On October 30, 1997 at 0930 eastern standard time, a Cessna 172M, N1487V, was substantially damaged during a hard landing at the Salisbury-Ocean City Wicomico Regional Airport, Salisbury, Maryland. The certificated student pilot was not injured. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed for the solo cross country flight that departed the Martin State Airport, Baltimore, Maryland, about 0845. A visual flight rules flight plan was filed for the instructional flight conducted under 14 CFR Part 91. In a statement submitted by the student pilot, he reported that there were no problems encountered while en route. When he arrived at Salisbury, he conducted an approach to runway 32 with 20 degrees of flaps and an airspeed of 80 MPH. During the landing, the airplane floated in ground effect, and the student pilot released back pressure and lowered the nose. The airplane then landed hard on the nose wheel and began to bounce several times. Examination of the wreckage by a Federal Aviation Administration Inspector revealed that the firewall was wrinkled. There was no evidence of pre-impact failures with the airplane nor did the student pilot report any. The winds at Salisbury were reported as calm.