Space Shuttle Challenger example essay topic

The Challenger Explosion Even some sixteen years later I still remember the day and what I was doing when I heard that the space shuttle Challenger had exploded. I was five years old in 1986, attending elementary school and being a normal five year old. On Tuesday January 28, 1986 I was home sick from school being babysat by my grandmother because my parents were at work. I knew that day was important because we had talked about the space launch in school and planned on watching it that day. The space launch was extra special this time because it was going to be the first time a civilian would go into space and this was no ordinary civilian it would be a high school teacher named Christa McAuliffe. Just like everyone else tuned into the television that morning I witnessed before my eyes the worst space disaster to date.

Dubbed the most memorable moment of the 80's the Challenger explosion was the 80's children most memorable event. There were several reasons that the explosion has had such an affect on my generation. The space launch was being broadcast ed across United States live from Kennedy Space Center in Florida (Mahal). This launch was one of the most publicized launches due to the first civilian going into space and also that the launch had been delayed five times before (Mahal). The launch took place on January 28, 1986 at Kennedy Space Center in Florida (Mahal).

The skis about Kennedy Space Center were clear and the sun was out in the sky. However the day was very cold the temperature were only slightly above freezing. This launch was going to be the coldest that NASA had ever launched before. The time of lift off was 11: 38 AM Eastern Standard Time this was when the 25th shuttle mission lifted off headed towards space. The shuttle would never make it into space it exploded only seventy-three seconds after liftoff killing all seven members of its crew.

The video footage of the explosion is the most haunting thing about the moment. It would be played over and over again throughout the day. The footage never seemed to get any less shocking you could watch it a hundred times and still be transfixed by a massage space shuttle blowing up into oblivion. The explosion was blamed on the O-rings, a set of gaskets that sealed the joints between the rocket booster sections failed due to being exposed to cold weather. When the O-Rings failed the twin booster rockets separated and few off, the shuttle cabin separated and fell ten miles into the ocean (Remember).

The explosion would mark the end of shuttle flights until 1988, and NASA announced that civilians would no longer be allowed on shuttle flights. Civilians would eventually make it into space but not until the nineties. (Remember). The diverse seven-member crew of the Challenger made it very media friendly because a civilian was going into space.

The crewmember's were Commander Francis Scoble, Michael Smith, Ellison Onizuka, Ronald McNair, Judith Resnick, Gregory Jarvis, and Christa McAuliffe. NASA wanted to try a new radical approach by trying to rekindle the excitement that once had surrounded the space program. NASA thought that if an ordinary American citizen were involved, they could communicate the excitement of space travel to the American public. President Ronald Reagan made the decision that the first ordinary American to travel into space would be "one of America's finest, a teacher".

(McAuliffe). NASA and President Reagan thought that one of America's teachers would be the best candidate for the trip because teachers have the ability to communicate to people and get the interested and excited about almost anything. NASA's media coordinator said "We " re not looking for a Superman; we " re looking for the person who can do the best job of describing his or her experiences on the shuttle to the most people on Earth". (McAuliffe). Christa McAuliffe was chosen out of 11,500 applications because she was just an ordinary Social Studies teacher from Concord High School in Concord, New Hampshire (McAuliffe). In the application Christa stated that to her students she was a marvelous teacher who made their lessons come alive and that the trip into space would be the ultimate field trip.

Christa nor the rest of the Challenger crew would ever get to experience this "Ultimate field trip" because the crew and shuttle only made it seventy three seconds into launch. It was at the time that the shuttle would blow up and eventually fall eleven miles into the ocean killing everyone aboard the shuttle. What actually happened at launch? What mechanically caused the explosion?

The physical part that malfunctioned on Challenger would eventually be traced to a faulty O-Ring that leaked due to cold weather. The temperature at ground level was 36 degrees Faherninate fifteen degrees colder than any other previous shuttle launch by NASA (Mahal). Watching the videotape at around one second after ignition black smoke could be seen coming from the right Solid Rocket Booster (SRB). The black smoke suggested that some type of grease that sealed the O-Rings was being burned (Mahal). The last puff of smoke was seen at 2.7 seconds. Of course no one saw this black smoke until after the explosion the faint traces of smoke could only been seen when viewed on slow motion examining only specific parts of the space shuttle.

When Challenger took flight small flashes of flames were seen shot across the shuttles wings. These three flames lasted only 1/13 of a second and had been seen on other shuttle missions so they were not viewed as a problem (Mahal). These three quick flames were completely unrelated to the flame that was seen later in flight. Almost a minute into the flight at 58.8 seconds a flame is seen coming from the shuttles Single Rocket Boaster (Mahal). Only a fraction of a second later the flame was well defined and could be seen without enhancing the film. This flame began to burn hotter eventually getting to the intense heat of 5600 degrees making the External Tank hot and weak (Mahal).

The External Tank was almost ready to blow up by this time because the flames were pushing closer and closer to the tank. At 64.7 seconds the color of the flame changed colors and is an indication that the flame was being fed by some other substance besides Oxygen (Mahal). This other substance was Liquid Hydrogen, which was the type of fuel being stored in the External Tank. The External Tank actually held two different chemicals in two different portions of the tank at the top was Oxygen and at the bottom was Hydrogen (Mahal). When the Oxygen and Hydrogen were combined they would make Liquid Hydrogen a very highly flammable fuel. The flight would only last a mere eight more seconds at which point the whole External tank would ignite in flames.

At 72 seconds there was a sudden chain of events that destroyed the entire Challenger spacecraft killing all members aboard. The explosion only took less than two seconds to engulf the spacecraft. Red smoke was seen after the explosion and this was found to be the actual control system burning from the wreckage. Debris from the Challenger began to fall towards the Earth and into the ocean (Mahal). Both of the Single Rocket Boosters flew opposite directions out of the fireball and cloud.

These Boosters were detonated to be blown up by the United States Air Force Safety Commander and were detonated at 110.25 seconds after the launch or 36.6 seconds after the explosion (Mahal). The debris that fell from the spacecraft into the ocean was immense. Even up to 1996 debris was still being found in the ocean. In Coca Beach, Florida in 1996 two large pieces of debris washed ashore and were found on the beach by beach goers. The parts found were very large the one measure 6 X 15 foot rectangular section and the other was a 4 X 8 foot section maybe part of the wing or rudder (CNN). The parts when found were of course covered in barnacles and were thought to have been in only about three feet of water (CNN).

The debris did not need to be investigated because the cause of the accident had all ready been determined years earlier. However the debris was saved and put in a large silo where the rest of the Challenger remains is stored (CNN). The Challenger explosion not only changed the way space travel was perceived it also had a lasting impact on the 80's generation. It was the first time a civilian was entering space and also would be the most tragic space disaster to date. January 28, 1986 is a day that wills be engraved into everyone's minds for the rest of their lives.

This day was one of the days that you can remember exactly where you were and exactly what you were doing when you found out the news of the accident. Not many events in someone's lifetime will do that but the Challenger explosion was one of these tragic and chilling events.