wrote:
Using these photos from NASA film camera E63 as a guide,

http://history.nasa.gov/rogersrep/v1p25.htm

would it be correct to assume that one should normally expect to see
nothing but clear sky in the locations where the yellow and red arrows
point here?

www.mission51l.com/art/UPIsmoke.jpg

The answer is a simple 'no,' of course. One should see the base of the
hydrogen tank, all the way down to the level of the faint horizontal
line which is directly to the left at approximately the middle of the
red arrowhead. At the same horizontal level, but to the right of the
red arrowhead, is an aft stiffener ring.

Thus what you have on the inboard side of the tank (in those arrowed
locations) are evidently patches of black in a lightly colored or
nearly luminous fire.

Chech the viewing angle out for yourself, along with my conclusions,
preferably using a good Challenger model.

Challenger's Ghost
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