News Challenger Space Shuttle

[Edmond]

It was 25 years ago today that the Challenger Shuttle blew up on take off, i cant believe it was that long ago

BBC News - Challenger: The shuttle disaster that shook the world

I just watched the video and it still hits me quite hard. I remember when it happened, BBC news were reporting live from there and i was listening to it on the radio. It stalled NASA's further shuttle launches, and i dont think they ever recovered from it

 

[Tom]

NASA never recovered from commissioning the Shuttle to begin with. Massive waste of money.

That said, it's one of the few moments in life I can remember exactly what I was doing. Watching John Craven's Newsround in the front room.

 

[Chilly]

They had Feinman do risk estimates for the shuttle and his analysis (and if you dont know who he is, he's one of the most intelligent humans to have lived) suggested that it's virtually impossible to provide any sort of guarantee or estimate.

Congress and NASA disliked his analysis so much they ignored it and carried on without taking any of his advice on management of supply chain and more critical failure analysis of base components.

 

[cHodAX]

I remember all those 7up jokes vividly as well.

 

[Edmond]

When i watch that video back, it sends a shiver down my spine

 

[Ctuchik]

Sure its sad they died but meh.

There's more recent stuff to shed tear over then what happened 25 years ago that are more noteworthy then this.

 

[Tom]

That disaster imprinted itself on the minds of a great many people, including myself. You have no right to issue edicts proclaiming what people shall and shall not feel sorry about.

 

[Mabs]

not only what Tom said, but it set the tone for all the space exploration etc for a long time, so it had a massive effect above and beyond "a few people dying"

 

[old.Tohtori]

That disaster imprinted itself on the minds of a great many people, including myself. You have no right to issue edicts proclaiming what people shall and shall not feel sorry about.

Doubt he did, just pointed his opinion, aka "meh".

No feelings one way or other about it myself, set back for space exploration was a shame, but other then that it's, for me, a bit of hsitory among others.

 

[Shagrat]

christ 25 years ago!

one of those things thats imprinted on my memory, remember watching it happen. NASA never really recovered from it.

 

[chipper]

cant believe it was that long ago tbh i thought i was older than 5 years old i remember it so vividly

those people that died were pioneers they will be remembered as the people who gave their lives to further mans exploration it also hit home just how dangerous space travel could be.

 

[Nate]

I wasn't even born! Oh wait yeah I was.

 

[Roo Stercogburn]

Space travel to date has always been risky. However, the risk prior to the shuttle disaster had always been something that people believed would not happen. I think NASA had lost lives on the launch pad but never in the air before. There was a presumption that no matter how dangerous it got, the super-brains could always out-think any disaster.

Challenger was a shock they never really recovered from, a horrible way for them (NASA) and the rest of us to be humbled.

Nothing shocks more than a belief system that suddenly gets shown to be false. Thats probably why the Challenger disaster still resonates today.

There have been bigger and nastier events since and people losing their lives daily probably in acts more heroic than sitting on a big pile of explosives to get shot into orbit but what NASA does is partly to represent how the human race sees our future going. Like the Yanks or hate them, they've done the space race thing better than anyone to date and NASA has been the cornerstone for that. With Challenger in ashes, a lot of aspirations for idealised futures had to be re-examined.

Thats why I believe it is an important event in history, despite that 'only' seven people died that day.