From: "Esteban" <s_goodfellow@yahoo.com>
Newsgroups: sci.physics.plasma
Subject: Shuttle re-entry and plasma behaviour - solutions
Organization: MIT


NASA engineers discounted damage to Shuttle tiles, the general feeling being
that the slight damage that could be caused by a hard piece of foam
insulation that hit the spacecraft's left wing 80 seconds after launch,
would not effect the integrity of the Shuttles insulating tiles.
However, I strongly suspect that the engineers assume that the plasma sheath
that flows over the Shuttle's damaged area during re-entry is a continual
flow.
I suggest this is not so. Consider the following diagram:
http://www.goodfelloweb.com/nature/columbia/

Here is proposed solution to observing the integrity of the returning
Shuttles:
Since the dawn of flight, responsible pilots have always walked around their
aircraft to determine its integrity. Obviously, this is inconvenient in
space, even in a spacesuit, the preparation for such walks are
time-consuming and costly.
That is why I suggest that NASA place a Return Check-out Unit (RCU) on board
the Shuttles:
(Same page):
http://www.goodfelloweb.com/nature/columbia/

Feedback welcome.

-S-