A Space & astronomy forum. SpaceBanter.com

Go Back   Home » SpaceBanter.com forum » Space Science » Policy
Site Map Home Authors List Search Today's Posts Mark Forums Read Web Partners

Berndt/Balettie Bologna



 
 
Thread Tools Display Modes
  #1  
Old July 13th 03, 03:38 PM
John Maxson
external usenet poster
 
Posts: n/a
Default Berndt/Balettie Bologna

The subject libel was aided and abetted by my son Dan.
I understand that Dan (who like Berndt and Balettie had
no first-hand experience at the Challenger launch site in
the months and years prior to that disaster) is now active
in again pushing their libelous and defamatory webpages.

Dan was among the first to attempt an assassination of
my character and a falsification of my book in sci.space
newsgroups. (I refer to 'The Betrayal of Mission 51-L.')

I therefore feel compelled to again offer the following as a
brief rebuttal on the merits to the damage they have done:

======================================
'One-Page Technical Summary of an O-Ring Cover-Up'
(requested by Pentagon efficiency expert A. Ernest
Fitzgerald on July 4, 2003)

NASA's fault-tree analysis failed to consider that Challenger's solid
rocket boosters could have crossed paths within the 51-L fireball.
A crossing necessarily negates Rogers' postulated "right-aft O-ring
burnthrough."

In a hearing on February 7, 1986, Dr. Feynman inquired: "Can I ask
a dumb question? Do we know on which side which rocket is
afterwards? Did they go like this and cross or do they look like they
went that way?" NASA put Feynman off, and Rogers sidetracked
him. Dr. Feynman did not know about NASA's black ID band until
I told him, in late 1987.

For photo/recovery identification, NASA paints a black ID band 18''
high around the nose of the space shuttle's *left* solid rocket booster.
Rogers ignored this ID band in his report, most notably at the crucial
fireball exit. Instead, Rogers conjectured a "R-SRB burnthrough" for
identification.

Rogers' ID relies on an enhanced 15-second film strip ending in
explosion. However, in JSC's '51-L Mission History Video,' the
continuation of this film strip leaves no doubt that the *flared* booster
sported the ID band.

On January 22, 1986, in a pre-Challenger technical report requested by
Senator Grassley's office, I warned: "... and 'cold flows' run at Pad B
were a failure, costing much waste of time and money. Tom Wiley can
testify to this. The net result of all this would be delays in launching
from Pad B, and delays in Centaur launches. I also learned from Bill
Bassler, Centaur 'single-point-of-contact' in LSOC CMO, that the
waste of hydrogen was deliberate, ..."

The terminal LH2 leaks were at the base of the left booster. It became
super-cooled during prelaunch scrubs. A thrust imbalance resulted.
That caused a right-aft leak in the hydrogen tank at lift-off, later
aggravated by 5000-plus degree heat from continuous R-Aft RCS
firings at 59 seconds. The pre-explosion chamber pressures of the two
boosters (relative to each other and to their respective lift-off pressures)
were to be expected.

NASA could not identify the key piece of lower booster debris by serial
number, or by *any other* of NASA's standard identification methods.

The Rogers Report admits that no direct view exists of the location from
which black smoke at lift-off and an assumed burnthrough at 59 seconds
originated. Live launch-day video refutes NASA's "burnthrough" copies.
Congressional subpoena of the originals should lead to credible closure.

John Thomas Maxson (www.mission51l.com)


  #2  
Old July 13th 03, 06:07 PM
Sean Conolly
external usenet poster
 
Posts: n/a
Default Berndt/Balettie Bologna

I'm new here, so I'll bite: why does your son publicly oppose your position
on this?

I know that I didn't buy into all of my father's views on NASA (despite his
long history in the space program), but I would certainly would not have
taken any disagreements public.

Sean


"John Maxson" wrote in message
...
The subject libel was aided and abetted by my son Dan.
I understand that Dan (who like Berndt and Balettie had
no first-hand experience at the Challenger launch site in
the months and years prior to that disaster) is now active
in again pushing their libelous and defamatory webpages.

Dan was among the first to attempt an assassination of
my character and a falsification of my book in sci.space
newsgroups. (I refer to 'The Betrayal of Mission 51-L.')





  #3  
Old July 13th 03, 06:51 PM
Charleston
external usenet poster
 
Posts: n/a
Default Berndt/Balettie Bologna


"John Maxson" wrote in message
...

The subject libel was aided and abetted by my son Dan.
I understand that Dan (who like Berndt and Balettie had
no first-hand experience at the Challenger launch site in
the months and years prior to that disaster) is now active
in again pushing their libelous and defamatory webpages.


Not really.

Dan was among the first to attempt an assassination of
my character and a falsification of my book in sci.space
newsgroups. (I refer to 'The Betrayal of Mission 51-L.')


No, as I have pointed out before you have completed that job yourself. No
one but you can make your statements or write your books, both published and
unpublished. Posters here cite your prior statements about things you
believe, not what I believe about you. Thus you have created your own
persona for this group. If you do not like that image, change it yourself.

Minor nit, it is Daniel and always has been. IIRC, you had something to do
with the name. Please respect yourself and use the correct name.

Daniel


  #4  
Old July 13th 03, 07:11 PM
John Maxson
external usenet poster
 
Posts: n/a
Default Berndt/Balettie Bologna

Sean Conolly wrote in message
.. .

I'm new here, so I'll bite: why does your son publicly oppose
your position on this?

I know that I didn't buy into all of my father's views on NASA
(despite his long history in the space program), but I would
certainly would not have taken any disagreements public.


That's a fine question; I'm overjoyed that someone like you
finally came forth to ask it. I don't know what your own
professional interests are, but Dan chose biological science
at an early age. As a youth he had great concern for pollution
of our ecological systems and how that degraded our health.

He hadn't been out of the Air Force long (after duty in the
Azores in his chosen field) when I warned him that Challenger
was about to be the object of a launch disaster. He was trying
to finish his degree requirements on the GI bill at the time.

He became involved in trying to help me get media attention
for my prelaunch warnings, along with Lt. Col. Bill Middleton
(USAF Ret'd). After I had given presentations to a respected
legal group and to an AIAA-based university forum, AF Col.
Ed O'Connor, in charge of the Challenger recovery forces, paid
Dan and Bill a personal visit at Dan's home. Ed unloaded several
NASA internal documents on Dan and asked Dan to give them
to his Senator.

From that point on, Dan took his own, biological view of the
catastrophe. It centered on fitting his belief (from the day of
the disaster) that the crew could have been saved, to NASA's
explanation of an O-ring failure. Because I refused to go along
with the primary Rogers conclusions, he became angry with me.

I think his opposition to me on the cause stems from his lack
of adequate technical background in aerospace. I think the
difference between you and him relative to publicly opposing
me here and elsewhere is that he was the victim of a bigamous
marriage (as was I). After he was about ten years old, he had
a series of other fathers and father figures. Having invested
considerable effort in obtaining his own FOIA data, he feels
that he understands what happened to the crew. He has great
ambition to tell that story in a book, but it opposes my story.

--
John Thomas Maxson, Retired Engineer (Aerospace)
Author, The Betrayal of Mission 51-L (www.mission51l.com)


 




Thread Tools
Display Modes

Posting Rules
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts

vB code is On
Smilies are On
[IMG] code is On
HTML code is Off
Forum Jump

Similar Threads
Thread Thread Starter Forum Replies Last Post
Berndt/Balettie Bologna SpamBot Space Station 3 August 6th 03 09:25 PM
Berndt/Balettie Bologna George William Herbert Space Station 1 August 6th 03 09:49 AM
Berndt/Balettie Bologna John Maxson Policy 0 July 6th 03 05:53 PM


All times are GMT +1. The time now is 12:10 PM.


Powered by vBulletin® Version 3.6.4
Copyright ©2000 - 2024, Jelsoft Enterprises Ltd.
Copyright ©2004-2024 SpaceBanter.com.
The comments are property of their posters.