1986. In other words, she would have
families of those who die. But
flown on Challenger if McAuliffe had when astronauts die, the whole
been unable to make the trip. After the
nation (and often the whole world)
Challenger accident, Morgan continued mourns. That’s because many
to teach school. In 1998 she switched
people think of astronauts as
careers and became an astronaut.
heroes. They are smart and skillful
Morgan flew into space in August 2007
scientists. When they travel in
aboard the space shuttle Endeavour. She space, they put their lives on the
worked as a mission specialist. She also
line to help people learn more
conducted video question-and-answer
about the universe.
sessions with students on the ground.
The teacher-in-space program finally
became a reality.
28
“Things started flying around and spinning
“ around and I heard some oh’
around and I heard som
s and ah’
e oh’
s,
s and ah’
and at that moment
and at that mom
I knew something was wrong.
I knew som
I felt sick to my stomach.
—Brian Ballard, Concord High Schoo ”
—Brian Ballard, Concord High School student,
who watched the Challenger
Challenge explosion from the Kennedy Space Center
explosion from the Kennedy Spa
}
People watching on the ground and on
television saw billowing white smoke as
Challenger exploded in the sky in 1986.
ONE-OF-A-KIND DISASTERS
In addition to the human toll,
space disasters also cause
When Disaster
expensive damage. Space capsules
Almost Struck
cost hundreds of millions of
dollars to build. Space shuttles
The Apollo 13 spacecraft barely escaped cost billions of dollars.
disaster in 1970. Apollo 13 was
Space shuttles are one-of-a-
carrying three astronauts. They planned
kind ships. The United States had
to land on the Moon. After traveling
only four space shuttles when
199,990 miles (321,853 km), Apollo 13
Challenger exploded in 1986.
suffered an explosion. The explosion
NASA had a new shuttle built to
damaged part of the spacecraft, but the
replace it. That new shuttle,
astronauts survived. The astronauts
Endeavour, cost NASA more than
moved into an undamaged part of the
$1.7 billion.
craft, where they had air to breathe.
After disaster struck Columbia,
They stayed there for the rest of their
NASA thought about building a
journey. They were not able to land on
replacement. But the cost was too
the Moon. Instead, Apollo 13 looped
high. By 2003 it would have cost
around the Moon and returned to Earth.
$3 billion to build a new shuttle.
The astronauts landed safely.
The U.S. government didn’t want
Apollo 13 astronauts (left to right) Fred to spend that much money.
Haise Jr., James Lovell Jr., and John
Columbia wasn’t replaced. When
}
Swigert Jr. barely escaped with their lives.
space shuttle flights began again in
2005, astronauts had one less
shuttle to fly. ( Discovery, Atlantis,
and Endeavour are the three
remaining space shuttles.)
30
NASA built the space shuttle
} Endeavourto replace Challenger.
Endeavour has flown nineteen
flights, starting in 1992.
DISASTROUS DELAYS
NASA uses space shuttles for different types of missions. For instance, in 1993 Endeavour went on a mission to repair the Hubble Space Telescope.
The Hubble is a giant telescope that orbits Earth. Scientists use it to explore objects in faraway space. On other shuttle missions, astronauts have launched communications satellites, repaired satellites, and tested scientific equipment in space. When NASA grounds space shuttles, as it did after the Challenger and Columbia disasters, this important work stops.
One of the biggest jobs for space shuttle crews involves the International Space Station (ISS). The ISS is a large research lab that orbits Earth. It is also a living space. It has facilities for The space shuttle
sleeping, cooking, washing, and other daily needs. Usually, the
Discovery docked with
ISS is home to three or four astronauts. They live at the the International
station for four or five months at a time. During their stay at Space Station in
the ISS, astronauts conduct a wide range of scientific December 2006. The
experiments. The ISS is an international project. The United crews all shared a
}
States and fourteen other countries run and staff it.
meal aboard the ISS.
32
The Hubble Space Telescope
orbits Earth and sends back
images of faraway objects
to scientists. Space shuttle
Discovery went on a repair
}
mission to Hubble in 1993.
Construction began on the ISS in 1998 and is expected to take twelve years to complete. It is being built in stages. Space shuttles bring equipment and new parts from Earth to construct and expand the station.
Astronauts wearing space suits are the construction workers. They fasten parts of the space station together during space walks. With each shuttle flight, the ISS gets larger.
Space shuttles deliver food, air, and
other supplies for the astronauts living
at the station. Astronauts who live at or
visit the station also travel by space
shuttle. Shuttles carry trash and other
waste material from the ISS back to
Earth.
The Columbia disaster grounded the
U.S. space shuttle fleet for two and a
half years. Without shuttle flights, the
}
ISS could not run normally. Construction projects fell behind The space shuttle Discovery
schedule. Russian spacecraft delivered a small crew and moves away from the ISS
supplies to the space station. But the ISS could not operate after completing nine days of
as planned. Thus the Columbia disaster cost not only human work there in August 2005.
life but also time, money, and scientific knowledge.
Astronaut Stephen Robinson
is anchored to the ISS by a
foot restraint in August 2005.
He is repairing the underside
of the space shuttle Discovery }
(not pictured). Discovery
returned to Earth safely.
34
Two astronauts work on the ISS during a space
walk in December 2006. Earth provides a
}
colorful backdrop for their mission.
} The Ariane 5
rocket launches
on June 4, 1996.
In Europe fourteen nations work
systems on Earth. The four satellites
together to launch spacecraft and
cost $500 million to build.
study space. Their organizati
on is called
On June 4, 1996, the satellites sat
the European Space Agency (ESA). In
on top of Ariane 5, a brand-new
the 1980s and 1990s, ESA scientists
rocket. The rocket was supposed to
worked for ten years to build four
carry the four satellites into orbit
special satellites. The satellites were
around Earth. ESA had spent $7
supposed to study mysterious particles
billion to build Ariane 5. That project,
released by the Sun. These particles
too, took almost ten years.
stream through space and hit Earth.
After all that time and money,
They can affect weather and electrical
Ariane finally took off from the
36
“All around me, most of the
“All around m
spectators fell silent. Two
T
French rocket engineers swore . . .
a woman sobbed.
—scientist Paul Murdin, witness
to the Ariane 5 explosion
”
—scientist Paul Murdin, witness
to the Ariane 5 explosion
The Ariane 5 rocket
As Ariane’s heavy top
exploded about thirty
tipped over, the craft
seconds after launching
bent like a drinking
}
(right). Burning
straw. The craft cracked,
fragments fell from the
fuel spilled out of the
sky (above right).
crack, and the rocket
ESA spaceport in the
exploded.
territory of French
“We’re going to lose
Guiana in South America. The rocket
this one,” said an ESA worker as
was big and powerful. Observers
Ariane blew into pieces. “A shower
could feel it rumble as it shot upward.
of . . . glowing fragments sprayed into
Scientist Paul Murdin watched the
the sky, trailing smoke and burning
launch. “There were squeals, oohs,
fuel,” wrote Paul Murdin. “All around
scattered applause and cheers as
me, most of the spectators fell silent.
Ariane lifted off the launch pad,” he
Two French rocket engineers
said. “The liftoff seemed so [normal].
swore . . . a woman sobbed.”
Smoke and fumes trailed back to the
Scientists who had worked on the
ground as the rocket passed
satellites for ten years were devastated.
through [the clouds].”
“When it happened, there was a shell-
Disaster struck less than thirty
shocked silence for at least two
seconds later. Scientists had made a
minutes,” said scientist Nick Flowers, mistake in the program (instructions)
who watched the launch on TV from
for Ariane’s onboard computer. Instead
Great Britain. He added, “We just sat
of steering Ariane straight up, the
there in silence. It is a loss for a
computer made Ariane tip to one side.
generation of space scientists.”
37
IN MOST DISASTERS, SUCH AS HURRICANES AND TORNADOES, RECOVERY
MEANS HELPING VICTIMS GET THEIR LIVES BACK TO NORMAL. PEOPLE MAY
HAVE NO ELECTRICITY AFTER A HURRICANE OR A TORNADO. THEY MAY
HAVE NO CLEAN WATER TO DRINK OR NO SAFE PLACE TO LIVE.
GOVERNMENT AGENCIES AND INTERNATIONAL AID GROUPS HELP VICTIMS
REPAIR THEIR HOMES AND FIND NEW PLACES TO LIVE.
Space disasters are different. They don’t directly affect large numbers of ordinary people. They usually don’t damage homes and buildings. Instead, space disasters hurt a nation’s space program. The country must ground other space vehicles until workers find and fix the problem that caused the disaster. Of course, recovery workers must clean up at the crash scene. But other workers have to study the crash, identify the problem that caused the crash, and get the space program back to normal.
PICKING UP THE PIECES
Recovery usually begins with picking up the pieces at the disaster scene.
Recovery workers gather up the debris, or wreckage, for many reasons.
First, the debris will give scientists clues as to what caused the disaster.
Pieces of wreckage may have burn marks, for instance. Those marks may show that an explosion led to the crash. By studying the marks, scientists can learn why the explosion happened.
In addition, the wreckage at a crash site may contain dangerous materials. For instance, chemicals inside a spacecraft might be poisonous.
Gases from the wrecked spacecraft might explode. It’s important to clean up these materials so they don’t hurt anyone on the ground.
38
} Crews recover a piece
of Challenger from the
Atlantic Ocean.
The wreckage might also contain the remains of crew members. Crew members’ families want their loved ones’ bodies recovered. They want to bury the remains and hold funerals and memorial services.
RECOVERING COLUMBIA
A huge recovery effort began after the Columbia disaster in 2003. Debris from Columbia landed mainly in eastern Texas and western Louisiana. But some debris landed in New Mexico, California, Nevada, and Utah. Workers searched more than 2 million acres (809,400 hectares) to find wreckage and human remains.
Almost twenty-five thousand workers helped in the search. Some looked for wreckage from the windows of small airplanes and helicopters.
Others searched on the ground. Divers searched lakes and ponds. It took about three and a half months to finish the job.
Recovery Delayed
NASA grounded U.S. space shuttles
for two and a half years after the
Columbia disaster. The next shuttle
to take off, Discovery, launched in
2005 (right). Everyone at NASA was
happy when Discovery launched. But
disaster almost struck again.
Despite all the investigation and
study after the Columbia explosion,
Discovery had the same problem.
Foam insulation broke off and hit
Discovery during launch. Luckily,
there was no disaster this time.
Discovery safely completed its
mission. But because of the
insulation problem, NASA grounded
the shuttles again until 2006.
40
This radar image from the National
Weather Service shows Columbia breaking
}
up and spreading debris over Texas.
41
Many of the search workers were NASA employees. Others worked for state governments. Ordinary people also helped. For instance, some restaurant owners gave food and drinks to recovery workers. Some people told NASA about debris that had fallen in their backyards and on their streets.
The search for Columbia’s wreckage was sometimes dangerous. In wilderness areas, recovery crews had to avoid poisonous snakes and wild hogs. A helicopter crashed during the search. Two crew members died.
Workers recovered more than 82,500 pieces of wreckage—almost 40
percent of the spacecraft. Together, the pieces weighed 84,800 pounds (38,465 kilograms). Recovery workers also found the remains of all seven astronauts.
Lifesavers
People cannot normally live in space because space doesn’t have any air.
Without air to breathe, a person will die within minutes. Space also has no air pressure, which is
the weight of air pressing down on Earth. Without air pressure, a person’s body would expand like a balloon. It might even pop. A person in space would also face deadly temperatures and harmful radiation, a kind of energy. Micrometeoroids are tiny bits of rock and dust. They fly through space faster than bullets. A person in space would look like swiss cheese after being hit by micrometeoroids.
Spacecraft protect astronauts from these threats. Spacecraft have supplies of air for astronauts to breathe. Spacecraft protect astronauts from extreme heat, cold, and radiation. Space suits give astronauts the same protection.
Astronauts wear space suits during takeoff and landing. They wear space suits when they work outside the ISS. Spacecraft and space suits must be sealed tightly so that air inside does not leak out. A leak can lead to tragedy, such as the Soyuz 11 disaster in 1971.
42
“I’m devastated.
“I’m devastat
It’s unbelievable. It make
s unbeliev
s m
able. It make
e so sad
s m
.
—Linda Steed, from Nacogdoches, Texas, a witne
”
—Linda Steed, from Nacogdoches, Texas, a witness to the 2003 shuttle disaster
}
A big piece of Columbia’s engine landed in Louisiana in 2003. The 800-pound
(363 kg) unit fell far to the east of
most of the rest of the shuttle.
43
SPACE DETECTIVES
After recovering parts of Columbia, NASA workers put the pieces together inside a big building. The reconstruction project helped NASA find out what had caused the disaster.
Workers also studied photographs
taken during the launch and the
explosion. They questioned
eyewitnesses to the crash. The
investigation took almost seven
months. After Challenger exploded,
more than 120 people investigated
that disaster for four months.
After both space shuttle
disasters, scientists wrote reports
about why and how the accidents
}
had happened. They suggested ways to make spacecraft
Workers pieced together debris
safer. For instance, Columbia investigators suggested ways recovered from Columbia inside to keep insulation from peeling off during launch. The a hangar at the Kennedy Space
Columbia investigators wrote a 250-page report. The Center in May 2003.
Challenger report filled five thick books.
Space Disasters Page 3
