Editing Space Shuttle Pathfinder (section)

==Refurbishment==
[[File:Space Shuttle Pathfinder OV-098 original configuration.jpg|thumb|upright|The Space Shuttle Orbiter simulator is hoisted into the [[Saturn V Dynamic Test Stand]] at NASA's [[Marshall Space Flight Center]].]]
After sitting in storage for many years, the America-Japan Society, Inc. obtained the wood and steel mockup at a cost of US$1 million and hired [[Teledyne Brown Engineering]] to refurbish it to more closely resemble an actual Space Shuttle.<ref>George C. Marshall Space Flight Center 1983. Pathfinder Ceremony. [press release] April 19, 1983.</ref> It was named ''Pathfinder'' and displayed at the Great Space Shuttle Exposition in [[Tokyo]] from June 1983 to August 1984.<ref name="1st100" /> 

In 1982, Teledyne Brown Engineering contracted RTS Laboratories, Inc., to design and construct the nose cone and cockpit section of the Shuttle’s hull. RTS Laboratories first created a template for the front section of the hull to ensure the Shuttle’s fuselage aligned with the nose cone and cockpit section, which covered approximately the first 30 feet of the Shuttle. A foam-fiberglass composite design was chosen to ensure the Pathfinder's long-term ruggedness with minimal weight. The design team accounted for transportation restrictions, ensuring the front section could be delivered to the Marshall Space Flight Center via the interstate highway system, which imposed limits on the width and height of the product. They fabricated the nose cone and cockpit section in five separate pieces and delivered them to MSFC, where engineers installed the components onto the Pathfinder’s framework.

RTS Laboratories faced the challenge of producing the front section of the Shuttle’s hull in pieces small enough for transport to MSFC, all within the limited timeframe and budget provided. To meet this challenge, the team fabricated the hull without relying on a mold. A montage of photos captures how RTS Laboratories successfully accomplished this task.<ref>National Aeronautical and Space Administration, NASA Activities, Vol. 15, No. 5, pg. 19, May 1983</ref>
[[File:Pathfinder 0002.jpg|thumb|Finishing the Shuttle cockpit section pieces before they were separated]]
[[File:Pathfinder 0005.jpg|thumb|Blowing polyurethane foam in the interior sections of the Shuttles cockpit section pieces. The foam was scraped down flush with the ribs and a layer of fiberglass was applied with a chopper gun]]
[[File:Pathfinder 0007.jpg|thumb|Getting the Shuttle pieces ready to ship]]
[[File:Pathfinder 0008.jpg|thumb|The pieces of the Pathfinder's cockpit were not assembled until they arrived at MSFC to the chagrin of NASA (they wondered how we knew it would fit)]]
[[File:Pathfinder 0018.jpg|thumb|Nose cone fitted to the cockpit section]]