Shuttle Pieces Arrive In Central Florida
Debris To Be Assembled At Kennedy Space Center
POSTED: 4:29 am EST February 12,
2003
UPDATED: 12:41 pm EST February 12,
2003
Thousands of pieces from space shuttle Columbia began arriving Wednesday at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida, where the investigation into the disaster will be conducted over the next two days. 
The first deliveries of debris that had been scattered across Texas and Louisiana, which offer the best clues to the cause of the shuttle's breakup, arrived Wednesday shortly after 9 a.m. The investigative panel looking into the Feb. 1 disaster also was scheduled to arrive at the center Wednesday.The scope of the task was made clear by Navy Rear Adm. Stephen Turcotte on Tuesday: "Looking at the complexity of this, it is huge."It is one of the biggest debris fields that I think any of us have ever seen,'' said Turcotte, a member of the investigative panel. As commander of the Naval Safety Center, Turcotte is responsible for probing every aviation mishap in the Navy and Marine Corps.The initial loads of debris left Barksdale Air Force Base in Louisiana on two 18-wheelers Tuesday. The debris will be laid out in a 50,000-square-foot hangar on a grid marked by yellow and blue tape. The nine-member inquiry board will have offices in the same hangar.The head of the investigation board, retired Navy Adm. Harold Gehman Jr., said Tuesday at Johnson Space Center in Houston no debris has been recovered west of Fort Worth, Texas. But he said, "We have reason to believe that we should keep looking west of Fort Worth.''Debris in west Texas could be especially significant because it could help explain how and when Columbia started breaking apart as it aimed for a Florida touchdown. All seven astronauts aboard were killed.Separately, NASA also said officials from Johnson Space Center called experts at its Langley research facility in Hampton, Va., on Jan. 27 to ask what might happen if the shuttle's tires were not inflated during a landing attempt.NASA spokesman Keith Henry said the question was based on assumptions that damage to the shuttle's thermal protection system would cause the tires to deflate. The Langley experts said such a failure could cause broad damage to the shuttle's tires.The evidence released so far suggests Columbia's troubles began in the left wing where a chunk of foam insulation struck shortly after liftoff Jan. 16. As the shuttle headed home 16 days later, temperatures in that area started surging and sensors began failing in the final eight minutes of flight.Part of the left wing has been found.During the board's first news conference in Houston on Tuesday, Gehman wouldn't speculate on the cause of the shuttle's demise. "We don't have favorite theories. We're pursuing everything,'' he said.He did say he was convinced the inquiry would determine the cause.During its two-day stay in Florida, the board plans to visit the facility that manufactures thermal protection tiles for the shuttle.The silica tiles are based on a material first developed by Lockheed chemist Robert Beasley and originally produced at Lockheed's plant in Sunnyvale, Calif. From the earliest tests, some tiles fell off the orbiter.Even so, production and installation became so refined the work was later done at Kennedy Space Center and elsewhere.Watch Local 6 News for more on this story.
Copyright 2007 by Internet Broadcasting Systems and Local6.com. The Associated Press contributed to this report. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
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Previous Stories:
- February 12, 2003: Shuttle Pieces Arrive In Central Florida
- February 10, 2003: Local 6 Editorial: Space Shuttle Columbia
- February 10, 2003: Shuttle Investigators Coming To Florida
- February 7, 2003: Columbia To Be Reassembled In Brevard
- February 7, 2003: Thousands Honor Columbia Crew At KSC Service
- February 6, 2003: Service At Kennedy To Be Held Where Shuttle Was To Land
- February 6, 2003: Space Junk, Meteor May Have Hit Shuttle
- February 6, 2003: NASA: Amateur Astronomer's Tape Could Help Pinpoint Shuttle Trouble
- February 6, 2003: Warning Issued About Shuttle Donation Scams
- February 6, 2003: Investigation Focus Turns To Shuttle Computer Data
- February 6, 2003: Report: Senator Says Crew Took Photos Of Left Wing
- February 5, 2003: Astronaut's Father: Crew May Have Known Of Problem
- February 5, 2003: Feds To Arrest Shuttle Debris Looter
- February 5, 2003: 911 Calls Record Horror Of Shuttle Disaster
- February 5, 2003: 1994 Report Warned Of Shuttle Tile Danger
- February 5, 2003: NASA Investigators Examining Debris Found On Fla. Beach
- February 4, 2003: NASA: Foam Found On Beach Is Not Shuttle Piece
- February 4, 2003: Searchers Find Shuttle Nose Cone
- February 4, 2003: Bush To Lead Memorial for Columbia Crew
- February 4, 2003: Japan To Keep Astronauts Off Space Shuttles Until Safety Determined
- February 4, 2003: Gov. Bush: Time Needed To Heal Wounds Of Columbia Disaster
- February 4, 2003: NASA Searches For 'Some Other Missing Link'
- February 3, 2003: Florida Class Project Studies Possible Cause Of Columbia Tragedy
- February 3, 2003: Israeli Astronaut's Wife Says Daughter Had Premonition
- February 3, 2003: Bush: Space Exploration Will Go On
- February 3, 2003: Report: Internal NASA Memo Calculated Damage To Shuttle
- February 3, 2003: Report: Bush To Propose Nearly $500 Million Increase For NASA
- February 3, 2003: Astronomer Allegedly Films Mystery Flashes Near Shuttle
- February 3, 2003: Expert: One Damaged Tile Could Be Catastrophic
- February 3, 2003: Video Shows Debris Hitting Shuttle's Wing
- February 3, 2003: Shuttle's Left Side Heated Up Sharply
Copyright 2007 by Internet Broadcasting Systems and Local6.com. The Associated Press contributed to this report. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
