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STS-133 Space Shuttle External Tank Intertank Stringer Crack Investigation Stress AnalysisThe first attempt to launch the STS-133 Space Shuttle mission in the fall of 2010 was halted due to indications of a gaseous hydrogen leak at the External Tank ground umbilical carrier plate seal. Subsequent inspection of the external tank (figure 1) hardware and recorded video footage revealed that the foam insulation covering the forward end of the intertank near the liquid oxygen tank had cracked severely enough to have been cause for halting the launch attempt on its own (figure 2). An investigation into the cause of the insulation crack revealed that two adjacent hat-section sheet metal stringers (figure 3) had cracks up to nine inches long in the forward ends of the stringer flanges, or feet, near the fasteners that attach the stringer to the skin of the intertank (figure 4). A repair of those two stringers was implemented and the investigation effort widened to understand the root cause of the stringer cracks and to determine whether there was sufficient flight rationale to launch with the repairs and the other installed stringers.
Document ID
20120014466
Acquisition Source
Marshall Space Flight Center
Document Type
Conference Paper
Authors
Steeve, Brian E.
(NASA Marshall Space Flight Center Huntsville, AL, United States)
Date Acquired
August 26, 2013
Publication Date
April 23, 2012
Subject Category
Spacecraft Design, Testing And Performance
Report/Patent Number
M12-1724
M11-0932
M12-1629
Meeting Information
Meeting: 53rd AIAA/ASME/ASCE/AHS/ASC Structures, Structural Dynamics and Materials Conference 2012
Location: Honolulu, HI
Country: United States
Start Date: April 23, 2012
End Date: April 26, 2012
Sponsors: American Inst. of Aeronautics and Astronautics, American Society of Civil Engineers, American Society of Mechanical Engineers, American Society for Composites, American Helicopter Society, Inc.
Distribution Limits
Public
Copyright
Work of the US Gov. Public Use Permitted.
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