Path: utzoo!utgpu!jarvis.csri.toronto.edu!mailrus!purdue!gatech!prism!dsm
From: dsm@prism.gatech.EDU (Daniel McGurl)
Newsgroups: sci.space.shuttle
Subject: Re: What if...
Message-ID: <379@hydra.gatech.EDU>
Date: 31 Mar 89 07:47:52 GMT
References: <18730@iuvax.cs.indiana.edu> <29106@sri-unix.SRI.COM>
Reply-To: dsm@prism.gatech.EDU (Daniel McGurl)
Organization: Georgia Institute of Technology
Lines: 18

>In article <18730@iuvax.cs.indiana.edu> cdaf@iuvax.cs.indiana.edu (Charles Daffinger) writes:
>
>>What are the contingencies for a shuttle which while it is in orbit, is
>>determined not to be able to withstand reentry for some reason, say
>>major tile damage in critical areas?  Could a crew survive long enough
>>for a second shuttle launch (probably a month distant)?  Is MIR an
>>official alternative?

I seem to recall talk of a tile repair kit on board (this was not true in the 
early days of the shuttle flights, I beleive they started carrying it later)
if that weren't enough, I think that the the crew have little to no chance for
survival.  Hopefully, however, massive tile damage might be caught in time to
do a once around abort.
-- 
Daniel Sean McGurl                       "He's got to make his own mistakes,
Office of Computing Services              and learn to mend the mess he makes."
Georgia Institute of Technology,
Atlanta Georgia, 30332                                ARPA: dsm@prism.gatech.edu