100 Cameras ensure shuttle safety

 

The Discovery flight was the most photographed shuttle mission ever. More than 100 image capture devices were used to record the launch and climb to orbit. The various devices used encompassed video and still image capturing, visible and thermal wavelengths, with digital and film recording. Data from these images helped assess whether the orbiter sustained any damage during take off and whether that damage posed any risk to discoveries return to earth.

 

During the mission to the international space station various cameras mounted on the shuttles robotic arm were used to make sure that the space shuttle could safely re-enter into the Earths Atmosphere. The cameras were used to inspect the reinforced carbon-fiber tiles that protect the underside of the shuttle during re-entry into the atmosphere. In 2003 damage to heat shielding from debris falling during lift-off led to shuttle Columbia burning up on re-entry, with the loss of all seven astronauts on board. Verifying the safe operation of the shuttle is vital to NASA - there are 16 more flights planned before the fleet is retired from service in 2010.

The cameras used during the mission utilized the new GigE Vision standard, this allowed for the camera that was mounted at the end of the robotic arm to stream images over standard Ethernet cable to a laptop inside the shuttle. This Technology was chosen due to its increased speed and long transmission distances.

Industrial cameras are already hardened and are designed to minimize the effects of heat, radiation and extreme thrusts experienced during take off.

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