
STS-107 In-Flight Options Assessment [pdf] - tosh
http://www.nasa.gov/columbia/caib/PDFS/VOL2/D13.PDF
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tosh
""" But imagine an alternate timeline for the Columbia mission in which NASA
quickly realized just how devastating the foam strike had been. Could the
Columbia astronauts have been safely retrieved from orbit?

During the writing of its report, the CAIB had the same question, so it asked
NASA to develop a theoretical repair and rescue plan for Columbia "based on
the premise that the wing damage events during launch were recognized early
during the mission." The result was an absolutely remarkable set of documents,
which appear at the end of the report as Appendix D.13. They carry the low-key
title "STS-107 In-Flight Options Assessment," but the scenario they outline
would have pushed NASA to its absolute limits as it mounted the most dramatic
space mission of all time."""

via [http://arstechnica.com/science/2016/02/the-audacious-
rescue-...](http://arstechnica.com/science/2016/02/the-audacious-rescue-plan-
that-might-have-saved-space-shuttle-columbia/)

