Shuttle Debris Impact Analysis: Postreturn to Flight Real-Time Mission Support

Abstract

Prior to the Columbia accident, quantitative impact assessment tools were not available to analyze debris impacts onto the Shuttle’s thermal protection system. Following the accident, the Columbia Accident Investigation Board recommended changes to increase the safety of future shuttle flights; one component was the development of physics-based analytical capabilities to evaluate damage due to debris impacts. This paper will present an overview of real time debris assessment impact analysis conducted by the Boeing Philadelphia Advanced Structural Analysis Impact Analysis Team in support of Space Shuttle missions since Return to Flight, the first mission after the Columbia accident. Specifically, analyses performed in support of missions STS-114, 121 and 117 will be presented. For each of these cases, an overview of the structural and material model development will be provided, and results of each analysis will be presented followed by a discussion of how the results lead into real time mission decisions. This work illustrates the importance of maintaining a physics-based real-time analysis capability as a vital instrument in supporting the safety of future spaceflight missions.