Space Shuttle Challenger

Space Shuttle Challenger (NASA Orbiter Vehicle Designation: OV-099) was NASA's second Space Shuttle orbiter to be put into service, after Columbia. Its maiden voyage was on April 4, 1983, and it made eight further round trips to low earth orbit before exploding 73 seconds into the launch of its tenth mission, on January 28, 1986. (For more on the Challenger disaster, see STS-51-L.) It would later be replaced by the space shuttle Endeavour, which would be launched six years after the 51-L disaster.

Loss of Challenger

Main article: STS-51-L

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The Challenger explosion was among the most dramatic historical events of the 20th Century. In the days after the accident millions participated in candlelight vigils across the United States. Then president Ronald Reagan addressed the nation and honored the seven astronauts killed as "heroes". Perhaps the most notable astronaut was Christa McAuliffe, a New Hampshire school teacher. The other astronauts were Francis R. Scobee (shuttle commander), Gregory B. Jarvis, Ronald E. McNair, Ellison S. Onizuka, Judith A. Resnik, and Michael J. Smith. It was later discovered by NASA engineers and a separate panel of scientists commissioned by President Reagan that the vehicle actually broke up during the launch due to the failure of rubber seals in the booster engines called "O rings" that failed to seal properly. Subsequently, NASA adopted much stricter safety standards for shuttle missions. Shuttle missions resumed in September, 1988.

Related Topics:
Ronald Reagan - Christa McAuliffe - New Hampshire - School - Teacher - Francis R. Scobee - Gregory B. Jarvis - Ronald E. McNair - Ellison S. Onizuka - Judith A. Resnik - Michael J. Smith

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