35th anniversary of the loss of the Space Shuttle Challenger

Commander Wallace · 01-28-21, 06:14 PM

It was 35 years ago today that the Shuttle Challenger was lost along with it's talented 7 crew members. Francis Scobee, Michael Smith, Ellison Onizuka, Judith Resnik, Ronald McNair, Gregory jarvis and teacher Christa McAuliff were killed when joints in a solid rocket booster failed causing a catastrophic explosion that destroyed Challenger and killed her crew.

Lack of oversight resulted in Morton Thiokol engineers, manufacturers of the solid rocket boosters, being ignored in their recommendations not to launch due to freezing conditions the night before the launch of the Challenger. The engineers believed the cold, icy conditions compromised the integrity of the solid fuel rocket boosters. The Rubber O rings sealing the booster segments were never designed for extreme cold weather.

It was the same lack of oversight that would doom the Space Shuttle Columbia On Feb. 1, 2003.

https://www.floridatoday.com/story/t...ny/4294111001/

Rest in peace, brave crew.

stork100 · 01-28-21, 07:34 PM

Last Rendez-Vous (Ron's Piece)

From the 1986 album Rendez-Vous by French electronic composer Jean Michel Jarre. From Wikipedia:

"The last track on the album was originally scheduled to include a saxophone part recorded by astronaut Ron McNair on the Space Shuttle Challenger, which would have made it the first piece of music to be recorded in space. However, on January 28, 1986, 73 seconds after lift-off, the shuttle disintegrated and the entire Challenger crew were killed. The track was dedicated to McNair and the other astronauts on board Challenger".

Buddahaid · 01-28-21, 07:48 PM

Damn that makes me feel old. Watched it live.

Platapus · 01-29-21, 04:46 AM

I was working the swing shift at Offutt AFB, Nebraska when we got the news. After getting home after midnight, I spent the next six hours glued to the TV set watching this terrible accident over and over again.

For me, it is one of those "I won't forget where I was when I learned about it". I can still remember exactly where I was and who was in the room when we first got the word.

Skybird · 01-29-21, 05:23 AM

Heck, i was 18 then, turning 19, just having finsihed school since a couple of days. I still remember it. The Orbiter was an icon of my youth. The proud name woke associations that turned the orbiter into somethign that was almost invincible. The harder the wakeup call was then. Lesson learned.

Just a couple of weeks later the LaBelle in Berlin would go up right in my back after we just had passed its entry.

That were intense months.

Jimbuna · 01-29-21, 08:00 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Buddahaid

Damn that makes me feel old. Watched it live.

Me too but with one subtle difference...I am old.

Aktungbby · 01-29-21, 10:36 AM

^ It only get's worse BBY...and it ain't subtle!

mapuc · 01-29-21, 11:52 AM

I was 20 years old I remember they(Swedish tv) showed the launch live.

I remember that I didn't react when it exploded. Like I couldn't comprehend what just had unfold right in front of my eyes.

Markus

01-28-21, 06:14 PM	#1
Commander Wallace Navy Seal Join Date: Oct 2012 Location: Under the sea in an Octupus garden in the shade Posts: 5,294 Downloads: 366 Uploads: 0	35th anniversary of the loss of the Space Shuttle Challenger It was 35 years ago today that the Shuttle Challenger was lost along with it's talented 7 crew members. Francis Scobee, Michael Smith, Ellison Onizuka, Judith Resnik, Ronald McNair, Gregory jarvis and teacher Christa McAuliff were killed when joints in a solid rocket booster failed causing a catastrophic explosion that destroyed Challenger and killed her crew. Lack of oversight resulted in Morton Thiokol engineers, manufacturers of the solid rocket boosters, being ignored in their recommendations not to launch due to freezing conditions the night before the launch of the Challenger. The engineers believed the cold, icy conditions compromised the integrity of the solid fuel rocket boosters. The Rubber O rings sealing the booster segments were never designed for extreme cold weather. It was the same lack of oversight that would doom the Space Shuttle Columbia On Feb. 1, 2003. https://www.floridatoday.com/story/t...ny/4294111001/ Rest in peace, brave crew.

01-28-21, 07:48 PM	#3
Buddahaid Shark above Space Chicken Join Date: Jun 2008 Posts: 9,319 Downloads: 162 Uploads: 0	Damn that makes me feel old. Watched it live. __________________ "However vast the darkness, we must provide our own light." Stanley Kubrick "Tomorrow belongs to those who can hear it coming." David Bowie

01-29-21, 04:46 AM	#4
Platapus Fleet Admiral Join Date: Oct 2006 Posts: 19,360 Downloads: 63 Uploads: 0	I was working the swing shift at Offutt AFB, Nebraska when we got the news. After getting home after midnight, I spent the next six hours glued to the TV set watching this terrible accident over and over again. For me, it is one of those "I won't forget where I was when I learned about it". I can still remember exactly where I was and who was in the room when we first got the word. __________________ abusus non tollit usum - A right should NOT be withheld from people on the basis that some tend to abuse that right.

01-29-21, 05:23 AM	#5
Skybird Soaring Join Date: Sep 2001 Location: the mental asylum named Germany Posts: 42,602 Downloads: 10 Uploads: 0	Heck, i was 18 then, turning 19, just having finsihed school since a couple of days. I still remember it. The Orbiter was an icon of my youth. The proud name woke associations that turned the orbiter into somethign that was almost invincible. The harder the wakeup call was then. Lesson learned. Just a couple of weeks later the LaBelle in Berlin would go up right in my back after we just had passed its entry. That were intense months. __________________ If you feel nuts, consult an expert.

01-29-21, 10:36 AM	#7
Aktungbby Gefallen Engel U-666 Join Date: Jul 2013 Location: On a tilted, overheated, overpopulated spinning mudball on Collision course with Andromeda Galaxy Posts: 29,979 Downloads: 24 Uploads: 0	^ It only get's worse BBY...and it ain't subtle! __________________ "Only two things are infinite; The Universe and human squirrelyness?!!

01-28-21, 07:34 PM	#2
stork100 Weps Join Date: Sep 2017 Location: Australia Posts: 371 Downloads: 92 Uploads: 0	Last Rendez-Vous (Ron's Piece) From the 1986 album Rendez-Vous by French electronic composer Jean Michel Jarre. From Wikipedia: "The last track on the album was originally scheduled to include a saxophone part recorded by astronaut Ron McNair on the Space Shuttle Challenger, which would have made it the first piece of music to be recorded in space. However, on January 28, 1986, 73 seconds after lift-off, the shuttle disintegrated and the entire Challenger crew were killed. The track was dedicated to McNair and the other astronauts on board Challenger".

01-29-21, 11:52 AM	#8
mapuc CINC Pacific Fleet Join Date: Sep 2003 Location: Denmark Posts: 20,535 Downloads: 37 Uploads: 0	I was 20 years old I remember they(Swedish tv) showed the launch live. I remember that I didn't react when it exploded. Like I couldn't comprehend what just had unfold right in front of my eyes. Markus __________________ My little lovely female cat