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NASA has had its share of mishaps and tragedies. Things have
not always gone the way that the National Aeronautics and Space Administration
(NASA) had hoped or planned. Sadly, there are three major tragedies to
commemorate, and all are to be remembered in the same week.
The Apollo 1 Tragedy
On January 27, 1967, a routine ground test of Apollo 1
killed three of NASA's first astronauts. Virgil "Gus" Grissom, Edward White,
and Roger Chaffee died during a test and training exercise when a spark started
a fire which engulfed their high pressure, pure-oxygen cabin. Unable to escape,
the astronauts suffocated and died on the launch pad at Cape Canaveral, Florida.
Although the source of the ignition remains a mystery, the Apollo 1 tragedy
resulted in a re-design of the command module.
The Space Shuttle
Challenger Disaster
On January 28, 1986, the space shuttle Challenger exploded
73 seconds after launch, in an enormous fireball which killed its seven-member crew.
Six months later, NASA announced that the Challenger tragedy was caused by faulty
O-ring seals in the right solid-rocket booster. These seals failed in the unusually
cold temperatures of launch day, causing the booster to rupture and explode.
The seven astronauts aboard Challenger where Christa McAuliffe (the
teacher-astronaut), Francis "Dick" Scobee, Ron McNair, Mike Smith, Ellison
Onizuka, Judy Resnik, and Greg Jarvis.
The Space Shuttle Columbia Disaster
On February 1, 2003, the space shuttle Columbia broke apart during re-entry after a
successful 16-day mission. This second space shuttle tragedy killed the crew of
Rick Husband, Willie McCool, Michael Anderson, Kalpana Chawla, David Brown,
Laurel Clark, and Ilan Ramon (an Israeli astronaut). The Columbia disaster was caused by a gouge in
the left wing which absorbed too much heat during re-entry. This gouge was
caused by an impact with insulating foam which came loose from the shuttle's
external wing during its January 16 launch.
Houston, We Have a Problem
Experts have stated that in all three tragedies, NASA's biggest
problem was not knowing that it had a problem. Still, in the case of the
Challenger disaster, the space agency had been warned. Roger Boibjoly, a Morton
Thiokol engineer, told NASA that the O-rings might not be able to withstand
extreme cold; however, with little hard evidence available, the engineer's
warning wasn't enough to halt Challenger's tragic flight.
To its credit, NASA has created new protocols after each major
disaster. For example, after the Apollo 1 tragedy, the command module hatch was
changed to allow faster egress, cabin pressure was lessened, and flammable
materials inside the cabin were replaced. After the Challenger disaster, the space
shuttle's O-rings were redesigned. Because of the Columbia tragedy, debris which strikes the
shuttle is now strictly scrutinized.
Space Heroes
In spite of these three major tragedies, the U.S.
space program has continued to grow, expand, and flourish. But as NASA marks this
tragic week of remembrances, observers should remember – and honor - the 17
astronauts who gave their lives in the name of space exploration.
CR4 Aerospace Blog
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Re: NASA's Tragic Week
