spaceflight.nasa.gov — Photo taken on Friday, 17 July 2009 by an astronaut aboard the International Space Station (Expedition 20) "with a digital still camera, using a 400mm lens at a distance of about 600 feet (180 meters)."
Jul 18, 2009 View in Crawl 4
sharkdJul 19, 2009
And if it hadn't been for EECOM John Aaron and LMP Alan Bean knowing what the obscure "SCE to AUX" command was, Apollo 12 would have been the shortest mission in history.
4antistupidJul 19, 2009
There was a good Discovery Channel show about how they maintain the ceramic surface. The color is not a good indicator of the condition.
utahapocalyseJul 19, 2009
:)
s1ngular1ty1Jul 19, 2009
Yeah, they can fix some damage, but it is hardly a "routine" repair job. This is serious stuff, their lives depend on a few inches of really fragile insulation.
dasamigoJul 19, 2009
They had to use a different bonding agent since the ones they used before got banned due to environmental lobbyists. Thats why the last few shuttles have this problem.
andrewh7Jul 20, 2009
Dude, no s**t. I thought they installed patio tiles on the space shuttle so the astronauts could roll it over on its back and setup their barbecues on its belly for the 4th of July. When you have time, maybe you could tell us why the astronauts where space suits when the leave the shuttle or perhaps how they take a dump in space?
andrewh7Jul 20, 2009
Actually, each tile is engraved with a humorous quote from the Simpsons. For instance, see that burned one in the middle? It says: Scientist: I think we can remove the crayon from your brain, Mr. Simpson. It could vastly increase your brain power, or it might kill you. Homer: Increase my killing power ehhh?
amazingsteveJul 20, 2009
Looks about average post launch. The shuttle's always got these little dings in it after the ride up. The more ignorant among you maybe want to do a little research before screming OMFG THEY"RE ALL GONNA DIE!!!!