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  Design tolerances for the space shuttle wing

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Author Topic:   Design tolerances for the space shuttle wing
Lou Chinal
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Posts: 1306
From: Staten Island, NY
Registered: Jun 2007

posted 09-23-2013 10:21 AM     Click Here to See the Profile for Lou Chinal   Click Here to Email Lou Chinal     Edit/Delete Message   Reply w/Quote
How much of a safety factor were the space shuttles' wings designed to withstand on a re-entry?

Jim Behling
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Posts: 1463
From: Cape Canaveral, FL
Registered: Mar 2010

posted 09-23-2013 11:20 AM     Click Here to See the Profile for Jim Behling   Click Here to Email Jim Behling     Edit/Delete Message   Reply w/Quote
Manrating standard is 1.4 FS. However, reentry may not be the design case, it is more likely Max q during ascent or buffeting by winds during the landing phase.

Lou Chinal
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Posts: 1306
From: Staten Island, NY
Registered: Jun 2007

posted 09-24-2013 09:07 AM     Click Here to See the Profile for Lou Chinal   Click Here to Email Lou Chinal     Edit/Delete Message   Reply w/Quote
Thanks for the reply Jim. Someone asked me if the shuttle could re-enter from the moon? I am one who is known to readily engage in armchair aerodynamics. I had to say "I'm not sure."

While I know it's impossible for the shuttle to get there in the first place, why worry about a re-entry?

But the question still haunts me; If the trajectory were shallow enough and the heat pulse planned over a long enough time, would the wings take the loading?

Hart Sastrowardoyo
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Posts: 3445
From: Toms River, NJ
Registered: Aug 2000

posted 09-24-2013 11:48 AM     Click Here to See the Profile for Hart Sastrowardoyo   Click Here to Email Hart Sastrowardoyo     Edit/Delete Message   Reply w/Quote
Wouldn't it also depend on which orbiter? Weren't the wings of Columbia (and Enterprise) made of different materials than Discovery and Atlantis (and presumably Endeavour?)

Jim Behling
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Posts: 1463
From: Cape Canaveral, FL
Registered: Mar 2010

posted 09-24-2013 05:15 PM     Click Here to See the Profile for Jim Behling   Click Here to Email Jim Behling     Edit/Delete Message   Reply w/Quote
quote:
Originally posted by Lou Chinal:
If the trajectory were shallow enough and the heat pulse planned over a long enough time, would the wings take the loading?
The issue is TPS and not structural, I believe the dynamic pressure isn't that high.

GACspaceguy
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Posts: 2475
From: Guyton, GA
Registered: Jan 2006

posted 09-24-2013 06:50 PM     Click Here to See the Profile for GACspaceguy   Click Here to Email GACspaceguy     Edit/Delete Message   Reply w/Quote
Well if you can put the orbiter around the moon certainly you can put it back into LEO for a normal reentry. You would have to get it into LEO to allow for weather issues at the various landing facilities.

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