shuttle o-rings are sabotaged, nasa reveals

NASA officials revealed today that up to seven key O-
Earlier this summer, the ring seals used in the shuttle booster appeared to have been destroyed, but said the damaged seals never came out of the factory and never threatened actual flight.
\"We\'re absolutely sure we don\'t have anything bad on any hardware, whether it\'s testing hardware or flying hardware,\" said Royce Mitchell . \" Booster Program Manager, Marshall Space Flight Center, Huntsville, Alabama.
The FBI, NASA and HydraPak are investigating
Companies that make O-
The ring seal of the shuttle booster is investigating the apparent vandalism at the manufacturing plant.
Cal Clegg, spokesman for the FBI Salt Lake City office, confirmed today that the agency is \"conducting an official investigation \".
I can\'t say more because an investigation is under way.
Morton tiokor, Inc.
Space shuttle booster manufacturers have obtained a critical O-
SEALs from hailapak, West Jordan, Utah.
Mitchell said intentional vandalism was first discovered in June and an investigation was launched quickly.
\"In O-rings (at HydraPak)
In June 16, they found one.
He said over the phone at Morton tiokor booster factory near Brigham, Utah.
\"It\'s not subtle. It was a cut.
The advertisement \"they found another one the next day and the third one in June 23.
These are clearly deliberate cuts.
Four more O-
The ring in the oven, the oven turned too high, and the appearance was deliberately made.
This will become more difficult to determine.
Overheating O-
During curing, the rings lose their elasticity, which is critical to their ability to seal the supercharged joints.
\"We have built very strict security measures on how to operate.
\"The ring is packed and protected,\" Mitchell said . \" He added that such damage could not escape the standard testing procedure.
\"We are very confident that we don\'t have any bad hardware in the program.
\"There has been trouble with vandalism before.
January, an O
Mitchell said that in a test booster at the Thiokol plant, the ring seal was apparently deliberately damaged after the launch of the rocket.