Path: utzoo!utgpu!news-server.csri.toronto.edu!cs.utexas.edu!uunet!mcsun!hp4nl!phigate!philtis!munk From: munk@cft.philips.nl (Harm Munk) Newsgroups: sci.space.shuttle Subject: Shuttle computers break down during glide tests Message-ID: <1593@philtis.cft.philips.nl> Date: 25 Apr 91 08:41:14 GMT Reply-To: munk@philtis.UUCP (Harm Munk) Distribution: sci.space.sghhuttle Organization: Philips CFT Lines: 30 The other nigth I was watching the "Strange Planes" series on Discovery. It was about parasite planes (nasty yterm), and one of the examples shown was the Space shuttle as a parasite on the Shuttle ferry aircraft. Also, some shots from the first glide tests were shown. When the Shuttle decoupled, or was launched, from the 747, apparently something went wrong with the computers: that was deducible from the the conversation between pilot and capcom, and from some shots of some instrument panel showing a light with "Computer Fail" and a computer display with a big X all across the screen. My question: what happened with the computers during that first (?) glide test. Along the same tracks: during the landing of one of the later tests, the shuttle made a rather bumpy landing. The commentator remarked that this was caused by the inexperience of the pilot, but I recall reading somewhere that is was caused by the computers being to busy with other things that they could not constantly attend to the bussiness of landing the ship, thereby inducing quite some roll. Is this true, or was the commentator right ? +----------------------------------------+------------------------------------+ | Harm Munk | | | Philips Centre for Software Technology | | | Knowledge Base Systems Group | #include | | Room HKJ-p833 | | | 5600 MD EINDHOVEN | | | The Netherlands | | +----------------------------------------+------------------------------------+