Was the Challenger Crash NASA's Fault? Term Paper by Jay Writtings LLC

Was the Challenger Crash NASA's Fault?
A discussion on NASA's unwillingness to admit its role in the Space Shuttle Challenger's disintegration, January 28, 1986.
# 118648 | 1,022 words | 4 sources | MLA | 2010 | US
Published on Feb 12, 2010 in Political Science (Government Agencies) , Engineering (General) , Public Administration (General) , Ethics (General)


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Description:

The paper relates that the Space Shuttle Challenger disintegrated 73 seconds after its take off after an O-ring seal in one of the rockets failed. The paper reveals that information regarding O-ring performance under thermal pressure had been disregarded in the launch preparation and many believe that recognition of crucial statistical data could have averted this tragedy. The paper further reveals that the Rogers Commission, the most significant source of information regarding the Challenger crash, has been criticized for its lack of objectivity. The paper discloses that instead of admitting the agency's negligence, NASA dodged questions regarding the O-rings, and deferred all answers as currently under investigation.

From the Paper:

"On January 28, 1986, at approximately 11:39 am EST, the United States suffered one of its worst tragedies when the Space Shuttle Challenger disintegrated 73 seconds after its take off after an O-ring seal in one of the rockets failed. This seal failure resulted in a flame lean from the rocket booster, which consequently infiltrated the external fuel tank, causing a fire which destroyed the structure of the external tank. In addition, the aerodynamic forces quickly broke the orbiter. (Dalal,945) The shuttle was disintegrated and killed all seven crew members (including a teacher). Eventually, some of the vehicle pieces were recovered from the ocean following thorough search and recovery."

Sample of Sources Used:

  • Berlau, John. Shuttle Tragedy Debate Continues - The NationInsight on the News, Oct 14, 2003, pp 1-4
  • Cook, Richard. The Rogers Commission failed; questions it never asked, answers it didn't listen to - Challenger accidentWashington Monthly, Nov, 1986, pp 1-10
  • Siddhartha R. Dalal, Edward B. Fowlkes, Bruce Hoadley. Risk Analysis of the Space Shuttle: Pre-Challenger Prediction of Failure. Journal of the American Statistical Association, Vol. 84, No. 408 (Dec., 1989), pp. 945-957
  • Vaughan, Diane. Theorizing Disaster: Analogy, historical ethnography, and the Challenger accidentVaughan Ethnography. 2004, pp315-347

Cite this Term Paper:

APA Format

Was the Challenger Crash NASA's Fault? (2010, February 12) Retrieved June 05, 2023, from https://www.academon.com/term-paper/was-the-challenger-crash-nasa-fault-118648/

MLA Format

"Was the Challenger Crash NASA's Fault?" 12 February 2010. Web. 05 June. 2023. <https://www.academon.com/term-paper/was-the-challenger-crash-nasa-fault-118648/>

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