Mar 18 1986
From The Space Library
NASA's orbiting telescope, international ultraviolet explorer, observed Halley’s Comet as it encountered European (Giotto), Soviet (Vega 2), and Japanese (Suisei) spacecraft. The September 1985 to March 1986 observations of the Comet were made with hopes of granting scientists a better understanding into its long-term behavior. The telescope measured the Comet's water ejection rate, and its carbon, sulfur, and oxygen content, as well as its variation of visual brightness. The advantage of observations from a telescope as opposed to those from a spacecraft, said IUE telescope operations manager George Sonnebom, was the much wider angle of view it offered. (NASA Release 86-29)
NASA and the Science and Technology Agency of Japan announced an agreement reached on the hardware that Japan will carry into Phase B Space Station definition and preliminary design. According to the agreement, the preliminary design activities were to include: (1) a pressurized module to pro-vide shirtsleeve work space for station crews; (2) an exposed work deck; (3) a scientific/equipment airlock; (4) a local remote manipulator arm; (5) and an experiment logistics model. The multipurpose laboratory called for accommodation of general scientific and technology development research, including microgravity research, as well as control panels for operating the Space Station's mobil remote manipulator system and attached payloads. (NASA Release 86-31)
NASA released a list containing 748 critical parts of the Space Shuttle that could lead to disaster if they did not function properly. All of these components lacked a backup system and were therefore placed in the "Criticality 1" category. Unlike the fuselage or heat-shielding tiles, for example, 617 of the critical parts could be covered by backup equipment, but engineers waived the measure as they felt confident that failure of them was unlikely. Arnold D. Aldrich, Manager, National Space Transportation System, said, "We are reviewing in detail all the items on the Critical Items list." (Nat Sp Trans Sys: Critical Items List; W Post, Mar 18/86; W Times, Mar 18/86; B Sun, Mar 18/86)
March 18: James R. Thompson, vice-chairman of the NASA task force investigating the Challenger accident, announced that the cause of the disaster would be pinpointed within a month. Although the right booster rocket, which would be a tremendous help, was still unrecovered, and tapes from the crew compartment shed no light, Thompson noted that photographic evidence and other data already available would eventually yield the answer. He also stated that April 18 was the deadline given by President Ronald Reagan's panel for overall investigation, with whom, he added, NASA investigators were working harmoniously. (USA Today, Mar 19/86; W Post, Mar 19/86; NY Times, Mar 19/86; P Inq, Mar 19/86; C Trib, Mar 20/86)
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