Path: utzoo!attcan!uunet!cs.utexas.edu!tut.cis.ohio-state.edu!cica!iuvax!cdaf
From: cdaf@iuvax.cs.indiana.edu (Charles Daffinger)
Newsgroups: sci.space.shuttle
Subject: Re: Explosive Bolts
Message-ID: <30704@iuvax.cs.indiana.edu>
Date: 2 Dec 89 18:39:18 GMT
References: <14459@boulder.Colorado.EDU> <1989Dec2.104842.22624@utzoo.uucp>
Reply-To: cdaf@iuvax.cs.indiana.edu (Charles Daffinger)
Organization: Indiana University, Bloomington
Lines: 17

In article <1989Dec2.104842.22624@utzoo.uucp> henry@utzoo.uucp (Henry Spencer) writes:
o Normally it's an internal charge, with detonator, that is large enough to
o reliably crack the bolt when fired.  Blowing the thing to bits is not
o necessary; it suffices to break it at a pre-supplied weak area.

What happens should one of these charges fail to detonate?  Will a
single bolt be able to hold the shuttle down long enough to cause
disaster, or is a single bolt insignificant enough that it would break
without affecting the launch?  How many of these bolts actually hold
the shuttle?

-charles

-- 
Charles Daffinger  >Take me to the river, Drop me in the water<  (812) 339-7354
cdaf@iuvax.cs.indiana.edu              {pur-ee,rutgers,pyramid,ames}!iuvax!cdaf
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