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CAT Scans Suggest Cause of Columbia Disaster

Kathy Miles writes "The latest information from Columbia's flight data recorder, along with CAT scan results from RCC layers from shuttle Atlantis' leading wing edge, may give clues to what really happened to Columbia. The flight data recorder shows that there was likely structural damage before Columbia began re-entry. Investigators have been looking at the remaining shuttles and have done CAT scans on Atlantis' reinforced carbon-carbon layers, which show gaps that should not be there. If Columbia had similar gaps, it could have doomed the orbiter."

2 of 30 comments (clear)

  1. Good Idea by the_other_one · · Score: 2, Funny

    On future shuttle missions they can just take a feline or two to do a wingwalk and scan for problems.

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    134340: I am not a number. I am a free planet!
  2. I know the REAL reason why the shuttle went down by JPawloski · · Score: 1, Funny