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Did PC Science Cause Shuttle Disaster? | Principia Scientific Intl.
NASA is reconsidering whether tank foam debris caused the Columbia disaster. That’s quite a shift from days earlier when the foam was the "leading candidate" -- an explanation that quickly became embarrassing. We may never know precisely what happened to Columbia, but one thing should be clear -- NASA should not be in charge of investigating itself. A chunk of foam insulation broke off the external fuel tank during launch, perhaps damaging Columbia’s heat-protecting tiles. “We’re making the assumption that the external tank was the root cause of the accident,” said shuttle program manager Ron Dittemore in the immediate aftermath.