Feb 25 1996
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(New page: NASA announced that the tethered satellite experiment had failed. The 12-mile (19-kilometer) tether, attaching the 0.5-ton (450-kilogram or 0.45-tonne) satellite to Shuttle Columbia, b...)
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NASA announced that the tethered satellite experiment had failed. The 12-mile (19-kilometer) tether, attaching the 0.5-ton (450-kilogram or 0.45-tonne) satellite to Shuttle Columbia, broke unexpectedly just as the tether had nearly reached its full extension. Before the tether broke, the experiment to use an orbiting satellite to produce electricity had been proceeding smoothly. The astronauts had been in the process of extending the satellite from the Space Shuttle for more than 5 hours, when they noted a decrease in tension and realized that the tether and satellite had broken away. NASA Commander Andrew M. Allen responded to the break immediately, directing the Shuttle away from the satellite to prevent a collision. However, the satellite never came close to the Shuttle; it was more than 18 miles (29 kilometers) away only a few minutes after breaking free. NASA officials could not immediately identify the cause of the break. The astronauts aboard the Shuttle managed to record images of the satellite trailing away from the Shuttle. This footage, a black and white rendering of the tether disappearing into space, reached Flight Command Center in Houston, Texas, shortly after the event. "Those are some tether dynamics we did not want to see," stated one Mission Control operative. NASA dismissed the idea of attempting to retrieve the satellite, explaining that, although it was technically possible, such a mission would be too dangerous and too costly in consumption of fuel.
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