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Author
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Topic: STS-107: CAIB/SwRI ET foam impact tests
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Paul78zephyr
Member Posts: 675
From: Hudson, MA
Registered: Jul 2005
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posted 05-01-2007 09:34 PM
  
At this site, the last two videos are of external and internal views of foam impact tests on RCC panel 8. Why are the time stamps of the two videos not synchronized? (I'm assuming — based on the captions — that these videos are of the same test, just seen from outside and inside). I would think that synchronous time stamps would be very important to analysis of these videos. Also in the third video down (camera E212) why does the ET foam appear to move upwards at first? Where is frame 4918? And why does the shuttle appear to be rocking back and forth (i.e. is this camera distortion)? |
mjanovec
Member Posts: 3811
From: Midwest, USA
Registered: Jul 2005
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posted 05-02-2007 10:46 AM
quote:
Originally posted by Paul78zephyr:
Also in the third video down (camera E212) why does the ET foam appear to move upwards at first?
I would have to guess that the slipstream coming over the nose of the ET, then pasing the nose of the orbiter is somewhat turbulent. Note that the foam originates close to the nose of the orbiter at the attach point. I suspect we're just watching the foam follow the slipstream. Plus, the actions of the airflow on a large, irregularly-shaped (and light) object can cause erratic motions as well. As the piece tumbles, each surface is catching the airflow differently. |
Robert Pearlman
Editor Posts: 42988
From: Houston, TX
Registered: Nov 1999
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posted 06-23-2007 10:45 PM
quote:
Originally posted by Paul78zephyr:
I would think that synchronous time stamps would be very important to analysis of these videos.
As the point of this test was to demonstrate that the foam could indeed create a significant size hole in the RCC, which it did, I am not sure how important the exact timing of the impact was to investigation board. They weren't dissecting the RCC to learn how it fell apart, only demonstrating that it could.That said, were the timing important, I believe it would be a rather simple procedure to time sync the two videos, regardless the descrepencies between their internal timers. |
garymilgrom
Member Posts: 1966
From: Atlanta, GA
Registered: Feb 2007
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posted 06-26-2007 07:43 AM
quote:
Originally posted by Paul78zephyr:
Also in the third video down (camera E212) why does the ET foam appear to move upwards at first?
I don't think the foam is moving upwards at the start, I think it is moving sideways. If it moves from right to left across the frame this could be seen to be an upward movement because of the angle of the camera. |
Paul78zephyr
Member Posts: 675
From: Hudson, MA
Registered: Jul 2005
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posted 06-26-2007 09:16 PM
In the second video down in the above link (Camera 208) the foam can clearly be seen as moving upwards in that video as well. When you watch both the camera 208 and 212 videos play them frame-by-frame. In the 212 video I think you can even see some dark colored debris (pieces of RCC?) along with the impacted foam in frames 4924-4926. |
Paul78zephyr
Member Posts: 675
From: Hudson, MA
Registered: Jul 2005
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posted 02-15-2014 03:04 PM
I have brought back an old post I started. I have tried to find information on the foam impact tests that were done by NASA/CAIB/SwRI in the summer of 2003. I cannot find a single website or single document that explains exactly all the tests that were done prior to the test that resulted in the large hole in the leading edge panel 8. Does such a single document/site exist? Specifically I am trying to understand if that panel 8 was subject to multiple test impacts prior to failing. It seems like a lot of test impacts were made but how many different panel 8s were used? |
Rick Mulheirn
Member Posts: 4167
From: England
Registered: Feb 2001
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posted 02-15-2014 04:38 PM
I may be wrong, but I recall seeing tv camera images, taken over the side by payload bay cameras aboard STS-107.They did not show the extent of the RCC damage; nor could they, but I recall seeing a slight leading edge anomaly. Has anybody else seen these images and if so, can they provide a link to them? Or am I losing my marbles? |
Fra Mauro
Member Posts: 1587
From: Bethpage, N.Y.
Registered: Jul 2002
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posted 02-17-2014 04:48 PM
I've seen those photos — no anomalies. If you search Yahoo for "sts-107 pictures of shuttle in space" you will find them. Let me know how you make out. |
Paul78zephyr
Member Posts: 675
From: Hudson, MA
Registered: Jul 2005
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posted 02-18-2014 12:07 PM
Well I found this — it was not what I was looking for and I'm actually stunned to learn of the extent of foam impact testing done years before the Columbia tragedy. It looks like it was confined to tests on HRSI tiles.Basically I'd like to find the same report from c. summer 2003 from testing done on the carbon-carbon wing leading edge panels. |
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