NASA worker caught in act of sabotage on ISS bound computer

According to breaking news from NASA, a space program worker is alleged to have deliberately damaged a computer that was meant to fly aboard the Endeavour in less than two weeks, in an apparent act of sabotage. NASA says the unnamed individual, who works for one of the space agency's subcontractors, cut wires inside a computer that was headed to the International Space Station (ISS) on the shuttle. The alleged tampering occurred outside of NASA operations in Florida, but the agency isn't naming the subcontractor or where exactly the incident took place. The agency hopes to fix the damage and launch the Endeavour August 7th, as planned. As this appears to be the first ever report of sabotage on the space program, you can expect to hear a lot more on this story in the very near future.

[Via TheWolfWeb]

[jonosono @ Jul 26th 2007 5:42PM]

"As this appears to be the first ever report of sabotage on the space program..."

Aside from this being first case being brought to light, I'm sure this isn't the first time that a NASA project has been sabotaged.

[Chris @ Jul 26th 2007 5:48PM]

You're "sure" this isn't the first time? Why would you be so certain that items have been sabotaged previously? Kind of a big, cynical leap on your part...

[Blackstar @ Jul 26th 2007 6:54PM]

I think he should be fired. From a cannon... into the sun.

[Joshua Hendrickson @ Jul 26th 2007 9:19PM]

Apollo 13. Plain and simple.

[steve @ Jul 27th 2007 5:01PM]

apollo 13 was not sabotage (afaik) it was a malfunction. Very different.

[rosco p. coltrane @ Jul 26th 2007 5:44PM]

good thing i brought my trusty slide rule!!

[rosco p. coltrane @ Jul 26th 2007 5:45PM]

good thing i brought my trusty slide rule!!

[Richard @ Jul 26th 2007 5:48PM]

He was obviously just jealous coz it could play doom better than his machine...

[joe @ Jul 26th 2007 5:48PM]

Death Penalty!

[kp* @ Jul 26th 2007 5:52PM]

In Soviet Russia, computer sabotages you!

[2Perfect @ Jul 26th 2007 6:52PM]

lol.

[murray @ Jul 26th 2007 5:54PM]

jonosono is obviously a saboteur. Send the secret service.

[cf @ Jul 26th 2007 5:57PM]

What a f@cking b@stard. Who'd do that ? I mean, REALLY, please anybody tell me - WHO would do that ?

[tstreesapx @ Jul 26th 2007 8:31PM]

This shouldn't be far from attempted murder, and anyone would be hard pressed to change my mind on that.

[JJ @ Jul 26th 2007 6:49PM]

The saboteur.

[HektikLyfe @ Jul 26th 2007 7:23PM]

Perhaps someone who was paid to do something to guarantee another funded "repair" flight?

Anyone else remember that whole Hubble fingerprint fiasco that required a return trip into space?

[Cronick @ Jul 26th 2007 6:04PM]

First, drunk astronauts and now saboteurs??!!

What next? Politicians in space?

[Tim @ Jul 26th 2007 8:22PM]

Been done, John Glenn came back after he was elected, and then spent a 5 hour space walk deliberating between lunch programs for the astronauts.

[Richard @ Jul 26th 2007 6:10PM]

I'm afraid. I'm afraid, Dave. Dave, my mind is going. I can feel it. I can feel it. My mind is going. There is no question about it. I can feel it. I can feel it. I can feel it. I'm a... fraid.

[R. C. @ Jul 26th 2007 6:32PM]

It's not drugs, it's HAL. Read (or see) 2001.

[R. C. @ Jul 26th 2007 11:29PM]

What happened to the reply I was replying to?

[Bazza @ Jul 26th 2007 6:12PM]

No matter how far we try to advance ourselves technologically, push the boundaries of science and discovery....we just can't change human nature and its inherent ability to destroy all that he/she has achieved.

[Ivan @ Jul 26th 2007 6:17PM]

Most people who work in the space industry love space and advancement in the field. The only reason I can think of for someone doing this is revenge. It's sad that someone would want to hurt our future in the space industry, especially a NASA employee. It also shows you how much damage somone could do if this were applied to a mission with humans, and that NASA should choose their staff, and monitor them carefully.

-Vainentree
http://thenerdcan.wordpress.com/

[Amani576 @ Jul 26th 2007 6:41PM]

Sounds like Treason to me. An American (as far as we can tell) sabotaging an American program, that would have American lives, and money on the line...
Isn't that death sentence, or atleast life-sentence worthy?
GR

[Alex @ Jul 26th 2007 6:45PM]

no death sentence, we can't even convict American-born terrorists of treason even when caught in the act (ahem John Walker). Maybe the perp will be forced to wear an astronaut diaper for the rest of their life.

[alejo699 @ Jul 26th 2007 7:40PM]

Just for the record, there's nothing in the article stating that the sabotaged computer was involved in life support, so assuming that the saboteur was out to kill people (and calling for his head) might be a bit of an over-reaction.
The most likely explanation (as someone stated) is that a disgruntled employee was pulling the NASA equivalent of peeing in the coffee carafe.

[BigD145 @ Jul 26th 2007 10:29PM]

No, we don't do anything about American terrorists. "What are you, a communist?"

I may be crazy, but I'd be looking to see if this subcontractor had ties to anything like the Flat Earth Society. Clipping wires on a child's toy is harmless. Clipping wires on an iron lung is not. It's premeditated murder.

[alejo699 @ Jul 27th 2007 12:23PM]

An iron lung? Once again, where in the article does it say this computer was critical? I know it's fun to leap to conclusions and call for a torch-bearing mob, but how about we wait for more facts to surface before sentencing anyone.

[NovaLand @ Jul 31st 2007 1:30AM]

Maybe he have read an article somewhere else saying that it was critical for life support. Unfortunally he has not, since the computer that was damaged was built to measure strains on the ISS...

[Ellianth @ Jul 26th 2007 6:44PM]

Maybe they're can't meet a deadline and they made the whole thing up?

[Ivan @ Jul 26th 2007 7:00PM]

Although it would be a convenient way to make the delay someone else's fault (and is one way to explain not releasing the name), NASA has made delays before without shying away. If they did want an excuse, they would use a different one that wouldn't cause a stir among the press.

-Vainentree
http://thenerdcan.wordpress.com/

[HektikLyfe @ Jul 26th 2007 7:27PM]

This might also just be an attempt to keep a dying industry in the news. "Hey everybody we're still here! We have drama like Paris and Lindsay too! We have psycho girls in diapers and saboteurs!"

It's the tail end of the American space program's life, and it shows.

[George Beckingham @ Jul 26th 2007 7:31PM]

The Hubble thing wasn't sabotage; it was sheer stupid negligence. I remember reading an article in which the contractor bragged about how the mirror's aluminum coating was so close to theoretical perfection, and the mirror's shape was within such a tiny fraction of perfect... too bad about the gross error of spherical aberration.

On the other hand, I would be very surprised if there weren't a whole bunch of unreported sabotage attempts during the space race of the 1960s, when Americans and Soviets both thought that the first superpower to achieve a "beachhead" in space would start building military bases to rain laser-hellfire down on the other. It's amazing that the loss of life in the 1960s space program was as low as it was.

[Aaron @ Jul 27th 2007 12:32AM]

There have not been many releases of Soviet deaths during the 'space race', as far as I know. Most estimates are that it was probably pretty high, though. I think Apollo I was the only project to claim American lives.

But, yeah, I can't imagine that the Soviets didn't have people in our program throwing monkey wrenches into things. They were the first ones to get a satellite into space....

[will z @ Jul 26th 2007 8:26PM]

is the crazy chick with diapers out on bail?

[Tim @ Jul 28th 2007 8:45PM]

attempted murder? why on earth?! The computer can't possibly be going up to control life support or orbital mechanics. And if it was, i'm glad i haven't been one of the astronauts with no control over my air or orbit for the past 10 years.

That said, still: sabotaging NASA's not cool.

[soulless2000 @ Jul 26th 2007 8:52PM]

because it was against a gov't agency, would this person be charged with treason and thus be given the death penalty? Esp if the malfunction of the computer could have cost peoples' lives?

[Aaron @ Jul 27th 2007 12:30AM]

No. Treason is knowingly aiding and abetting, providing material support or conspiring with, an enemy of the nation (usually only in war time). Treason does not apply to sabotaging space equipment--unless it was for the afore mentioned reason. "Tokyo Rose" provided propaganda support for the Japanese during WWII, she was tried and convicted of treason--pardoned by Ford after twenty-something years in prison. I don't know if anyone has been tried for treason since.

Treason is a HARD thing to charge someone with. Constitutionally speaking, it REQUIRES two witnesses... As someone said before, we can't even get American citizens fighting with the Taliban sent up on it.

[Mark 2000 @ Jul 26th 2007 10:46PM]

I'm surprised they didn't blame it on Cuba.

[Moltenauto @ Jul 26th 2007 10:57PM]

So are headlines just a creative writing exercise these days and facts don't even come into play?
As far as I have heard, no one was caught, red handed or otherwise, least of all a NASA employee. WTF?

[Steve Hall @ Jul 27th 2007 12:02PM]

Couldn't agree more--seeing that more and more of that sort of "yellow journalism" in online "journalism": Hook 'em in with an Enquirer-like headline or lede, and go from there.

"NASA worker" implies a whole different set of people from "NASA contractor." Granted, most people who work on the space program ARE contractors, so a specious argument could be made that one's inference "should be" that a contractor was involved, but I'm not going to make that leap.

[kombizz @ Jul 27th 2007 12:38AM]

what a shame !
Was he/she from Green Peace ?
Scooty Beam me up !

[modenadude @ Jul 27th 2007 12:40AM]

Happy Birthday, Stan :)

[SINNACLE @ Jul 27th 2007 1:41AM]

Fuck youre space program!
We are sending antiques into space at an astronomical cost.
Space exploration should be funded by the private sector.

Anyone ever been to the DMV in florida? Its like going to the hospital and not having insurance.....youre not going anywhere in under an hour.....and we leave the same lazy ass motherfuckers to plan our space program.

Im pretty sure flying a craft over a quarter century old into space is not the work of any forward thinking individuals.

TTYL, I gotta go harvest some prehistoric intel processors and pimp em to NASA..........SUCKERS!!!

[salvador @ Jul 27th 2007 7:19AM]

Is sad to see that someone can do that, since working in NASA has to be the greatest experience of all, but more than this it is an evil thing to do.

[b_a_boone @ Jul 27th 2007 10:27AM]

He failed the mental test and couldn't go into space! He should be subject to physicals for the rest of his life, Don't drop the soap.

[Steve Hall @ Jul 27th 2007 12:09PM]

From the Toronto Star http://www.thestar.com/News/article/240490

"The damage involves the cutting of wires in a computer meant to record and transmit to Mission Control several measurements of stresses to the space station structure, according to NASA. The equipment is not considered essential to astronaut safety."

[Alex @ Jul 27th 2007 1:36PM]

Funny how they don't want to reveal the identity of the perp. Gee, I wonder why that is? What country did they come from - any bets?

[Boris @ Jul 27th 2007 2:55PM]

The same country Timothy McVeigh was from.

The American media never shies away from revealing the nationality of a perp, unless the perp is an American.

[Douglas Goodall @ Jul 27th 2007 2:40PM]

Were they caught in the act or were the cut wires noticed later. I have heard both versions now. If they were caught in the act, they should have been arrested on the spot. What us the real story?