On this day, 20 years ago...

[Katyusha]

...The Space Shuttle Challenger exploded in midair, killing it's crew. Let us have a moment of silence for those who have given their lives in the name of progress.

*Stands at Attention while some random trumpeteer plays 'The last post'*

"For the Fallen"

With proud thanksgiving, a mother for her children,
We mourn for the dead across the sea.
Flesh of her flesh they were, spirit of our spirit,
Fallen in the cause of the free.


Solemn the drums thrill; Death august and royal
Sings sorrow up into immortal spheres,
There is music in the midst of desolation
And a glory that shines upon our tears.


They shall not grow old, as we that are left grow old:
Age shall not weary them, nor the years condemn.
At the going down of the sun and in the morning
We will remember them.


They mingle not with their laughing comrades again;
They sit no more at familiar tables of home;
They have no lot in our labour of the day-time;
They sleep beyond Ocean's foam.


But where our desires are and our hopes profound,
Felt as a well-spring that is hidden from sight,
To the innermost heart of their own land they are known
As the stars are known to the Night;


As the stars that shall be bright when we are dust,
Moving in marches upon the heavenly plain;
As the stars that are starry in the time of our darkness,
To the end, to the end, they remain.

[Taurec]

I saw that live on TV....
It still pisses me off that they got killed due to a faulty O-ring..

[Circle]

I used to think it happened in 1989 when I saw news clips of the event around then... and I was 6 years old too and never heard about the event before then too.

When are those next generation shuttle coming anyways? Never?

[Katyusha]

To use a term at work, "2 Weeks"

[KiLlEr]

It's not surprising that those things do happen. Such complicated machines are being treated like commodity items when they really shouldn't.

It all boils down to NASA trying to run itself like a business. Something that you simply can't do with that type of cutting edge technology is involved.

What I mean is that a complex manned space vehicle, whos technology was still in its infancy, cannot be used like one would use a train or airplane. The technology wasn't mature enough when the shuttle was designed to allow it to be used as a ferry would (the quick turn around to fly the next mission). The maufacturing processes don't lend themselves to bulk production, and the components are too fragile to take the abuse of well over 20 years. (The Challenger's airframe went under flight ready testing on 02/04/78, making it 8 years old Historical infi). I know I'm speaking about issues that are more about the Columbia accident than the Challenger, but the quick turn around business model was in place at NASA since after the first Shuttle missions (see the mission dates in the linky, you'll see what I mean). To handle this turn around, the manufacturers needed to imploy an assemly line mentality, only doing random selection spot testing (a.k.a. random sampling) on large quantity items, like o-rings.

Aircraft have a federal regulation that defines how much time the airframe can be used for before it must be completely disassembled and rebuilt. There is even a maximum which requires an airplane to be taken out of service. Although the shuttles aren't flown nearly as much as a 747, the quantity and complexity of its systems is several times that of a 747.

So much for the "mission a week" strategy.

[HELLFIRE]

Or in a shorter way: "Destruction, blind faith and bureaucracy don't equal progress."

NASA and the US govn't really needs a sharp kick to the derriere to get
off its duff and plan for the future of spaceflight. China's recent success to
launch a person into orbit shoulda been a wakeup call that the US can't
have it all to themselves.

...As for the crews of the two lost shuttles, 'Brave Souls, rest in peace."














Regards