In article ,   
   	Damon Hill  writes:   
   > Owen Zurhellen  wrote in   
   > news:BEF9FCB1.36A4%tentothefourth@earthlink.net:   
   >   
   >>     Dear all:  As you may have heard, one of the   
   >>     difficulties in using the   
   >> Space Shuttle's External Tank as an orbiting space station   
   >> or factory (rather than allowing it simply to reenter to   
   >> destruction) has been thought to be the orange outer   
   >> coating that insulates the cryogenic propellants, which   
   >> would slowly disintegrate (from micrometeors and the   
   >> exosphere's monatomic oxygen) and choke the vicinity with   
   >> fine debris. The outer coating of the ET has now been   
   >> modified (I'm not sure exactly how) to avoid the problem   
   >> that doomed COLUMBIA - relatively large chunks of the   
   >> coating falling off during ascent and striking the   
   >> orbiter's vulnerable tiles. Would this recent modification   
   >> help the on-orbit disintegration problem in any way?   
   >   
   > I'm not aware of anything that alters the bulk properties   
   > of the insulation, just the manner in which is it applied   
   > in certain areas.   
   >   
   > It's otherwise irrelevant because the tank will never, ever   
   > be used on-orbit for anything.   
   >   
   Why not?   
      
   Dale   
      
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