After the news that an IBM Corp RS/6000 was used by NASA in the Pathfinder probe that went to Mars (CI No 3,199) Encore Computer Corp was happy to announce it has found a place in the US space program. The company says that McDonnell Douglas Corp has purchased two Infinity R/T computer systems to perform data acquisition and monitoring for the space shuttle program at the Kennedy Space Center. The Encore systems will be mounted in the shuttle’s mobile launch platform and attached to the payload. The only problem is that upon launch the computers will have to withstand an acoustical vibration of 145 decibels. The company says that the units have been specially designed to survive the expected trauma, but there is no way to simulate that kind of shock, so the only test will be the first actual launch. If the computers survive, the Kennedy Center plans to order six more. If not…well, one assumes that destruction by spacecraft isn’t covered in a standard warranty.
