re: Repairing the shuttle in orbit.....
Can they not put a air bag Bag/foam like device along the leading edge of the wing that comes off with the external tank.
not talking about a impact driven type device but a device that already is inflacted.
more or less like a peel away skin.
and can they not design an infaltable shielding for broken tiles maybe the size of the underside of the shuttle.
just ideas not sure if there fabics that burn slow enough to allow entry