Newsgroups: sci.space.shuttle
Path: utzoo!henry
From: henry@utzoo.uucp (Henry Spencer)
Subject: Re: last launch - check your tapes
Message-ID: <1989Dec7.204947.7602@utzoo.uucp>
Organization: U of Toronto Zoology
References: <3352@husc6.harvard.edu>
Date: Thu, 7 Dec 89 20:49:47 GMT

In article <3352@husc6.harvard.edu> seth@vax.ftp.com (Seth D. Hollub) writes:
>Ok, the most recent launch of the shuttle, between about 80,000 feet and
>about 110,000 feet. The bottom of the external tank looks like it's,
>um, "flaming". I hope I'm wrong...

It's not uncommon to get some backflow of hot gases from the exhausts into
the area behind the tank, especially at high altitude.  (The exhaust plume
from a rocket can "backflow" enough to completely envelop the rocket at
high altitude, in fact.)  That may be what you're seeing.  Things along
those lines have been seen before; they're either optical effects or just
stray hot gas, by current thinking.
-- 
1233 EST, Dec 7, 1972:         |     Henry Spencer at U of Toronto Zoology
last ship sails for the Moon.  | uunet!attcan!utzoo!henry henry@zoo.toronto.edu