By Ahmed Muayad & Saif Abd Al-Hakeem Space Shuttle Body By Ahmed Muayad & Saif Abd Al-Hakeem

Shuttle launch profiles Shuttle launch profiles. From left to right: Columbia, Challenger, Discovery, Atlantis, and Endeavour.

Aim of This Presentation Overview on the space shuttle Highlighting on the materials used for the body of the space shuttle Briefly studying the two cases of Challenger and Colombia space shuttles disasters

What’s a Space Shuttle ? World’s first and only reusable low earth orbital human spacecraft system operated by (NASA) Can transport people, materials, equipment and spacecraft into orbit Also used to service and repair satellites and observatories and to conduct scientific experiments

Facts about space shuttle Five complete Shuttle systems were built and used on a total of 135 missions from April 12, 1981 to July 21, 2011 The status of the project is now retired 134 successful launches and 133 landings 2 failures (Challenger 1986 on lunch, Columbia 2003 on re-entry ) 7 astronauts died on each disaster Project cost is 209 billion US$

More facts Cost per each lunch is about 450 million to 1.5 billion US$ Launch sites LC-39, Kennedy Space Center SLC-6, Vandenberg AFB (unused) The Shuttle launched vertically like a conventional rocket. It lifted off under the power of its two SRBs and three main engines  Each Shuttle was designed for a projected lifespan of 100 launches or ten years of operational life, although this was later extended.

Primary Components Orbiter vehicle Solid rocket boosters or SRBs (recoverable) The external tank ET* (expendable) *The external tank ET contain liquid hydrogen and liquid oxygen.

The External Tank (ET) It’s function is to supply liquid oxygen and hydrogen to the main engines. It acts as backbone to vehicle providing attachments to SRBs and orbiter

Solid Rocket Boosters (SRBs) Solid rocket boosters function is to provide initial thrust during liftoff that is about 85%. They are jettisoned two minutes after launch

Space Shuttle Mission Profile

Space Shuttle orbiter The Space Shuttle orbiter was the reusable spaceplane component of the Space Shuttle program. Operated by NASA, the U.S. space agency, this vehicle could carry astronauts and payloads into low Earth orbit, perform in-space operations, then re-enter the atmosphere and land as a glider, returning its crew and any on-board payload to the Earth.

Thermal Protection The orbiters were protected by Thermal Protection System (TPS) materials (developed by Rockwell Space Systems) inside and out, from the Orbiter's outer surface to the payload bay. The TPS protected it from the cold soak of −121 °C (−186 °F) in space to the 1,649 °C (3,000 °F) heat of re-entry.

Endeavour in a museum, showing tiles near door

Why TPS is Needed? The orbiter's aluminum structure could not withstand temperatures over 175 °C (347 °F) without structural failure. Aerodynamic heating during reentry would push the temperature well above this level in areas, so an effective insulator was needed.

Space Shuttle thermal protection system The Space Shuttle thermal protection system (TPS) is the barrier that protected the Space Shuttle Orbiter during the searing 1,650 °C (3,000 °F) heat of atmospheric reentry. A secondary goal was to protect from the heat and cold of space while in orbit.

Materials The TPS covered essentially the entire orbiter surface, and consisted of seven different materials in varying locations based on amount of required heat protection:

Reinforced carbon–carbon (RCC) Is a composite material consisting of carbon fiber reinforcement in a matrix of graphite.  Used in the nose cap, the chin area between the nose cap and nose landing gear doors, the arrowhead aft of the nose landing gear door, and the wing leading edges. Used where reentry temperature exceeded 1,260 °C (2,300 °F).

Pieces of reinforced carbon–carbon including a panel removed from the wing of Space Shuttle Atlantis, showing brittle failure of C/C due to foam impact reproducing a possible event during Columbia's final launch.

High-temperature reusable surface insulation (HRSI) tiles used on the orbiter underside. Made of coated LI-900 Silica ceramics. Used where reentry temperature was below 1260 °C. LI-900 is a type of reusable surface insulation tile It was designed for use on the Space Shuttle orbiter as part of its thermal protection system to minimize thermal conductivity while providing maximum thermal shock resistance.

A used tile from Atlantis

Fibrous refractory composite insulation (FRCI) tiles used to provide improved strength, durability, resistance to coating cracking and weight reduction. Some HRSI tiles were replaced by this type.

The rest types of tiles Flexible Insulation Blankets (FIB), a quilted, flexible blanket-like surface insulation. Used where reentry temperature was below 649 °C (1,200 °F). Low-temperature Reusable Surface Insulation (LRSI) tiles, formerly used on the upper fuselage, but were mostly replaced by FIB. Used in temperature ranges roughly similar to FIB.

The rest types of tiles Toughened unipiece fibrous insulation (TUFI) tiles, a stronger, tougher tile which came into use in 1996. Used in high and low temperature areas. Felt reusable surface insulation (FRSI). White Nomex felt blankets on the upper payload bay doors, portions of the mid fuselage and aft fuselage sides, portions of the upper wing surface and a portion of the OMS/RCS pods. Used where temperatures stayed below 371 °C (700 °F).

Structure The orbiter's structure was made primarily from aluminum alloy, although the engine thrust structure was made from titanium alloy. The later orbiters (Discovery, Atlantis and Endeavour) substituted graphite epoxy for aluminum in some structural elements in order to reduce weight. The windows were made of aluminum silicate glass and fused silica glass, The windows were tinted with the same ink used to make American banknotes.

Columbia in the Orbiter Processing Facility after its arrival at Kennedy Space Center on 25 March 1979, showing many missing tiles. This is because they were not installed yet, with 7,800 of 31,00 tiles still to be attached before it was sent to KSC

Space Shuttle Challenger disaster The Space Shuttle Challenger disaster occurred on January 28, 1986, when the NASA Space Shuttle orbiter Challenger (OV-099) (mission STS-51-L) broke apart 73 seconds into its flight, leading to the deaths of its seven crew members, which included five NASA astronauts and two Payload Specialists. The spacecraft disintegrated over the Atlantic Ocean, off the coast of Cape Canaveral, Florida, at 11:39 EST (16:39 UTC). Disintegration of the vehicle began after an O-ring seal in its right solid rocket booster (SRB) failed at liftoff. The O-ring was not designed to fly under unusually cold conditions as in this launch. Its failure caused a breach in the SRB joint it sealed, allowing pressurized burning gas from within the solid rocket motor to reach the outside and impinge upon the adjacent SRB aft field joint attachment hardware and external fuel tank. This led to the separation of the right-hand SRB's aft field joint attachment and the structural failure of the external tank. Aerodynamic forces broke up the orbiter.

Photo montage of the Space Shuttle Challenger disaster.

Space Shuttle Columbia disaster The Space Shuttle Columbia disaster occurred on February 1, 2003, when Columbia disintegrated over Texas and Louisiana as it re-entered Earth's atmosphere, killing all seven crew members. During the launch of STS-107, Columbia's 28th mission, a piece of foam insulation broke off from the Space Shuttle external tank and struck the left wing of the orbiter. A few previous shuttle launches had seen minor damage from foam shedding,[1] but some engineers suspected that the damage to Columbia was more serious. NASA managers limited the investigation, reasoning that the crew could not have fixed the problem if it had been confirmed.[2] When Columbia re-entered the atmosphere of Earth, the damage allowed hot atmospheric gases to penetrate and destroy the internal wing structure, which caused the spacecraft to become unstable and break apart.

Columbia debris (in red, orange, and yellow) detected by National Weather Service radar over Texas and Louisiana

Lifetime of All Five Space Shuttles Orbiters

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