Failed Genesis spacecraft: Lockheed didn愒 perform test to detect flaw

Democrats_win

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Mon Jan-09-06 02:37 PM
Original message

Failed Genesis spacecraft: Lockheed didn愒 perform test to detect flaw

http://www.rockymountainnews.com/drmn/local/article/0,1299,DRMN_15_4367316,00.html

snip
Lockheed Martin failed to do a critical prelaunch test that would have uncovered the flaw that doomed NASA's $264 million Genesis capsule, investigators have concluded.

The test would have revealed that four tiny switches designed to trigger the release of the Denver-built capsule's parachutes were installed backward.

The installation error, combined with the omitted test, sealed the fate of the blunt-nosed capsule, said Michael Ryschkewitsch, chairman of the Genesis Mishap Investigation Board.

Because its parachutes failed to deploy, the Genesis capsule slammed into the Utah salt flats at 193 mph on Sept. 8, 2004.

Its scientific cargo - silicon wafers etched with billions of microscopic pieces of the sun's atmosphere - shattered.

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BobRossi

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Mon Jan-09-06 02:41 PM
Response to Original message

1. NASA = Money pit. nt

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MrMonk

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Mon Jan-09-06 02:44 PM
Response to Reply #1

2. NASA contractors = screw-ups

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Democrats_win

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Mon Jan-09-06 02:47 PM
Response to Reply #2

3. Definitely. They didn愒 test it because switches were tested on Stardust

Edited on Mon Jan-09-06 02:49 PM by Democrats_win

and they passed. Stardust which collected dust from a comet, will land later this month. According to the article Genesis was difficult to test. It reminds me of the hubris of Titanic.

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benburch

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Mon Jan-09-06 02:55 PM
Response to Original message

4. At least some of the science was saved.

However, somebody needs to re-do this whole experiment. Perhaps the ESA?

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