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Author
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Topic: Deliveries and storage of shuttle external tanks
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Cozmosis22
Member Posts: 968
From: Texas * Earth
Registered: Apr 2011
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posted 05-08-2015 02:21 PM
  
During the 1983 and 1984 calendar years there were nine space shuttle flights (four in '83 and five in '84). According to Lockheed Martin during that same time period there were 17 External Tanks delivered to Kennedy Space Center (seven in '83 and 10 in '84).Is it safe to presume that they were all somehow stored inside the Vehicle Assembly Building? |
onesmallstep
Member Posts: 1310
From: Staten Island, New York USA
Registered: Nov 2007
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posted 05-09-2015 09:57 AM
One would assume so, the VAB being the only large building capable of holding several tanks at once, and being right next to the turn basin that received the tanks being delivered by barge from Michoud. |
Jim Behling
Member Posts: 1463
From: Cape Canaveral, FL
Registered: Mar 2010
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posted 05-09-2015 08:59 PM
There were only 2 ET storage and 2 checkout cells in the VAB. Even with a few stored in the low bay, I doubt that many were delivered to KSC. They may be were "delivered" to NASA and remained at Michoud. |
Cozmosis22
Member Posts: 968
From: Texas * Earth
Registered: Apr 2011
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posted 05-09-2015 09:55 PM
The numbers come from NASA. |
Robert Pearlman
Editor Posts: 42988
From: Houston, TX
Registered: Nov 1999
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posted 05-09-2015 11:22 PM
According to the chart in the linked document, ET nos. 9-15 were delivered to KSC in 1983 and nos. 16-25 were delivered in 1984. Elsewhere in the same document, it is noted that ET-23 was first delivered to VAFB, so only nine ETs were delivered to KSC in 1984. So, from a flight-use perspective: - 1983:
STS-6 - ET-8 (delivered in 1982)
STS-7 - ET-6 (delivered in 1982)
STS-8 - ET-9
STS-9 - ET-11Remaining at KSC at end of year: 5 (four in VAB cells; one on MLP waiting stacking with Challenger for STS-41B on Jan. 6, 1984). - 1984:
STS-41B - ET-10 (delivered in 1983)
STS-41C - ET-12 (delivered in 1983)
STS-41D - ET-13 (delivered in 1983)
STS-41G - ET-15 (delivered in 1983)
STS-51A - ET-16 Remaining at KSC at end of year: 9 (four in VAB cells, one on MLP stacked with Discovery for STS-51C, four location unknown)
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OV3Discovery
Member Posts: 100
From:
Registered: Mar 2015
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posted 05-11-2015 08:33 AM
So during the Challenger and Columbia shuttle grounding days, the ET which were meant to fly were just kept in Vehicle Assembly Building?
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Jim Behling
Member Posts: 1463
From: Cape Canaveral, FL
Registered: Mar 2010
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posted 05-11-2015 09:41 AM
quote:
Originally posted by Cozmosis22:
The numbers come from NASA.
The HAER was done by a contractor for the National Park Service and it is cites Lockheed Martin documents. It stills leaves open the interpretation of the point of "delivery." NASA was responsible for getting the ET's from Michoud to KSC. |
Cozmosis22
Member Posts: 968
From: Texas * Earth
Registered: Apr 2011
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posted 05-11-2015 10:08 AM
From the attached report the chart on page 310 is titled "Deliveries of Flight External Tanks to the Kennedy Space Center." (Data compiled from Lockheed Martin.) That seems rather unambiguous.Hopefully there is an official schedule somewhere showing specific ET barge arrivals/deliveries at KSC during this time frame? |
Jim Behling
Member Posts: 1463
From: Cape Canaveral, FL
Registered: Mar 2010
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posted 05-11-2015 11:03 PM
The Shuttle Almanac has KSC on dock dates for the ETs. There were five in 83, six in 84 and nine in 85. Again, it is hard for Lockheed Martin to "deliver" something to KSC when they are not responsible for the transportation. In contractual terms, "delivery" of an end item is when it is turned over from the contractor to the government. It does not have to mean that some transportation of the end item has to be involved. I have seen these types of errors in "official" historical documents many times. |
Cozmosis22
Member Posts: 968
From: Texas * Earth
Registered: Apr 2011
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posted 05-12-2015 10:52 AM
Thanks Jim. That clarifies things a bit. Six ET deliveries in 1984 is much more reasonable. Was looking at some pics of a barge delivery at "Mosquito Lagoon" in 1984 and trying to pin down the exact date and ET number. Do they have that data on the Space Almanac site? |
Jim Behling
Member Posts: 1463
From: Cape Canaveral, FL
Registered: Mar 2010
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posted 05-12-2015 03:07 PM
Yes. But it isn't a site, it was a paid for PDF. |
JBoe
Member Posts: 960
From: Churchton, MD
Registered: Oct 2012
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posted 05-12-2015 05:59 PM
I was wondering, was there or were there any identification plates attached to the ET for identification visually? I know that this discussion focused on the "paper trail" aspect of accounting. |
Jim Behling
Member Posts: 1463
From: Cape Canaveral, FL
Registered: Mar 2010
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posted 05-12-2015 07:56 PM
There would be a part tag that would include drawing number and serial number. |
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