[50][51][52], The Challenger accident has been used as a case study for subjects such as engineering safety, the ethics of whistleblowing, communications and group decision-making, and the dangers of groupthink. This failure was due to severe cold, and it opened a path for hot exhaust gas to escape from inside the booster during the shuttle's ascent. [17]:51 During the recovery of the remains of the crew, Jarvis's body floated away and was not located until April15, several weeks after the other remains had been positively identified. Find History on Facebook (Opens in a new window), Find History on Twitter (Opens in a new window), Find History on YouTube (Opens in a new window), Find History on Instagram (Opens in a new window), Find History on TikTok (Opens in a new window), https://www.history.com/news/5-things-you-might-not-know-about-the-challenger-shuttle-disaster, 5 Things You May Not Know About the Challenger Shuttle Disaster. It uses interviews with NASA and Morton Thiokol personnel to argue against their flawed decision-making which produced a preventable disaster. The spacecraft disintegrated 46,000 feet (14 km) above the Atlantic Ocean, off the coast of Cape Canaveral, Florida, at 11:39 a.m. EST (16:39 UTC ). [59]:25, In response to the commission's recommendation, NASA initiated a redesign of the SRB, later named the redesigned solid rocket motor (RSRM), which was supervised by an independent oversight group. Proponents argued that another vehicleperhaps two morewould be needed to meet the launch needs of the 1990s, which would include construction of NASAs international space station, a permanent facility in Earth orbit. It starred William Hurt as Feynman and portrayed the investigation into the causes of the disaster. Some pieces . It would take more than 10 weeks to find the remains of the astronauts who died. The incident immediately grounded the shuttle program. [note 1] In response to Covey, Scobee said, "Roger, go at throttle up"; this was the last communication from Challenger on the air-to-ground loop. Challenger disaster, explosion of the U.S. space shuttle orbiter Challenger, shortly after its launch from Cape Canaveral, Florida, on January 28, 1986, which claimed the lives of seven astronauts. [1]:126, Evaluations of the proposed SRB design in the early 1970s and field joint testing showed that the wide tolerances between the mated parts allowed the O-rings to be extruded from their seats rather than compressed. [95] A BBC docudrama titled The Challenger Disaster was broadcast on March 18, 2013. In 1996, Diane Vaughan published The Challenger Launch Decision: Risky Technology, Culture, and Deviance at NASA, which argues that NASA's structure and mission, rather than just Space Shuttle program management, created a climate of risk acceptance that resulted in the disaster. National Aeronautics and Space Administration says the agency recovered human remains of all seven astronauts that journeyed through the debris field in space last week. The two payload specialists were Gregory Jarvis, who was assigned to conduct research for the Hughes Aircraft Company, and Christa McAuliffe, who flew as part of the Teacher in Space Project.