority are not that observant.

[bonesmccoy]

The crew module from 51-L survived the explosion at 73 seconds. The module is structurally designed to survive higher g-loads than the rest of the vehicle, so the crew module emerges from the rest of the vehicle as a cannon-ball would.

The question is if the crew module can be on a trajectory that can slow to a few hundred miles an hour prior to impact.

I doubt it.

[Inspectorette]

In April of 1986, just four months after the Challenger disaster, a Titan 34D blew up at launch at Vandenberg Air Force Base. This grounded the Titan program for years.

[Howlin]

Maybe some of US don't want to read that crap today.

[Smile-n-Win]

The Admin Moderator said a couple of posts ago that DU links will be allowed on this thread, and this thread only.

[The South Park Republican]

http://www.democraticunderground.com/duforum/DCForumID60/32795.html

"Has God cursed the US because of Bush?

I can't help but feel that there is more than just random disaster at work when so many horrible things have happened under Shrub.

Terrorism
The Economy
The Middle East
War
Lay-off's
America's negative world image

Is the devine at work here? So many tragedies in such a narrow band, alll within the last two years. Is it coincidence?

Is George Bush the Beast of Revelations?"

[Txslady]

NASA STATEMENT ON LOSS OF COMMUNICATIONS WITH COLUMBIA
A Space Shuttle contingency has been declared in Mission Control, Houston, as a result of the loss of communication with the Space Shuttle Columbia at approximately 9 a.m. EST Saturday as it descended toward a landing at the Kennedy Space Center, Fla. It was scheduled to touchdown at 9:16 a.m. EST.

Communication and tracking of the shuttle was lost at 9 a.m. EST at an altitude of about 203,000 feet in the area above north central Texas. At the time communications were lost. The shuttle was traveling approximately 12,500 miles per hour (Mach 18). No communication and tracking information were received in Mission Control after that time.

Search and rescue teams in the Dallas-Fort Worth and in portions of East Texas have been alerted. Any debris that is located in the area that may be related to the Space Shuttle contingency should be avoided and may be hazardous as a result of toxic propellants used aboard the shuttle. The location of any possible debris should immediately be reported to local authorities.

Flight controllers in Mission Control have secured all information, notes and data pertinent to today's entry and landing by Space Shuttle Columbia and continue to methodically proceed through contingency plans.

News media covering the Space Shuttle should stay tuned to NASA Television, which is broadcast on AMC-2, transponder 9C, C-Band, located at 85 degrees West longitude. The frequency is 3880.0 MHz. Polarization is vertical and audio is monaural at 6.8 MHz. Reporters can also go to any NASA center newsroom to monitor the situation.

New information, including the times and locations of press briefings, will be posted to this page.

NASA Home Page

[American in Israel]

>> No doubt much of the nation was watching the re-entry as well<<

Not on the Sabbath.

It is after sundown, tv is kosher for even the most othodox. 80% of Israel is secular anyway...

[OReilly]

Is it possible that the re-entry angle was off? Just speculating.

AT 8:15 EST Houston had just reported that the de-orbit burn was perfect...