Space Shuttle Anecdotes
Discussion
We have dedicated threads to various launch vehicles (SpaceX Falcon, Saturn V, SLS - Artemis etc). Although the Space Shuttle has been discussed on and off over the years on PH, it never had its own thread in the Science Forum. I expect that is because the Shuttle missions ended in July 2011 and the Science Forum wasn't opened until the following year. Doing a quick search shows that most Shuttle chat was in the "Planes, Trains etc" forum back then.
What prompted me to open a dedicated topic for the Shuttle was this You Tube video put up very recently by Adam Savage (of "Mythbusters" fame) where he is taken on a "walkaround" of the Orbiter "Discovery" at the Udvar-Hevy Centre near Washington DC. He is accompanied by former Shuttle astronaut Cady Coleman.
What prompted me to open a dedicated topic for the Shuttle was this You Tube video put up very recently by Adam Savage (of "Mythbusters" fame) where he is taken on a "walkaround" of the Orbiter "Discovery" at the Udvar-Hevy Centre near Washington DC. He is accompanied by former Shuttle astronaut Cady Coleman.
A friend of mine was visiting the US in October 1981 and was at Cape Canaveral for the second Shuttle launch. Unfortunately for him, on that launch attempt they had a hold and then a scrub at T-17 seconds. The launch eventually went ahead weeks later. By then my friend was back at home in Sligo.
I've seen 2 launches. One circa 1994 as a kid, you could see it from Magic Kingdom and one in Feb 2008 that we were lucky enough to bag tickets to be hosted by an astronaut at Kennedy Space Centre. Because the launch had been delayed from the previous year the person who bought the tickets could no longer make it and gave the tickets to us.
Don't think I realised how lucky we were at the time.
To my shame I can't remember which astronaut it was that hosted us but he was a proper ye-haw (assuming Texan) yank, wore a cowboy hat and was pretty entertaining describing the launch.
Don't think I realised how lucky we were at the time.
To my shame I can't remember which astronaut it was that hosted us but he was a proper ye-haw (assuming Texan) yank, wore a cowboy hat and was pretty entertaining describing the launch.
I wasn't lucky enough to see a launch
However, we were lucky enough to see a landing.
Summer 2008, we were touring the KSC and heard a very loud bang. We later learned that it was the sonic boom from the shuttle slowing down on it's return
Our tour guide then routed the bus closer to the runway so we could watch the orbiter land and be towed back in.
Fascinating piece of engineering. Flawed, but fascinating.
However, we were lucky enough to see a landing.
Summer 2008, we were touring the KSC and heard a very loud bang. We later learned that it was the sonic boom from the shuttle slowing down on it's return
Our tour guide then routed the bus closer to the runway so we could watch the orbiter land and be towed back in.
Fascinating piece of engineering. Flawed, but fascinating.
I have a nice shuttle anecdote.
We did a Disney trip pre lockdown and the only stipulation was a NASA trip for me.
There was a family where the father was holding court and telling the family about some feature or other.
He was gently corrected in his error by one of the elderly museum staff, and promptly took offence to being made to look an idiot.
Doubling, down he aggressively asked well what would you know... I was one of the senior design engineers on the shuttle programme was the response.
It was busy around the shuttle as our group had just left the multimedia room before enter the hall. There were quite a few lols by those who overheard.
We did a Disney trip pre lockdown and the only stipulation was a NASA trip for me.
There was a family where the father was holding court and telling the family about some feature or other.
He was gently corrected in his error by one of the elderly museum staff, and promptly took offence to being made to look an idiot.
Doubling, down he aggressively asked well what would you know... I was one of the senior design engineers on the shuttle programme was the response.
It was busy around the shuttle as our group had just left the multimedia room before enter the hall. There were quite a few lols by those who overheard.
Eric Mc said:
Hee hee - always be careful when pontificating in a museum. You never know who might hear you.
Especially there. I think most of the roaming staff are ex-nasa engineers. I had a fascinating chat with this old chap in a wheel chair - was one of the apollo capsule designers.
I obviously had a puzzled look on my face when looking at one of the apollo exhibits and wheeled over and asked if he could help me.
Spent about 20 minutes chatting about RTG power cells (plutonium batteries basically) as I was curious whether they'd used them on the apollo mission. Couldn't believe they were able to power the mission on 50-60s battery tech.
TGCOTF-dewey said:
Especially there. I think most of the roaming staff are ex-nasa engineers.
I had a fascinating chat with this old chap in a wheel chair - was one of the apollo capsule designers.
I obviously had a puzzled look on my face when looking at one of the apollo exhibits and wheeled over and asked if he could help me.
Spent about 20 minutes chatting about RTG power cells (plutonium batteries basically) as I was curious whether they'd used them on the apollo mission. Couldn't believe they were able to power the mission on 50-60s battery tech.
I hope his answer was "Yes we did use RTGs in Apollo". They were used to power the experiments that were left on the lunar surface (apart from Apollo 11 where the surface experiments ran of batteries).I had a fascinating chat with this old chap in a wheel chair - was one of the apollo capsule designers.
I obviously had a puzzled look on my face when looking at one of the apollo exhibits and wheeled over and asked if he could help me.
Spent about 20 minutes chatting about RTG power cells (plutonium batteries basically) as I was curious whether they'd used them on the apollo mission. Couldn't believe they were able to power the mission on 50-60s battery tech.
The Command/Service Module was mainly powered by Oxygen/Hydrogen fuel cells with batteries to power the Command Module when it separated from the Service Module just prior to re-entry.
The Lunar Module worked off batteries only.
The Space Shuttle also made use of fuel cells with battery back-up and hydrazine powered APUs (Auxilliary Power Units) to work the flight controls when coming in to land.
Interesting that the Orion spacecraft uses solar panels for its main power requirements. It is the first NASA manned spacecraft NOT to rely on batteries or fuel cells.
It is quite amazing what humans have achieved in such a short space of time. Particularly when measured against something like the pharaonic period (in which I have an interest) where technology and beliefs stood virtually still for thousands of years - despite their mastery of mathematics (for example).
And yet, in the vastness of space, we are merely a pale blue dot - thousands of light years from anywhere interesting.
Ho hum!
And yet, in the vastness of space, we are merely a pale blue dot - thousands of light years from anywhere interesting.
Ho hum!
That's because he wasn't a test pilot. In fact, he wasn't even a pilot. His career in the USAF was as a back seater, mainly in Phantoms. He was based at Lakenheath in the UK for a while.
There are a number of You Tube videos in which he features which are worth watching.
On the subject of Shuttle videos, I have one on VHS which I taped from BBC back in 1987 or so called "Riding the Stack" it was part of the Horizon series so would also have been shown in the US under the "Nova" banner. It was made in the aftermath of the Challenger accident and in that gap period when the Shuttle was grounded. It was the first documentary where people involved in the project, including Shuttle crew members, were honest about their reservations concerning the whole concept.
Another video I have is an episode of BBC's Panorama called "The Dream that Fell Out of the Sky" which was shown a few months after the Challenger accident. Interestingly, it was presented and voiced over by Robert Harris, who is now a best selling novelist.
Despite looking many times, neither of these programmes have made it onto You Tube or BBC iPlayer or any other streaming service - which is really unfortunate as they are both excellent.
There are a number of You Tube videos in which he features which are worth watching.
On the subject of Shuttle videos, I have one on VHS which I taped from BBC back in 1987 or so called "Riding the Stack" it was part of the Horizon series so would also have been shown in the US under the "Nova" banner. It was made in the aftermath of the Challenger accident and in that gap period when the Shuttle was grounded. It was the first documentary where people involved in the project, including Shuttle crew members, were honest about their reservations concerning the whole concept.
Another video I have is an episode of BBC's Panorama called "The Dream that Fell Out of the Sky" which was shown a few months after the Challenger accident. Interestingly, it was presented and voiced over by Robert Harris, who is now a best selling novelist.
Despite looking many times, neither of these programmes have made it onto You Tube or BBC iPlayer or any other streaming service - which is really unfortunate as they are both excellent.
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