Shuttle Processing - great pics

[Ivan Seeking]

http://bmwsporttouring.com/ubbthreads/showflat.php?Cat=0&Board=UBB11&Number=1016238

 

[hypatia]

A great series of photos, I enjoyed seeing those. Thanks!

 

[Danger]

Thanks, Ivan. That's very interesting, and excellent photography.

 

[russ_watters]

I didn't realize they insert the payload while on the pad. That's a little odd.

 

[waht]

How come people working around shuttle don't wear hard hats? Is that hangar really that safe?

 

[glondor]

I had the same thoughts as Russ. It seems kinda strange to have all that extra infrastructure to load the cargo. There are no photos of that portion of the prep. Maybe it is a safety precaution to mate the cargo at the last moment to mitigate any hazzard exposure to the cargo, as sometimes it is worth hundreds of millions of dollars if not more? Seems like a lot of steps to go through tho. Realy cool photographs, Thanks.

 

[Danger]

Adding the payload at the pad kind of surprised me, too. I wonder if it might have something to do with either the load capacity or balancing issues with the crawler.

 

[out of whack]

How come people working around shuttle don't wear hard hats? Is that hangar really that safe?

Yeah, it's an unusual sight. I would guess that nothing falls in that place, as in "NOTHING falls". Every nut and bolt must be secured and accounted for, unlike your typical building site. At some point, not even a hair falls as all workers wear clean room attire.

 

[matthyaouw]

Great pics!

Yeah, it's an unusual sight. I would guess that nothing falls in that place, as in "NOTHING falls". Every nut and bolt must be secured and accounted for, unlike your typical building site. At some point, not even a hair falls as all workers wear clean room attire.

Either that, or anything capable of falling is too big for your average hard-hat to be of any use!

When I've been on geology field trips and forced to wear a helmet, the guide has always stressed to us "This thing will protect you from falling pebbles. Anything larger and whether or not you have your helmet on will be inconsequential."

 

[russ_watters]

That's why hard hats are largely protection against your own stupidity, not objects falling on you. If there's nothing for you to bump your head on, no need for a hard hat.

 

[lisab]

Very cool photos!