Firing of Flawed Shuttle Rocket Looks Successful

A full-scale firing of the redesigned space shuttle booster rocket Wednesday was cautiously hailed as a step toward the resumption of manned flights in August.

But Morton Thiokol and NASA officials said it will take a week to 10 days to verify that the two-minute test, the first of three final tests required before a shuttle launch, was a complete success.

The test was the first full-scale firing in which deliberate flaws were introduced in critical joint seals, one of which failed and caused the destruction of the shuttle Challenger 27 months ago.

“From everything we’ve seen, it performed exactly as we expected it to,” said Alan McDonald, Morton Thiokol vice president of engineering. “We’re all very anxious to get into the motor and pull it apart.”

Gases Believed Contained

McDonald said a preliminary inspection of test data and a cursory look at the 126-foot rocket indicated that super-hot gases during ignition were contained by the two flawed seals.

There also was no indication of damage to a boot ring on the rocket’s aft segment, he said. A different version of the ring broke during a test Dec. 23.

Royce Mitchell, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration’s solid rocket program manager, said the flaws were far worse than any likely to occur during the rocket manufacture and assembly.

“We want to demonstrate that the rocket is tolerant of flaws,” Mitchell said. “It’s a method of showing our secondary features will do the job if called upon.”