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NASA Finds Critical Assembly Fault in Shuttle

Posted by michael on from the lucked-out dept.

mzs writes "During corrosion inspection on Discovery, technicians noticed that one of the gears in a rudder actuator had been installed backwards. This particular actuator was the top-most of four that control the air brakes on the tail. As luck turns out, if it had been the bottom-most actuator, loss of the shuttle and crew would have been nearly inevitable. Plans are in place to have four spares by the time Shuttle missions resume next year."

16 of 383 comments (clear)

  1. Simple solution, really. by grub · · Score: 5, Funny


    Could they not stamp "THIS SIDE UP" or whatever on the components?

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    1. Re:Simple solution, really. by fbform · · Score: 5, Funny


      Could they not stamp "THIS SIDE UP" or whatever on the components?

      They did something similar with the modified 747 that carries the shuttle orbiter back after landing. See this picture. This is supposed to be a sign on top of the 747, where the orbiter links to the top of the 747's fuselage. It reads "Place Orbiter Here...Black Side Down".

      If this is real, they have one hell of a sense of humor.

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    2. Re:Simple solution, really. by Kenja · · Score: 5, Funny
      "Could they not stamp "THIS SIDE UP" or whatever on the components?"

      There is no "up" in space....

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      "Have you ever thought about just turning off the TV, sitting down with your kids, and hitting them?"
    3. Re:Simple solution, really. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Funny

      Impossible? Nah, they'll just need a bigger hammer.

    4. Re:Simple solution, really. by Imperator · · Score: 4, Funny

      And I bet someone will manage to force it in backwards, breaking three other parts in the process.

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      Gates' Law: Every 18 months, the speed of software halves.
    5. Re:Simple solution, really. by Stitch_626 · · Score: 5, Funny

      They could stamp "If you can read this, turn gear around and install correctly" on one side and "There you go Einstein...you finally got it right" on the other.

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    6. Re:Simple solution, really. by Oliver+Wendell+Jones · · Score: 3, Funny

      dang... where's the "-1 Choad" modifier when you really need it?

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      A computer once beat me at chess, but it was no match for me at kick boxing -- Emo Phillips
    7. Re:Simple solution, really. by bjohnson · · Score: 4, Funny

      Damn straight!

      Quick...it's total darkness, the bad guys are on your trail and you have 15 seconds to place and rig the claymore, or you're all gonna get captured or killed.

      Yes you want it to be as completely foolproof as possible.

  2. I guess they... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 3, Funny

    Didn't get the memo. I'm gonna go ahead and get you another copy of that, mmmkay?

  3. Geez... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 4, Funny

    Come on NASA, it's not rocket science! Oh wait...

  4. I'm betting... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Funny

    ...I'll be running Duke Nukem: Forever on Microsoft Longhorn before the next shuttle launches.

  5. Should have used Java by iamacat · · Score: 4, Funny

    NASA Finds Critical Assembly Fault in Shuttle

    I know NASA is conservative with technology, but using assembly in this day and age is way backwards!

  6. NASA Finds Critical Assembly Fault in Shuttle by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 3, Funny

    Isn't it about time they switched from assembly to C ?

  7. Outsourcing by ever+vigilant · · Score: 3, Funny

    NASA needs to start outsourcing to India, I hear they do great work for their pay.

  8. Re:How can a fault go unnoticed for so long? by Alkaiser · · Score: 3, Funny

    The reason this went unnoticed for so long is simple...those guys at NASA...you know, they're not exactly rocket scientists...

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  9. Re:How can a fault go unnoticed for so long? by FatAlb3rt · · Score: 3, Funny

    but as we've seen...its horribly flawed.

    Careful, jerking your knee so suddenly like that might result in an injury.