Author Topic: Mystery Metal Hardware From SLC-4E  (Read 2660 times)

Offline Helodriver

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Mystery Metal Hardware From SLC-4E
« on: 02/05/2015 11:30 pm »
SLC-4E, now the home of the Falcon 9, was previously the launch site for Atlas Agena, Titan III, Titan 34D, and Titan IV rockets starting in 1964 and concluding in 2005. 

While out hiking near the pad, I found a few aluminum hardware pieces 1000 feet south of and in direct line with the flame duct outlet embedded in the hillside soil. Two are circular aluminum discs about 4 cm in diameter and .5 cm thick and the third is a solid aluminum cylinder 4cm in diameter and in height with a steel threaded hex bolt embedded at its center.

All three metal pieces show signs of distortion and very violent high speed impact with hard surfaces much like that of pieces  I have seen from plane crash sites. Also in the soil are fragments of spray on insulation from the flame duct itself, which show that these metal parts were most likely blasted out of the flame duct by supersonic rocket exhaust.

The question is, what are they and from what vehicle? Surface corrosion makes it highly unlikely they are from the SpaceX launch, they appear to have been exposed for years. I'm thinking some sort of plugs blown out of the Titan booster exhausts but I'm really not sure. I found these two on the surface soil where some erosion had taken place, there could well be more of them buried in the underbrush.

Any old Titan or Atlas guys have any clues? See the attached pics. SD card included for scale. Whatever they are they had a most eventful trip from the pad to their resting place, would be cool to know why.

Online Galactic Penguin SST

Re: Mystery Metal Hardware From SLC-4E
« Reply #1 on: 02/06/2015 01:44 am »
Could they be from the 1986 Titan III explosion?
Astronomy & spaceflight geek penguin. In a relationship w/ Space Shuttle Discovery. Current Priority: Chasing the Chinese Spaceflight Wonder Egg & A Certain Chinese Mars Rover

Offline Helodriver

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Re: Mystery Metal Hardware From SLC-4E
« Reply #2 on: 02/06/2015 02:19 am »
Could they be from the 1986 Titan III explosion?

I'd thought of that, and while certainly not impossible I don't think so for a few reasons. ) I have seen other pieces of wreckage from that event and while heavily damaged, they do not have the twisting and compression effects that these pieces do, that look of being hammered directly into concrete.  That wreckage is also generally found closer to the pad. The proximity to the flame duct and the presence of ablative insulation in the soil leads me more to think that these are something ejected by the exhaust during launch.

Offline arachnitect

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Re: Mystery Metal Hardware From SLC-4E
« Reply #3 on: 02/06/2015 03:53 am »
Could they be from the 1986 Titan III explosion?

I'd thought of that, and while certainly not impossible I don't think so for a few reasons. ) I have seen other pieces of wreckage from that event and while heavily damaged, they do not have the twisting and compression effects that these pieces do, that look of being hammered directly into concrete.  That wreckage is also generally found closer to the pad. The proximity to the flame duct and the presence of ablative insulation in the soil leads me more to think that these are something ejected by the exhaust during launch.

Are you confident they came off a vehicle? Looks like something that was part of the pad or GSE got liberated and sent through the trench during a launch or during the demolition.

Offline SWGlassPit

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Re: Mystery Metal Hardware From SLC-4E
« Reply #4 on: 02/13/2015 01:38 pm »
How much of the pad and GSE hardware was aluminum rather than steel?

Offline arachnitect

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Re: Mystery Metal Hardware From SLC-4E
« Reply #5 on: 02/13/2015 03:06 pm »
How much of the pad and GSE hardware was aluminum rather than steel?

I'm sure there was plenty of aluminum. Not in the primary structure but in all the fittings and such. One less thing to paint.

Can't say I have any idea what the big chunk would have been part of. The smaller pieces could have been just about anything.

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