Colobia And Challenger Shutle Crashes

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Recommended: Importance of science fiction

Going to the Stars

Almost everybody as a child had at one time or another been fascinated by space exploration, the great mystery and excitement of the last frontier. Science Fiction led us on to what may be out there. There was a base for reality in space, though, Astronauts. Astronauts were amazing, intelligent people that were bigger than life. They were in the cutting edge of technology, pushing the limits of human knowledge. They did what no one else could. They traveled to places no one else could reach. The fascination with astronauts is what makes space ship accidents so tragic. On January 28th, 1986, Space Shuttle Challenger exploded after liftoff. On February 1st, 2003, Space Shuttle Colombia crashed over Texas when returning back to Earth from a mission. Both of these tragedies were felt all over the world. The destruction of both space shuttles share many similarities.

In 1981, the world was introduced to a new mode of space transportation. The first ever space shuttle, Colombia, made a successful test landing. From this point on, space ships could be reused, increasing the number of missions possible while decreasing the cost of each mission (1). This new innovation invigorated America's enthusiasm for the space program. After the space race was over, there was very little people outside of the program desired to see. NASA became the whipping boy of politicians that were looking for tax cuts. There were few goals in the space program in the next decade and fewer were fulfilled. The entire nation seemed to be in a technological and overall feeling of malaise.

The space shuttle awakened America. It showed we were still innovators. We were still the nation pushing things forward. The President, Ronald Reagan was behind NASA along with the rest of America. The space program was back to life.

The Challenger Mission was a highly publicized event even before the accident. A teacher, Sharon Christa McAuliffe, was to be a part of the Space Shuttle Challenger's crew. She was chosen from among more than 11,000 applicants from the education profession for entrance into the astronaut ranks. NASA selected McAuliffe for this position in the summer of 1984 and in the fall she took a year-long leave of absence from teaching, during which time NASA would pay her salary, and trained for an early 1986 Shuttle mission. She had an immediate rapport with the media, and the teacher in space program received tremendous popular attention as a result.

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