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nasa gouge1

Astronauts from NASA’s space shuttle Endeavour revealed on Sunday, using pointed laser and cameras fixed on the six feet robotic arm, that the gouge torn out of shuttle’s protective tiles is more than an inch deep. Teacher-astronaut Barbara Morgan conducted the slow and painstaking survey, along with crewmate Tracy Caldwel. More three-dimensional images and other information collected will be sent back to mission control in Houston for engineers to study.

The gouge and four smaller were carved out by a piece of foam insulation that fell off the shuttle’s fuel tank during the launch and bounced down the shuttle’s belly. It’s likely the gash was caused by chunks of ice falling from the external fuel tank, but even foam can cause damage.

However, NASA considers itself lucky for the gouge is not near any wire or other heat susceptible structures.

John Shannon, Chairman of the mission management team, said:

We have really prepared for exactly this case, since Columbia. We have spent a lot of money in the program and a lot of time and a lot of people’s efforts to be ready to handle exactly this case.

The gouge, which was found to be three and half inches long and 2 inches wide, if, found larger and deep, could lead to another disaster.

Not waiting to repeat Columbia disaster, NASA is going to investigate this gash very carefully. Columbia was destroyed in 2003 when hot atmospheric gases seeped into a hole in its wing and melted the wing from inside out.

NASA engineers will conduct actual heating test on similarly damaged samples, which may need a spacewalk to patch up the gouge. Mission manager expect to decide today, or Tuesday, whether to extend the shuttle’s mission to include a fourth spacewalk, lengthening the STS-118 mission from 11 to 14 days.

Image Credit: [1], [2]

Via: Yahoo!