73 seconds after liftoff, millions across the nation watched on as the seemingly indestructive space shuttle caught fire and exploded in midair, killing all seven passengers aboard. Among those watching were the family and friends on the ground next to the launch pad, watching in disbelief as they saw the spacecraft explode before their own eyes. The disaster of the launched threw NASA into turmoil, and it would be another two years until they sent more people into space.
The mission's launch had actually been delayed for several days due to weather and technical problems. Even on the day before the actual launch, engineers were worried that the weather conditions on the 28th were too harsh to guarantee a successful launch. The morning of the launch was unusually cold, but despite warnings, the space shuttle lifted off regardless. Later, investigations found that the explosion of the shuttle was due to the rubber O-rings failing at low temperatures.
Shortly after, President Reagan appointed a special committee to investigate what caused the Challenger to explode. They found that the rings that had sealed the shuttle's rocket boosters were frozen and thus didn't expand properly, allowing leaks to form between the boosters and the fuel tank. Due to the failure of the rubber O-ring, flames burst out of the rocket boosters and damaged the fuel tank, causing the fire grow and damage the rest of the spacecraft. This caused the shuttle to explode and disintegrate, killing all seven members aboard.
This incident showed the dangerous consequences of groupthink. During this time, the novelty of space missions and sending people to space was wearing off. The Challenger launch was the tenth of NASA's space shuttle trips, trips that were receiving less and less public attention. However, this mission was special because of the "Teacher in Space" program; it would be the first where a regular American civilian would be sent to space. The mission was to receive much public attention; schools across America tuned in to the launch, the President was set to make a statement during his State of the Union Address later that evening, and McAuliffe was to broadcast a live lesson from the spacecraft on the fourth day.
However, those plans failed to materialize when the launch went spectacularly wrong. A lack of communication caused the rocket to be launched despite the risks of failure. Many higher-ups within NASA knew that the rocket boosters were suspect to damage in cold weather and that the O-rings malfunctioned when frozen. However, due to miscommunication, the people who controlled the launch were not informed of this information and thus made the decision to go ahead blindly. Another factor in this disaster was that the 28th, a Tuesday, was the ideal day to launch. President Reagan was to make his address that night, so the launch had to happen during the day or NASA would miss out on the publicity. McAuliffe was to broadcast a lesson on the fourth day, and launching on Tuesday would mean a lesson on Friday, when most children could be in school. Delaying the launch would mean a broadcast on Saturday, when children weren't in school.
The disaster left a lasting impression in the minds of engineers and regular citizens alike: technology and innovation could do more harm than good. Another disaster in 2003 (space shuttle Columbia) reaffirmed the prevalence of miscommunication and the danger of new technology. But now, space travel is seeming to be growing closer to the horizon. Companies like SpaceX and Virgin Galactic are working towards making space travel more accessible to the general public. Maybe in a few years, we might be able to orbit the Earth.
Sources: https://www.history.com/topics/challenger-disaster
https://www.history.com/news/how-the-challenger-disaster-changed-nasa
I really liked this post, it was very informative. I did not know that higher-ups were aware of the possible malfunction of the Challenger. After Columbia, NASA was investigated and found that they had to reform their safety culture. Many lessons were learned from these two disasters. To read more about it, check out https://www.space.com/19509-columbia-shuttle-disaster-spacecraft-safety.html
ReplyDeleteAmazing post Julia! I was super intrigued in class when we discussed the challenger and Columbia and therefore was overjoyed to see someone had written a blog post about it. I think you did a particularly good job bringing attention to what made this such a loss for the American public and why this crash has become such a scar for Americans and our thoughts about space exploration. The teacher who lost her life Christa McAuliffe was actually a social sciences teacher at Concord High School in New Hampshire and in her honor there is now a planetarium in Concord New Hampshire. And in 2004 Christa was awarded the Congressional space medal of honor.
ReplyDeletehttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christa_McAuliffe
Great post Julia! I like how you detailed the multiple issues that caused this fatal crash. I became curious as to how the US had built up to the teacher in space program. In Fact the US had sent multiple personnel to space prior to this program including a payload specialist, military specialist, and a congressmen! Disregarding this, the public lost some faith in the mission to send the average joe to space.
ReplyDeletehttps://news.vice.com/article/how-the-space-shuttle-challenger-disaster-changed-americas-romance-with-space
This was a very interesting post Julia. The Challenger disaster was catastrophic for the entire nation's confidence, but also for our space program's future. The Challenger disaster caused a 32 month pause of our space program and the formation of a Rogers Commission that Reagan created. The commision blamed NASA for the faults in the rocket, and if the accusations had gone further, our space program would not be where it is today.
ReplyDeletehttps://www.outerspaceuniverse.org/remembering-challenger-shuttle-explosion-25-years.html
Julia, great job on covering a powerful moment in United States history. The Challenger disaster humbled a technologically advanced America, giving them a new perspective on the consequences and risks of technology. I think your post covered that also thoroughly as well. It's interesting to read about how the safety culture at NASA changed after these two disasters. As Tanshi mentioned in her comment, Columbia changed NASA's regulations on safety forever, forcing the organization to overhaul their policies and keep astronaut safety on of their top priorities.
ReplyDeletehttps://www.space.com/19436-columbia-disaster.html