How is that planes can land in bad weather and the shuttle can not?

[bribri16]

I need help with this. If you can go into space why can't you land in bad weather?

[roguevalley]

1. part of the shuttle's problem is they come in nose up to give shielding

and need those fighters to find the horizon and keep them level. that's part of the problem. visibility is very important.

[flyingfysh]

2. the shuttle doesn't get a second try

If the weather is really bad, a plane can abort the landing and go land somewhere else. The shuttle can't do that, it only gets one chance to land.

[jim3775]

4. Yes, the shuttle is gliding to the runway

They can't just increase the throttle and turn it around

[terrya]

3. Maybe it has something to do with the fact...

that the shuttle is basically a glider at this point. There's no engine control at that point. Without any kind of engines available, they are at the mercy of the weather.

[Spinzonner]

5. For one, it's a glider

and doesnt perform powered flight in the atmosphere.

And, as such, it can't 'go around' and have a second chance if there's any problems.

[lostnfound]

6. A few guesses

1. Maybe it can, but they are just extra cautious because of all the other risks inherent in the shuttle program.
2. The equipment (black boxes) to provide all weather transmission represent extra weight, and shuttle payload costs 100 times more per pound (or more) than aircraft payload. (I.e., the cost to lift a pound into space is astronomical.) So why add it if it won't be used?
3. Aircraft are designed for 50,000 or 100,000 landings .. the shuttle for only a couple of dozen, I'd guess.
4. Maybe they want good photo ops so they only land in good weather?? :shrug:

[Clark2008]

7. It's also barrelling down to Earth after a backwards thrust of

17,000 mph and breaking the Earth's atmosphere.

Quite a difference from landing from 30,000 feet with engine control.

[bribri16]

8. By now, shouldn't we have figured out a better way?

I'm not trying to be a smart-ass, just have real nagging question.

[KG]

11. un-manned shuttle vehicles.

most of the science done on shuttle missions could be done by robots and computers. an unmanned vehicle could be much smaller and configured with out crew comfort and environmental concerns.

[porphyrian]

9. Security trumps logic.

Don't put too much into the explanations they give about when and where the shuttle will land. For security reasons, it's likely that they're lying anyway.

[Esra Star]

10. I read on the NASA site that there is a problem if water gets in under

the tiles.
I guess it means that they would have to remove them to check, and
that would be very expensive and take a long time.

[ladjf]

12. primarily because it is a powerless glider. That cuts down

on lots of the options available to airplanes. It's what is called a "dead stick landing".

[applegrove]

13. I've heard they like to land at night because the runways are so

easy to find when they are lit up. I'm sure they have radar but really - you need a good visual from 100,000 feet too. Whatever clouds there are you will be above them during the approach.

Yet & also they cannot to an aborted landing. One chance to land - starting at 17,000 mph over the north poll, slowing down using banking & twisting maneuvers, then decent to the landing strip.

[leftofthedial]

14. the shuttle is a piece of crap

designed to be as expensive as possible as it militarizes space

[SidDithers]

15. Wow, tell us how you really feel...nt

Sid

[rman]

17. Well, he's right

If nasa would be run by engineers it would be a whole different ball game. There probably would be no shuttle, at least not one like the one we have.
But as it is, it is run by managers. And have to take "management decisions", hence all kinds of problems with o-rings, foam, tiles - and dead people.

[rman]

16. It could have an autopilot for landing,

regardless of it being a glider coming in at several times the speed of sound. I suspect the main reason for an automatic landing system not being installed, is weight.
Spaceflight has a ridiculously poor fuel-to-weight ratio, literally every ounce counts. The shuttle can be landed by hand on flight instruments and visual, and it can stay in space for a few more days if they must. Adding the weight of a system that would be used only once during a mission and is more a luxury then a necessity, is probably not worth it.

[SheepyMcSheepster]

18. this may be too simple of an answer, but here goes

it can't land in bad weather because it can't get wet.

i heard someone say somewhere that water will ruin the tiles on the bottom.

going to look for some back-up info now.....

http://www.space.com/missionlaunches/missions/sts104_update_010524.html

well it looks like the wet tile thing is a precaution taken before a shuttle goes into orbit, so i guess good weather on re-entry isn't a big deal for the tiles. maybe it's that they just want to take weather out of the picture when landing something like this.

[Javaman]

19. A falling rock with wings and no engine doesn't get a second chances.