Published 2025-05-12 · Duration 6:28 · Video file(22 MB)
NASA feather experiment on 1996 shuttle mission led to unexpected overload, breaking the Columbia. Details and footage.
Transcript
On February 25th, 1996, on space shuttle mission number SPS 75, NASA launched a possible breakthrough energy technology experiment. They launched a 12-mile long electrical conductor cable called an electro-dynamic feather designed to collect high-energy electrons in the Earth's ionosphere and magnetic fields. The motion of the conductor to the across the Earth's magnetic fields induces a voltage along the 12-mile length of the feather. Utilizing estimates in the charged densities of the Earth's magnetic fields and the ionosphere, the voltage produced is expected to be up to several hundred volts per kilometer. If successful, the experiment could produce a lot of electrical power. If additional power is driven along the feather in the opposite direction, that which it normally wants to flow, the feather in theory could push creating propulsion against the Earth's gravity to raise the shuttle's orbit. The advantage to this revolutionary technology in propulsion is that it does not require any rocket fuel. It's successful that electro-dynamic feathers could prove a way to greatly reduce the cost of in space propulsion. For example, the international space station could keep itself in orbit, saving nearly two billion dollars in orbital-reduced rocket fuel for every ten years of operations. But on February 25, after the 12-mile feather began producing electricity, an unexpected overload of electrical energy fluctuating between two and ten times that predicted due to inaccurate estimate in the electrical charge of the Earth's magnetic fields, ionosphere and possibly space radiation. Fry the feather to the conductor cable and it broke, severing into the space shuttle. The feather has broken and is going away from it. Get it on the TV, call it, we can see the feather has broken. Pumbia in the satellite, now 77 nautical miles apart, in that call reporting that the crew can see the feather and see the satellite that is beautiful. This view is showing the satellite. Again, I would just move into sunrise. 81 nautical miles now from Columbia. We have a lot of things in the foreground. Can you describe what you're seeing? The first thing I would like to describe is the weather. It's a little bit of debris that kind of flies with us. It's a little bit about the sun, which no angle, this is the longest daylight, and is getting washed out quickly, but a lot is trying to do a good job here at the camera. Copy that. You know that description by the crew, this is the feather in the satellite with 12, approximately 12 miles of feathers still attached to it. Columbia in the satellite to the now just passing over the west coast of northern Africa. The two spacecraft and now 90 nautical miles apart. Controllers for the satellite to have communications with it to during the close pass between Columbia and the satellite. Columbia Houston, that's a much better view. A lot more contrast visible. And how wide does that feather appear to be? It seems to resemble a much wider strand than we would expect to can you describe which way the satellite is visible on that strand. You can see the light on the sky. The sky is the light on the sky. The sky is the light on the sky. The sky is the light on the sky. The sky is the light on the sky. The sky is the light on the sky. The sky is the light on the sky. The sky is the light on the sky. The sky is the light on the sky. The sky is the light on the sky. The sky is the light on the sky. The sky is the light on the sky. The sky is the light on the sky. The sky is the light on the sky. The sky is the light on the sky.
NASA FeatherSpace Shuttle ColumbiaElectro-dynamic Feather