According to USA Today, NASA is suspending all shuttle launches until the problem with the foam surrounding the main fuel tank can be corrected. This was the cause of the Space shuttle Columbia disaster, and has also endangered the current Discovery Mission. A peace of foam was photographed shearing off during the Discovery liftoff and astronauts are checking the shuttle for damage.
NASA has used foam to insulate the large rocket booster without incident since the beginning of the Shuttle program. Why has it become an issue only in the last few years? The answer lies in junk science and environmental hysteria.
According to Greg Katnick, a Mechanical Systems Engineer, at NASA Kennedy Space Center. “The reason for the change in the type of foam is due to the desire of NASA to use "environmentally friendly" materials in the space program. Freon was used in the production of the previous foam. This method was eliminated in favor of foam that did not require Freon for its production. MSFC is investigating the consideration that some characteristics of the new foam may not be known for the ascent environment.”
In other words, in an effort to be more politically correct, NASA reformulated the foam in a method more pleasing to environmentalists by discontinuing the use of Freon in the production of the foam. The result has been the production of a more brittle and less stable product.
This caused the catastrophic destruction of the Space Shuttle Columbia and all astronauts aboard. It has now endangered the lives of the current Discovery Crew. NASA should go back to what it knows to work best and ignore the activists. It is ironic that an organization dedicated to science would fall for the propaganda and junk science that is so prevalent in our society.