Shuttle Data Recorder May be Key to Accident

DreamerFi writes "A flight data recorder from the space shuttle Columbia, recovered last week in East Texas, contains readings that continue 14 seconds later than any previously studied data. Those readings are likely to play a crucial role in determining the cause of the shuttle's catastrophic breakup on Feb. 1."

Comments

Re:space is still risky

[blakespot]

We have perhaps forgotten the thousands of details needed to go exactly right in order for people not to die.
Moreover, travelling and re-entry at 13,000 miles an hour is downright scary.

Exactly.

I think it is very tragic, the loss of the shuttle crew, but people really should not react to it as though there is some expected guarantee of a crew's safe return home. Sure, safety is one of the #1 concerns and considerations in the space program, but we are trying to "boldly go where no man/one has gone before." Space has risks and there are unknown variables. Should we turn away from space travel / research because of these risks? Is that what the crew, who you can be sure were well aware of said risks, would have wanted?

I think not.

blakespot