INSPECTION FINDS DEBRIS PENETRATED SHUTTLE’S TILES

nullThe crew of the Endeavour space ship have some work ahead of them. They are awaiting the results of testing being done here on Earth to see if the gash in the bottom of the ship will casue harm during re-entry.

“A chunk of insulating foam ricocheted off a fuel tank and smacked the shuttle during liftoff last week, carving out the gouge.”

“The unevenly shaped gouge, which straddles two side-by-side heat shield tiles and the corner of a third, is 3.5 inches long and just over 2 inches wide. The inspection on Sunday showed that the damage went through the one-inch-thick thermal tiles, exposing the felt material sandwiched between the tiles and the shuttle’s aluminum frame.”
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