Challenger and Columbia Disasters

The Space Shuttle that exploded in 1986 was the Challenger. The tragic accident occurred shortly after liftoff on January 28th, resulting in the loss of all seven crew members aboard.

Yes, all seven astronauts aboard the Space Shuttle Challenger died when it exploded shortly after launch on January 28, 1986.

The Challenger space shuttle exploded on January 28, 1986, due to the failure of an O-ring seal in one of the solid rocket boosters. The cold temperatures at the time of the launch caused the O-ring to fail and led to the catastrophic accident.

Judith Resnik, an astronaut who died in the Challenger space shuttle disaster in 1986, was not known to express specific fears publicly. She was a highly accomplished and fearless individual who excelled in her field of work.

The purpose of the Challenger space mission was to deploy a satellite into orbit and conduct various experiments involving materials science, fluid dynamics, and biology in microgravity. The mission also aimed to advance our understanding of space travel and technology.

The two space shuttles that met with disaster were Challenger, which exploded shortly after launch in 1986, and Columbia, which disintegrated upon re-entry in 2003. Both tragedies resulted in the loss of all crew members on board.

The Shuttles, like most launch vehicles, are essentially controlled explosions, using directed energy from volatile chemical combustion to propel them into space.

The Shuttles use 2 external, reusable, Solid Fuel Rocket Boosters (SRB's) which are attached to an external fuel tank which contains separate internal tanks of Liquid Oxygen and Liquid Hydrogen, as well as other rocket propellants. The SRB's separate from the external tank, deploy parachutes when clear, and are recovered in the ocean by 2 specially designed recovery vessels.

The Lox/LH fuel is what the Shuttle Main Engines use for fuel during launch; along with the thrust from the SRB's, it's enough to propel it into orbit, and pretty fast too. Watching a Shuttle launch on TV is deceiving, since NASA's long-range cameras keep the Shuttle in view for a lot longer than the visible eye can see it from Kennedy Space Center. Seeing a launch from KSC, the Shuttle is out of view within less than 90 seconds, even at night.

The launch facility is pretty interesting; the Shuttles are moved from the Vertical Assembly Building (VAB), originally built to assemble the Saturn V Moon rockets, on a huge crawler that serves as its launch platform, out to one of 2 main pads at KSC, Pad 39A or 39B. There is a huge concrete engine blast redirection/water muffler system in place below where the Shuttle sits; just prior to Main Engine/SRB ignition, water from a huge tank is dumped into the area just below the Shuttle to muffle the noise from the engines and SRB's. The white cloud seen at launch isn't from the engines or SRB's; it's from the water being turned to steam. Without the water system, the launch noise would be much louder than it is already.

There is also an Astronaut Emergency Egress System in place on the service gantry, which is a long cable slide system that takes them to an Armored Personnel Carrier located on the ground a few hundred yards away. It's more psychological than practical though.

What most people don't know also is that the entire service gantry that fuels and provides service access to the Shuttle must be completely repainted after each launch, since the heat from the engines SRB's burns off most of the paint, and blackens the rest that isn't.

Some achievements in space exploration are:

19 August 1960 - First plants and animals to return alive from Earth orbit

12 April 1961 - First human spaceflight

21 July 1969 - First human on the Moon and first space launch from a celestial body

23 November 1970 - First lunar rover

23 April 1971 - First space station

12 February 2001 - First landing on an asteroid

28 April 2001 - First space tourist

Some problems in space exploration are:

28 January 1986 - Vehicle disintegration during launch of The Space Shuttle Challenger

1 February 2003 - Vehicle disintegration on re-entry of The Space Shuttle Columbia

The salvaged remains of the Space Shuttle Challenger are stored in a missile silo at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida. Some parts are also held in storage at NASA facilities and museums for research and educational purposes.

The female astronaut who was killed in the Columbia Space Shuttle disaster in 2003 was named Kalpana Chawla. She was a mission specialist on the STS-107 mission.

The space shuttle Challenger exploded on January 28, 1986, resulting in the tragic loss of all seven crew members, including teacher Christa McAuliffe. The disaster occurred 73 seconds after liftoff.

The Space Shuttle Challenger exploded on January 28, 1986, shortly after liftoff from the Kennedy Space Center in Florida. It resulted in the tragic loss of all seven crew members aboard.

"Ronald Erwin McNair (October 21, 1950 - January 28, 1986) was a physicist and NASA astronaut. McNair died during the launch of the Space Shuttle Challenger on mission STS-51-L." This is from Wikipedia, and I think this is what you need :)

1. The Challenger Explosion was caused by an external tank explosion. The space shuttle broke apart due to gasses mixing in the external fuel tank. The shuttle exploded and the space shuttle was torn apart.

The space shuttle was important for its ability to carry astronauts and cargo to space and back, allowing for the construction and servicing of the International Space Station. It also helped to advance scientific research and technology in space exploration. Additionally, the space shuttle program paved the way for future spacecraft design and missions.

Judith Resnik wanted to be an astronaut because she was passionate about space exploration and saw it as an opportunity to contribute to scientific advancements. She was inspired by the early space program and believed that her skills as an engineer could be valuable in space missions.

The rocket that came before the Mercury rocket was the Redstone rocket. The Redstone rocket was used for suborbital flights before the Mercury program began.

The astronauts who died in the Challenger disaster on January 28, 1986, were Francis R. Scobee, Michael J. Smith, Ronald McNair, Ellison Onizuka, Judith Resnik, Gregory Jarvis, and Christa McAuliffe.

The space shuttle that exploded over Texas on January 28, 1986, was the Challenger. A faulty O-ring in one of the solid rocket boosters caused the shuttle to break apart 73 seconds after liftoff, resulting in the tragic loss of all seven crew members.

Challenger exploded in 1986. It was January 28 at 11:39 in the morning.

Judith Resnik was a gifted child who excelled academically and played the piano. She showed an early interest in science and mathematics, which influenced her decision to pursue a career in engineering and become an astronaut.

The Columbia Space Shuttle spent a total of 15 days, 16 hours, and 34 minutes on its final mission before tragically disintegrating upon reentry on February 1, 2003.

The first shuttle to explode during a mission was the space shuttle Challenger back in 1986. It exploded 73 seconds after launch, killing all 7 people aboard. Space Shuttle
Endeavour was built to replace Challenger.

The most recent shuttle disaster was in 2003 with space shuttle Columbia. The shuttles heat tiles were damaged during launch. The damaged tiles were not able to protect the shuttle effectively and exploded killing all 7 astronauts aboard.

The space shuttle Challenger, which exploded in 1986, was made by NASA, with various contractors involved in its construction and maintenance. The tragic accident occurred 73 seconds after liftoff due to the failure of an O-ring seal in one of the solid rocket boosters, leading to the disintegration of the shuttle.

The bodies of the seven crew members aboard the Space Shuttle Challenger were recovered after the shuttle disintegrated in a tragic accident in 1986. The remains were found in the debris field in the Atlantic Ocean.