What Caused the Space Shuttle Columbia Disaster in 2003?

[@TechnoBlogGuru]

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[@robertjennings397]

Poignant remark

[@dustinmichaeledwards5616]

Well not all these things that you say are gomms

[@crotaflyingsolo4759]

@@dustinmichaeledwards5616 What the hell does that mean "GOMMS"? If you are disagreeing with me then you are WRONG! IT IS KNOWN!

[@dongregg6075]

@@crotaflyingsolo4759 i think he meant gems. But then again who knows.

[@kenneth-dk9nv]

Above you see my point.ignore one person's mistakes and do not entice more.

[@StephenLuke]

RIP Rick Husband (1957-2003) William C. McCool (1961-2003) Michael P. Anderson (1959-2003) Kalpana Chawla (1962-2003) David M. Brown (1956-2003) Laurel Clark (1961-2003) and Ilan Ramon (1954-2003)

[@KeithM-ds1cf]

My younger brother and I saw the Challenger disaster live in 1986 and it haunted me for many years. I remember the Columbia disaster very well. I live in east Texas in a little town called Mt.Enterprise, halfway between Nacogdoches and Henderson. I was getting ready for work that morning and walked into my kitchen and around the bar. I froze when the bar and the apartment started shaking! The windows in the apartment vibrated so loudly and I heard a boom. I was terrified and actually ducked because I thought we were under attack or there was a huge explosion. I ran outside after I got my bearings and my mother ran outside as well. My apartment was behind my parents place at the back of the property and I asked her what the hell just happened??!! She told me that she didn't know, but that she saw something in the sky that resembled a shooting star. Mind you, I saw nothing but a trail when I looked up, but she saw it and we didn't realize till later what had just happened. I will never forget the sound of that boom and the intense vibration on those windows, and knowing that those people had just lost their lives. R.I.P. to the Columbia crew.

[@L8nitedave]

That video was taken about a mile South from where I lived at the time. From Dallas it sounded like a loud rolling rumble. It wasn't the typical sonic boom. It was more like a series of very loud thuds then a constant rumble. It was surreal to watch it as it happened.

[@KeithM-ds1cf]

@@L8nitedave That's the way I felt watching it on television. I was just a boy, but I remember it like it was yesterday.

[@ddowner77]

bless u friend- that would be haunting.

[@FamilySmilesLifeSmiles]

😪😪😪

[@rickShultz-v7c]

😊​@@L8nitedave

[@OCMike]

Columbia was the only shuttle launch I saw live when I lived in Florida. Absolutely amazing! When it was scheduled to return, I sat outside my apartment, hoping to get a glimpse of it gliding back home. When the shuttle missed official touchdown time, I instantly knew something had gone wrong. I'll never forget either of those days.

[@hortenseweinblatt1508]

The same thing was happening to me. I was in Orlando with my wife and our young nephew, and they were already downstairs at the bus that would soon go over to Disney, but there was time for me to stay in our room to watch the news about the return, and I intended to go out on our room's balcony to see if I could glimpse the shuttle going by. ~~ I also knew immediately that "late" meant ... curtains. ~~ After it was certain, I hurried down to the bus. I looked left and right as I went through the lobby, thinking, "They don't know, yet ..." ~~ I said nothing, in the bus. I did not want our nephew to overhear. As the bus went down the road, I watched the sides of the road for cars pulled over to listen to their radios - there were some few. ~~ At Disney, as we walked from the bus let-off, some Latino grounds workers called to me, urgently, asking a moment of my time, wanting to find out if I could verify what they thought they had just heard about. I told them, with equal amazement and disbelief on my face, "Yes, apparently, the Shuttle has crashed."

[@lukefreeman828]

@Tess Stickels Stop spreading your bullshit conspiracy theories

[@esteban1487]

@Tess Stickels 👎

[@Coinz8]

​@Tess Stickels that video is fake

[@leecowell8165]

I never witnessed any part of the shuttle program but I worked on the Apollo program at the cape we had computers up there that were always breaking. Amazing that everybody got back here in one piece in that program but that SATURN 5 was a helluva rocket. It made the shuttle look like a toy.

[@glennbrymer4065]

I remember a friend calling me from East Texas. Parts of the shuttle had fallen on his property. He had been out plowing his fields. He was very affected by the disaster. He was crying and very upset. He kept repeating the same thing, over and over. Those poor astronauts, those poor poor astronauts. I was out in Califonia when it happened. It was so very sad. Im a retired US Army disabled veteran. I cried like a baby at the loss of that crew. In fact, it is hard to type becouse the tears are blurring my eyes. God bless them.

[@Jack_the_pngtuber]

it’s nasas fault for thinking it would be fine flying anyway even after the foam insulation fell off

[@Tarheelsrule]

​@@Jack_the_pngtuberthe foam insulation got knocked off buy ice during the launch they could have actually aborted because they knew this happened right after The Launch they had cameras on every part of that shuttle during a Lift-Off up close they knew what happened from the very moment

[@FishRfun]

Yep my dad lives in ne Texas and found debris in his yard.

[@RobertRagolia]

Oh god you gotta be kiddin

[@ScottPurcell]

This video was somewhat misleading in representing that the flight was considered to be fully normal until abnormalities began during re-entry. The foam was videotaped striking the wing during the launch and was noticed during or shortly after launch. There was concern about whether it might have caused damage. There were efforts to photograph the wing in orbit to assess the damage. There were concerns about the safety of re-entry from the start but there was little alternative but to try. It is true that most NASA experts voiced confidence that re-entry would be fine, but the disaster was not a complete surprise to anyone who was following the details of the mission.

[@richb.4374]

The manufacturing process of the external tank was changed and the foam coating process was also changed by Nasa to supposedly improve the foam and keep it from breaking off in flight. The changes made turned out to make things worse than the original design. Sometimes engineers should leave things alone if they work.

[@slthbob]

The omission of those facts in this explanation of events is indicative of the CYA culture... yet the video mentions foam shedding as being witnessed on multiple missions... to excuse it.

[@jamesthefirst8790]

Scott Purcell... You know what? The only reason I watched this video was to check if those things mentioned by you were in the video. I don't think it was made public, but those connected with the Mission were aware of the danger from the first day. Only months later the investigation revealed that they knew from day one about that piece of foam striking the wing. I don't know if ground control made aware the crew about the danger and don't understand why this video doesn't mention it.... making it, in fact, a semi-fake video... Part of the investigation is not revealed.

[@terryritter7065]

@@richb.4374 the point of the improvement was because the foam wasn't working.

[@richb.4374]

@@terryritter7065 I get that. However, the supposedly "new" process was worse than the original foam process and caused the disaster. It's sad that those poor astronauts lost their lives over a chunk of foam.

[@k126d]

As a teen I watched the Challenger disaster unfold live in school. It will stay with me forever. As an adult living in Texas I saw the trail of Columbia's descent only to find out a few hours later across east Texas and Louisiana the breakup of Columbia. It too will stay with me forever. God bless the people brave enough to break the hold of earth and accomplish something so few will ever experience. And grant peace to the families directly impacted by these disasters.

[@neteepava6408]

Que triste por dios

[@dicedmeat7857]

ugh, I couldnt imagine being alive at the moment of two tragic accidents of what was meant to be an achievement

[@EmperorNerox]

We watched it live in 1986 in art class I was in 11th grade I thought the explosion was cool. The teacher was crying . It really didn't bother me back then at all.

[@micheleford4282]

yeah my dad used to take me to all the launches i always wanted to be an astronaught as a kid. i was there when challenger went down and when columbia launched and for atlantis last launch living in ga though i didnt see columbia crash thank goodness. but challenger messed me up i cried its definately not something a kid should see but lots of kids were there.

[@steveburrus8855]

@@dicedmeat7857 Well I, going on 71, was.

[@nileshwable2071]

We indians have lost our "PROUD" Kalpana Chawla. May God let rest all the 7 soul in heaven proudly.

[@shameem_mohd2289]

💐💐💐

[@mannict]

Praying for the people who took your lands, murdered 77 millions and put you on Reservations is not BIBLICAL. God is destroying this white man's KINGDOM?

[@jamesm3471]

@@mannict Wrong Indians champ, better luck next time though…

[@PeteNThat]

@@mannict what?

[@PeteNThat]

@@jamesm3471 lol

[@mikeyd946]

This makes me sad. I lived in East Texas and was getting ready for class when the Columbia broke up. I remember ashes raining down from the sky. I left and drove back to Houston that day. I will never forget that day ever.

[@texman1166]

As with the Challenger tragedy, I remember this tragedy as well. Even now I still get misty-eyed by what happened. May God Bless and Rest their beautiful souls.✝

[@phil1fox]

😂🤣🤣

[@LJW55]

I hope you do realise that your god has nothing to do with it and us humans just fuck up some times...

[@nightowlme]

me too. I was only 12 then and barely understood what that meant.

[@wiuser1745]

Nobody died, NASA is a giant grift. Do some research.

[@nightowlme]

@@wiuser1745 yeh yeh and the world is flat. Loosen up on the tin buddy.

[@Ekinnajay]

I can remember everything about that day. I knew one of the Astronauts personally as I had gone to college with him. I knew his wife and daughters were waiting for him and couldn't even imagine what they were going through. I was going to school to take the final test needed to get my Master's and I had to pull over because I was suddenly sick. When I got to the testing location, I was late and had to explain, and luckily, it was enough for them to let me in. It is a miracle I passed. RIP Columbia, especially Michael Anderson.

[@rebeccastone3301]

Deeply sorry for your loss … and everyone who lost a friend or loved one as a result

[@bill1260]

where were the astronauts found ?

[@ese30]

@@bill1260 imposible

[@Redpillroost3r]

He is still alive

[@matthall8378]

Michael Phillip Anderson was a United States Air Force officer and NASA astronaut. Anderson and his six fellow crew members were killed in the Space Shuttle Columbia disaster when the craft disintegrated during its re-entry into the Earth's atmosphere.

[@rixxroxxk1620]

To this day, watching the ion trails on video as the shuttle disintegrates is chilling. Witnessing 7 heroes lose their lives is gut wrenching. I can remember everything about that day. It was my daughters 1st birthday, family and friends joined us, but it didn’t feel like a day to celebrate at all. RIP Astronauts. You will never be forgotten.

[@jorgepineda993]

Ó

[@AALavdas]

Yes, I remember that, too. I was speaking with my brother, and he had his PC on, browsing some news, and I got a glimpse of something like "communication lost with Columbia". Some time later, we saw the video...

[@Scrapla1]

I remember it too I was at work and we were watching it in the breakroom you could hear a pin drop

[@kwaddamage8286]

whats even more gut wrenching is seeing all the onlookers and knowing 90% of them were friends and family. all having to witness that live

[@Sol-Cutta]

@@AALavdas pc??? Did they have pcs then? Here in UK we had at best BBC model a and b..there was no such thing as pc here.

[@briansmith2739]

I was in my final year of high school when this incident happened in 2003, 17 years of age at the time. Came home after classes and this was all over the news. It still sends chills down my spine to this day. R.I.P

[@aeoligarlic4024]

I didn't remember it happened that year. I was in middle school but somehow i have no recollection of this tragedy

[@jesuspallares6212]

Whatever boomer you oldies these days are just weird what are you 60 something now sit down grandpa and relax don’t break a hip

[@gpt-jcommentbot4759]

you were born in challenger disaster

[@winchesterp05]

Well… I’m guessing you had Saturday school; February 1, 2003 was a Saturday.

[@arnoldtarbooz1420]

you have a spine? you must not be a Republican. Good for you

[@michaelrogers8731]

I was a senior engineer on the shuttle program, My earlier jobs were on the Midas and Samos secret programs with Lockheed Missile and Space division, There EVERY component and task was survailed by a complex inspection system to insure it was done per the standards everything was subject to. All of those launches were successful! When Lockheed joined Martin Marietta there was a reception where top management was there, I approached the Lockheed manager and asked about the inspection process on the shuttle and was told there would be NO QUALITY ASSURANCE INSPECTORS! Technicians would be trusted to do their work properly! There is a saying: to err is human! Either the standard concerning the attachment wasn't followed, or was insufficient.

[@adamsmith6843]

I don’t even know what to say. I have so many questions.

[@chucknorris3984]

It's the same way in many other places you would expect to have top quality for the safety and proper operation of a multimillion-dollar project too (as of 2022). Just remember that. Not everyone cares about the job anymore. Just the money and any way to make more. Even if it's cutting corners...

[@helenafranzen9828]

That reminds me about the engineers waving a read flag about launching Challenger and nobody listened. For the sake of money the crew lost their lives. Horrible!

[@johnnyyuma3878]

They know about the foam strike after take off. They should of Inspect it in space.

[@larrydaniels6532]

@@helenafranzen9828 More like Reagan insisted the shuttle be in orbit as he delivered the State of the Union speech!

[@SiggyMe]

That day I was at College Park Campus watching in an eatery with my brother and saw the disaster live. We threw our food away and had tears running down our faces. It was beyond belief that this happened. Always will remember. Very sad day.......heroes R.I.P.

[@SpicyTexan64]

Pre sunrise? You saw it and knew what was happening? Ok

[@mikechance3138]

Watched this terrible tragedy unfold from my front porch in Austin, TX. Initially, I thought it was a commercial aircraft over Austin. I was very surprised when I learned that it was the STS and that it was actually over Dallas. I'll never forget that feeling of horror, dread and helplessness in knowing that people were dying and there was nothing anyone could do to help.

[@SpicyTexan64]

It would be long over by the time you knew that.

[@ninaappelt9001]

Challenger exploded on my birthday. As a Texan who has friends and family that work at NASA in Houston, space tragedies are hard and never go away.

[@x1plus1x]

I was at KSC waiting to see Columbia land. The people out in the public observation area had no idea what was going on. We all just kept looking up, wondering what was going on. Most people stayed there for 20 mins or more past the landing time. It was only when we walked back to the parking area where people had their car radios turned up loud enough to hear the news. It was surreal.

[@auti9314]

My brother went to Keene State and graduated in 03.

[@donnageorge2761]

No doubt

[@stolearovigor281]

It was unreal, because it was a lie.

[@generaliroh842]

@@stolearovigor281 there goes you

[@yzmotoxer807]

@@stolearovigor281 bro you believe in lies?? Wake up

[@patkowalczyk1]

355 different people flew in shuttle missions and a total of 852 total fliers. The last flight was to repair the Hubble telescope at 350 miles up. A great achievement for the US and others who helped with missions. These videos always remind me of the great people who helped dedicate their lives for betterment of humanity.

[@classickruzer1]

For the "betterment of humanity" while Russia obliterates a free country and slaughters thousands of innocent humans . While other wars are fought daily, and children are dying of starvation, disease and cancer all over the world. While politician's only interests are self interests. Humans will never be humane.. It's not in our DNA.

[@yiannimil1]

@@classickruzer1 russia gave plenty of notice...and ukraine did away with the minsk accords america has established the principle of US policy, originated by President James Monroe in 1823, that any intervention by external powers in the politics of the Americas is a potentially hostile act against the US. and that dna continues... what good for the goose is....

[@marcot3333]

It's Hubble

[@patkowalczyk1]

@@yiannimil1 Gave notice to invade and steal their country? Both the US & Russia have made some grave errors in the past, but our freedoms are more sought after than Putin's one man show and NO the Ukrainian's aren't running a Nazi regime. Putin has caused much death to innocent civilians with directly targeting them. This will not end well for Putin unless he decides to negotiate an ending soon. Targeting hospitals, schools and apartment buildings and shooting unarmed civilians in the back? This is not 1939 and Poland will not allow for this mess coming into their country. I can only imagine how many of the relatives of the murdered will be committing retaliatory strikes in the center of Moscow and other cities for years to come. Hopefully the people in Russia won't be murdered for speaking out against these atrocities and clear war crimes. I'm actually sorry that the US under Obama posted the left leaning Ukranian leader which prompted Putin to invade. that plus our idiot president Biden whose Afghanistan withdrawal was the worst ever in modern history which Putin must've enjoyed. When you murder innocent civilians and force them to leave their country there will be holy hell to pay afterward from those with nothing to lose. And when these people number in the tens of thousands and WILL get the supplies needed to wage war that war is coming well into Mother Russia 100% for decades to come.

[@bigthunder2860]

@@marcot3333 what's hubbles purpose it's a telescope

[@timotmon]

William McCool was a pilot in my naval squadron VAQ 132 on Whidbey Island WA. One of the sweetest officers that I met. I was there when he left our command to go be an astronaut. We thought it was so incredibly awesome that one of our guys was selected to do this. I didn't pay attention to his career at NASA but a few years later after I got out of the NAVY we all see the Columbia in a fireball and even though I wasn't sure if he was on board, I immediately thought about him. Then they showed this picture and I was just crushed.

[@JOHN-ZOV]

NASA = NEED ANOTHER SEVEN ASTRONAUTS

[@MLife1000]

Wow that’s interesting thank you

[@timotmon]

@@MLife1000 You're welcome, I wish I could give more details but there's such a separation between the enlisted and officers. Some officers aren't so friendly frankly. Sort of light humor but we always agreed Mr. McCool always lived up to his name. He may have been a Lieutenant Commander or even a Commander when he left but I can't remember.

[@MLife1000]

@@timotmon 🙏

[@DavidRLentz]

My heartfelt condolences at the passing of your friend and colleague, Cmdr. William McCool, USN.

[@jasonb9890]

Sorry- I wasn’t even trying to proof read the screen text and picked up on 3 typos. Really detracts from the importance of the subject matter.

[@briankay3414]

What a speed reading exercise... had to rewind several times. So sad to again think about this loss of life and remember all the tragic losses of the space program

[@inigo5051]

And what about those horrible gigant unreadable capital letters?

[@DANN3TT]

@@inigo5051 and the nasty slideshow transitions.

[@TheAxe4Ever]

It was obviously a class in writing something too fast with no thought to accuracy. They called Kalpana Chawla “David” for some inexplicable reason. And at the time the foam struck the wing, the shuttle was traveling at “March” 2.46. 🤦🏼‍♂️ Pfft….amateur video makers.

[@e5toro7008]

All you had to do was adjust the playback speed. Simple fix.

[@ward3001]

Overall this is a poorly constructed video. Lots of nondescript pictures, some of which have nothing to do with ANY space shuttle. Hey Techno Blog, do you know that no space shuttle ever went to the moon???? Thumbs down on all Techno Blog videos.

[@Faine44]

CDR William McCool was the pilot. From 1995 to 1996 he was my Department Head when I was assigned to VAQ-132. He was a great man.

[@theknow7557]

I was at work the day of this. A beautiful day outside. Then came one of the saddest days of my life. Still remember and always will. RIP

[@patrickfitzmichael5940]

Me too. At blizzard beach WDW.

[@donsaxon1948]

That morning, my Dad knocked on my door and as I opened it, I saw his sad eyes first and he told me the space shuttle disintegrated....a year later he suffered and died from cancer...I love him and miss him more than I can say.

[@KP-zi6jx]

HOT! I bet you were cranking one out. How old were you?

[@Perfectpearl]

He woke you to tell you that?

[@docgumbo4979]

That isn’t really about the shuttle, is it?

[@donsaxon1948]

@@docgumbo4979 Sometimes people share memories of what they were doing during tragic events...if you were a decent human, you would understand that..now deal with it the best you can

[@ahilmohamed1854]

❤

[@blinderII]

Two things: The sub-titles are not up nearly long enough, and it would be SOOOO much easier to read if they were NOT all caps.

[@MrSychnant]

Agreed, you need to set the video to half speed to read them.

[@MrChopsticktech]

Maybe they do that so we can't see the spelling mistakes!!!

[@lesviljoen1584]

Couldn't agree more!

[@buddyboy4x44]

See 10:15, several spelling mistakes on just one page. Disgraceful editing.

[@christopherstuart607]

A little less dog grooming and a little more practicing speed reading , perhaps?

[@americanspirit8932]

I was traveling across country in my motorhome and I stopped to get some diesel fuel, I don't remember exactly where. But there was a piece of the shuttle right next to the gas station where I was getting the diesel fuel, it was immediately blocked off, and set up with police barriers. Such a sad day for all those astronauts on board and for the world. May they all rest in peace, and thank you for all your sacrifice period and condolences to all the families that lost their loved ones that terrible horrible day. Today is February 19th 2022. It still upsets me when I see Clips like this.

[@rexoates4484]

I’m betting somewhere in the Nacogdoches Texas area. I remember later seeing pictures of lots of large pieces of debris in the area.

[@collingood7766]

No one died, nobody was inside the shuttle. This is all CGI footage and to keep us living in fear. We never went to the moon and that is a proven fact.

[@barbarashirland9078]

WOW!!!

[@wmw3629]

@@collingood7766 How can anyone be this GD stupid and full of 💩? You’re a pathetic joke & you need to STFU!

[@bill1260]

where were the astronauts found ?

[@PavlozKapeliz]

...that was a day to remember, not only for the huge setback to the space exploration program, but also for the loss of these astronauts... people that risk their lives just to ensure humanity's breakout to the stars, deserve more than a remembrance... these are the true heroes of our times...no matter their ethnicity or origin country... they were always had my deepest respect, they still do and they will, for the rest of my life... anyone who's putting his life in danger so my kids will have a future in the Cosmos, will do also... 🖖

[@vernwallen4246]

🗽🗽🗽👍👍👍

[@Elaphe472]

How cheesy. Plus the authorities at NASA give a screw about the life of the astronauts, the foam problem was known and more than once that almost lead to a catastrophe. Same with the seal-ring of the Challenger accident. Screw them. And nothing is done to put in jail these jackasses?

[@alwaysopen7970]

Those of us who worked at NASA and were on shift at the time were shocked. Due to NASA TV being broadcast in every control center we were privy to watch all launches and re-entries. I was a satellite flight controller at the time so it was a big hit to me. Our entire staff was numbed by it as was all NASA employees.

[@classickruzer1]

Mankind was not put here to have a future in the Cosmos. TRILLIONS of dollars spent that could have been used to feed hungry children, promote peace throughout the world, find cures for cancer and other dseases, etc. Mankind is the most ignorant of all species on the planet.

[@Three_Random_Words]

@@classickruzer1 STFU hippie brained moron. The space program contributed heavily towards the technology in use at your fingertips, in hospitals, vehicles, materials, farming, etc etc etc etc Your foggy nebulous notions are a dead end. Thinking humans need exploration, ingenuity, risk, to keep their daily lives worth living, to ignite the human spirit of intellect. Putting humans and habitats on Mars will lead to an explosion of new science and tech to help solve much of what you whine about.

[@RottieMom12]

I watched the Challenger live in 5th grade. NASA had just visited our school talking about the mission. My entire apt shook in Dallas when the Columbia incident happened. My mom and I were terrified thinking we were under attack. I grabbed my 2 yr old as we waited for something, just anything to come on the news. I will never forget the sound and apt shaking. And I will never forget the brave astronauts from both shuttles 💔

[@xevious2501]

Working out of Clearwater FL at the time my boss called everyone out to see the launch. I was completely blown away that despite being clean on the opposite side of Florida you could see the launch as clear as day well over 200 miles away. The ploom of the shuttle exhaust looked like it was no further away than across the bay over to Tampa Couldn't see the shuttle itself but you could see the flame from the exhaust as well like a star climbing up into the sky. It was my first and last viewing of a shuttle launch with my own eyes. Only to later be saddened with the news of it's fate and all on board.

[@PanamaRose]

I was working at Tampa General Hospital at the time the Challenger went up. Me and a coworker went out to see the fireball go up. And we waited.... nothing. Her husband was one of the F-16 jets up keeping the air space clear around the launch site. We ran inside and put the small portable tv on and were shocked!! Sad.

[@robroskey6515]

I remember watching the news coverage for both the challenger when I was in like 2nd grade and this obviously much later. There's something about these space disasters that always got to me, even as a little kid I had dreams about shuttles exploding for years. There's just nothing you can do to stop these things once theyre in motion, givin the unnatural speed, physics and distance involved shit is over before you even know it's happening. Riding an explosion into space I'm honestly surprised these things didn't happen more often, that and the inhospitable environment in space is just death all around you if the slightest thing goes wrong. Very much admire the people that are able to look past all that and still do these things.

[@henryrogers5500]

I was 29 in 1986 and remember the Challenger fiasco clearly. But “looking past” it as you say, we are talking about a totally unnecessary careless waste of human life here that could have been avoided had the scientists and engineers or perhaps their managers who were the decision makers on the ground did their due diligence. They, both times, failed to do so.

[@frankiecalabria9713]

Me 2 Rob I was also in 2nd grade

[@paulweston8184]

I was a year younger I guess. 1st grade here Rob and Frankie. I remember I was home from school that day living just outside of Philly. I can't remember if schools were closed because of snow or if I was sick. I remember watching the Challenger launch and explode live on tv in my living room. I was all by myself. I think I remember using the phone after that, maybe mom had called or I called her. It's strange that I was by myself. I don't think I would've been left home alone. The weird shit ya remember from those days.

[@westnblu]

@@henryrogers5500 Not really. With the Challenger disaster and the O rings being susceptible to cold weather yes. This accident could have been avoided if management had heeded the warnings of the engineers. But the issue with Columbia was very different. Foam falling from the external fuel tank and hitting the shuttle had been observed from the get go and many space shuttles would return with missing tiles . Surprisingly the prevailing opinion was its only foam right? It really cant jeopardize the safety of the Ship and crew. Tests were only ever conducted after the Columbia disaster which proved this opinion wrong. Foam hitting the space shuttle can indeed prove deadly as this accident showed. Its really only luck that a Columbia type accident didn't happen decades earlier. if u watch the very first launch of the space shuttle early 80s which ironically is the Columbia space shuttle, u can hear the broadcasters mentioning foam breaking off which in hindsight is rather telling.

[@Ryarios]

I was in college when Challenger was lost. One of my elective courses was the study of high-fidelity. Every day before class, the professor would play music. Just before class would start, his assistant would come in and write the name of the song and album on the chalk board for anyone interested. On this day, he walked in and instead of the information he normally wrote, wrote instead " At 11:39 EST, the Space Shuttle Challenger exploded. 73 seconds after lift-off." and walked out. I will never forget that moment.

[@TralfazConstruction]

Those moments when the crew knew that catastrophe was at hand are harrowing to contemplate sitting here safely on the ground. The last transmission from Columbia, "Roger, uh, buh..." abruptly cut-off in mid-sentence is quite heart-rending as we know now there would be no other communication.

[@CrazyLlama771]

I am very young still but my father told me about this tragedy. Deeply sorry for the loss of these brave souls and pray to everyone still impacted to this tragedy

[@theharshtruthoutthere]

All who works in NASA, also knows, EARTH IS A CLOSED SYSTEM, NOBODY CANNOT LEAVE EARTH, THERE IS NOWHERE TO GO. They all know it, yet willingly deceive. + they are in the masonry club - that says it all. NASA deals with CGI and Hollywood basements, making “SPACE”, to deceive mankind.

[@michaelj.acosta6810]

From what I understand, NASA reviewed the launch tape early on, identified that there may have been a problem, and discussed it with the crew. They even discussed sending up another shuttle to "rescue" the crew. However, after talking it over with the astronauts and their smart people, they elected to scrub a rescue mission and have them attempt re-entry as normal. Obviously, in hindsight, it was a bad decision, but the overall point I'm making is they didn't "just discover low tire pressure right before re-entry" as the video depicts. Perhaps I'm wrong, but this is what I heard after discussing it with a bunch of USAF space guys who were close to the mission.

[@johannasperski9838]

They had to decide between a "rescue" attempt which would have taken time in which the Columbia would have run out of the ability to provide the crew with air or attempt to re-enter the atmosphere. Either decision was a gamble with very low odds of success.

[@Rizztaxski]

You are totally correct.

[@rreiter]

The full report would send shivers down your spine if you read it. Nasa was plagued by top management that placed far too high a priority on not interfering with future launch schedules and had a completely inadequate risk-assessment methodology, as well as a management structure that placed critical decisions in the wrong hands and thwarted attempts by concerned engineering personnel who raised the issue or attempted help work the problem. They classified foam-shedding events as in-family "we've seen this before, it was ok then, it should be ok now". It never got as far as "scrubbing a rescue mission' because there wasn't one. They had the ability to get hi-res photos on-orbit but never even tasked their camera resources to do so. Ultimately an incorrect attitude of "there's nothing we can do now anyway" prevailed.

[@michaelj.acosta6810]

@@rreiter Terribly sad. Thank you for the info.

[@damkayaker]

@@rreiter - I heard that the ground didn't even tell them about the foam strike. Probably because it wasn't really noticed until the investigation began afterwards. But I remember the ground deciding not to tell them because there was nothing they could do to save them. Despicable waste of money NASA was.

[@didierbardon8142]

If you want your audience to read so much text, make it legible: 1) do not use all cap 2) do not use bold 3) do not use condensed. The text should have been set Upper and lower case, regular weight, not condensed.

[@floridamike75]

Yeah and at 9:19 it's MACH not MARCH check you spelling SMH!!!

[@michaelargenta3856]

DO YOUR OWN DAMN VIDEO !!! --- IDIOT !!

[@amanchourasia9688]

Be grateful for what you're getting.

[@didierbardon8142]

@@michaelargenta3856 Displaying text that cannot be read is like displaying nothing. Who's the idiot?

[@daviddavidson2111]

If you left the text up a bit longer, it would help.

[@jcota2003]

I live in a Dallas Suburb, and remember hearing and seeing the shuttle break up over the top of us... it was a little strange because usually the flight paths were either further North or South of us but this one was pretty much straight overhead, so I had actually been watching for it to streak over us for its re-entry... Sad, day watching 7 people die in an accident that they could have done nothing about. There were no abort procedures that could have been executed, nor were there any rescue or repair missions that could have been carried out in orbit before the failed re-entry. I was watching it because I was an I guess still am a giant rocket and space nerd. I still find the science and engineering behind machines like the space shuttle, or even the Space X Falcon series rockets, amazing and interesting but I always remember that in my life I have actually seen 2 shuttle accidents and that space is by its very nature unforgiving and dangerous. And its easy for the engineers to get over-confident and become complacent, something that has cost 17 Astronauts their lives in the pursuit of scientific discovery in space. (Apollo 1, Challenger, and Columbia).

[@stclairstclair]

I will never forget the day JR was shot, We all had Dallas on our lips!

[@selvappriyaabhavaanee117]

Sir, Ms.Joseph Cota, you are right that "Engineers (and Scientists, added) to get over confident and become compalacent..". At some point every techie just grossly become the victims (actually, believers) of their perceived ability (inability, in fact) to "Control everything and execute every motion of even an atom of their "Creation" with precise precision!" They forget that all of our machines are cent per cent reliable until a small bolt gets lodged under the Mater Key Panel!! Then, "That Machine" becomes three hundred per cent Un-reliable. As if, of all the other five hundred thousand parts, that small bit of heat shield in the sole Life Point in the Spacecraft!! Its because, The Famous Murphy's Law states that, "At certain circumstances, the tiniest of the mechanical part falls accurately into the most in-accessible crevice, that is the King Pin in a Giant Machine. And that, even if we try harder to put it at the same spot purposely, it wont fit in!". Thousands of Scientists, Engineers, Technocrats, Designers, Creators, Mechanics and Novices as well, toil to their most on any Mission Critical Mission. But, their meticulous designing power fail them,to perceive that "Ever Lurking Accident". As far as I know, no mission possessed a cent per cent reliable "Bail Our Plan" in case "That Overlooked flaw caused the fatal accident!". Why?

[@philc8703]

Was in Florida on the day of the last shuttle flight's return, everyone just stopped and waited for the sonic boom of re-entry, to know they were all back safely

[@TracyA123]

@Briell Yulas yes

[@afoxwithahat7846]

Well, they had ejection seats, but then they would need to keep the Shuttle mostly intact till it was subsonic, and just discard the landing. Sadly they didn't have time for anything.

[@Indiskret1]

Like several life changing moments, I still remember where I were and what I was doing when I heard of it and turned on CNN. Seeing the shuttle breaking up made me cry and I immediately thought of the crew, which I've followed more closely than usual during this flight, especially Husband, Chawla and Ramon. My deepest respect to all the brave individuals risking their lives exploring space and expanding human knowledge.

[@leecowell8165]

We can expand human knowledge WITHOUT putting biologicals at risk! We are NOT designed for that unbelievably hostile environment! I mean look at Hubble and JWST. AND ELT is coming online in 2025 which is an absolute colossal instrument. We also need to find a much faster way of getting around out there space is absolutely a humongous place to go flying around in within our form. We consume vast quantities of consumables as a biological entity. Its totally ludicrous to explore that environment in physical form, people.

[@JerryNordstrom]

When I search for why I feel so strongly when I have experienced these events in real-time, or re-live them I think of this. I don't know any of them personally and I am not involved with NASA. Yet, we all know them. These are incredible people, people who have worked hard their entire lives to reach the pinnacle of science and aeronautics success. These are the best of the best doing work that propels our society forward in untold and countless ways. These people and these programs represent this sentiment of what is possible that defines a big part of who we are as Americans. When we lose these people, we all feel it, deeply.

[@ian0m]

Well said

[@steveperry1344]

i remember both shuttle disasters and it was a real time for life reflection. i know i felt ill and called in sick the next day at work, it was hard to take, like some other things that happened in our lifetime.

[@steveperry1344]

@Karl with a K that isn't even funny, those people died a most tragic death, please take it back.

[@FerociousPancake888]

My very kind neighbor was the vice principal of a school during challenger. She said that kids were watching the flight in the auditorium when the accident happened. Among them was a boy, whose mom was the best friend of the teacher on that shuttle. My neighbor said the atmosphere in the auditorium at that moment was indescribable. A moment she will never forget.

[@steveperry1344]

@@FerociousPancake888 that's a sad story, poor kids and both teachers.

[@myredwoodforest8294]

Thanks for this video. I was part of the team that did the digital reconstruction of the Columbia Shuttle and confirm the breakage location in the RCC leading edge sections recovered by the team. It was very sad to know we were working on a craft where 7 people perished. It brought back a lot of memories.

[@Tamburello_1994]

Take it easy, and thanks.

[@leroyrussell8766]

For the life of me, I will never understand why a space walk to examine the space craft, was NOT part of the routine. Why does every procedure that makes sense, have to be first written in blood? I'll be honest. Until this happened, I actually assumed that a space walk inspection was part of the routine. It just makes that much sense...but I was just in the Navy for 20 years...what the heck do I know? I had also assumed that they had repair materials...some sort of expanding foam that could cure and harden in space, and fill in areas that had been damaged. Again, what do I know? When this happened, I remember thinking, "How did they miss that on the inspection? In fact, you would think that with it's location, somebody would have seen the damage just by looking out the window. But I guess it was in the black area of tiles, and so it didn't stand out, or nobody ever decided to look out and actually look at that area of the wing. One last thing...I remember when Apollo-Soyuz happened, a great deal was made of the fact that if an emergency happened, the Russians, as standard procedure had a second rocket ready to launch on a rescue mission for their Cosmonauts, but that we had no such back-up. Again...why? Why did people have to die, before somebody figured out, "Hey, we are sending people into space. It's not like things always go smoothly when we do that. Apollo 13 anyone? Ya think we might want to have a rescue mission on standby, just in case?" It literally boggles my mind that really smart people need ordinary Americans to do their thinking for them, when it comes to things like this. Things that are literally just common sense, and it takes people dying before somebody pulls their heads out of their butts.

[@ADX77]

@@leroyrussell8766 yeah, but hindsight bias.

[@leroyrussell8766]

@@ADX77 I agree that hindsight is 20/20. The problem is that hindsight should have already applied here. They literally knew there were problems. Damage had already occurred on other shuttles, as noted in this video. So hindsight would dictate that they start doing something about it. All of those measures they put in place after this accident, should have been in place before this accident. But it's as if they always just hoped for the best, even though hindsight should have told them that things go wrong, and when they do go wrong on space missions, bad things can result. It's not like they didn't already have a shuttle blow up on launch, right? It's not like other space missions, such as the crew that burned up on the pad, and Apollo 13 hadn't happened. How does Apollo 13 happen, and yet when Apollo-Soyuz happens, it's the Russians, not Americans, who have a back up plan just in case something goes wrong in space? That's what I'm getting at. How much more did they need to go wrong before somebody pulled their heads out of their butts, and started thinking in terms of, "what do we do if something goes wrong?" Apparently they needed a second shuttle to be destroyed, and another full crew lost. It just boggles the mind.

[@MStrickkk]

@@leroyrussell8766 You being in the Navy I'm sure you know, if you want something done the wrong way for 100x the price, the US Government are the people you want.

[@tsahiasher]

Reading the Columbia Accident Investigation Board report, you could have a pretty accurate description of what the board believes happened nearly every second of the descent, until the shuttle disintegrated. It would have been more helpful if you put that into the animation, instead of titles.

[@robertstalnaker5728]

I read they were rotating furiously and some died from blunt force trauma after impacting with the ground. Stuff of nightmares

[@tsahiasher]

@@robertstalnaker5728 It was worse than that. They were burned and shredded to pieces long before they reached the ground. Only few remains of the astronauts were found.

[@bigbaddms]

@@tsahiasher can only imagine and hope it was over for them quickly. They were going Mach 18 when it disintegrated? What is that 12,000mph? You stick your hand out a car window at 80mph and can barely hold it. Imagine 12,000?

[@michaelengle9062]

@@bigbaddms with the forces involved, plus decompression, I doubt they were aware (suffering) long at all. sure hope not.

[@DJL0455]

They likely died of broken necks because their heads were not properly restrained, and the force and heat of reentry skeletonized them.

[@sparxy1968]

The crew survivability part of the investigation is the most chilling part of it all. The moment the orbiter lost control and began breaking up around them, they were all totally aware of it all. They had around 35 seconds to contemplate their fates (which would have felt like an eternity) as they were clearly spinning out of control. Those on the upper deck would have seen through the front windows how parts of the orbiter were separating, the atmospheric drag is low and did not slow large pieces very quickly so they stayed close to the orbiter for a significant period of time, unlike the almost instantaneous destruction of Challenger. The final moments for the crew would have been seeing, hearing and feeling the crew module's final moments before rapid decompression ended it all. They all had trained to experience decompression and the instant white cloud of mist and the sound of air evacuating the compartment would have told them all they needed to know. Mercifully this would be very fast and blacking out and it would happen in just a few seconds. In a way, I am glad that none of them had thought to close their visors. Did the more experienced crew know it was not worth it? Or were they too busy troubleshooting? Imagine if some had their visors and gloves on, they would have survived significantly longer and actually seen the crew compartment breaking up before the blunt trauma got them.

[@kulandaivelr1005]

Rip

[@Tishers]

It is unlikely that the active flight crew sat there and thought about their fate. They were busy working the problem; Each new thing that turns up, each change in the spacecraft had them thinking of 'working the problem' and trying to find a way to counter the forces that were acting at that instant. They died still working the problem. Now the mission specialists, they may have had time for those tens of seconds to think about what was happening as the lateral forces was slamming them around in their seats. You take enough G's with your head slamming from side to side and it is going to 'ring your bell' and you can't think about much of anything. I doubt that any of them were aware enough of what was happening by the time the crew compartment broke apart. ---- If you have the ability to interpet the telemetry data of what was going on, the forces were not survivable for very long.

[@outkast187]

Much love and respect to all who have made the space flights. They are all brave beyond belief.

[@bybit2554]

obody ever

[@RS-do1of]

They really are. That really came home to me watching First Man

[@saltyfox7056]

I remember watching the Columbia as the first space shuttle launch in 1981, and watching the reports on the day it broke up returning from space. Totally sad to see it happen, especially when it was completely avoidable.

[@jsmunitions1471]

Avoidable? They were doomed soon as that chunk of foam blasted a hole in the leading edge of Columbia's wing.

[@saltyfox7056]

@@jsmunitions1471 Obviously you are extremely un aware of a shit ton of things. I was following the shuttle since before it's first launch in 81, where were you?

[@AmericanFreedom911]

@@jsmunitions1471 Chunk of foam should have never broke off to begin with. Some of us warned NASA when they decided not to paint the EFT white anymore. Perhaps the paint alone would have prevented the dislodge of insulation.

[@jogman262]

@ Salty Fox I was taking my AIT at Ft. Rucker Alabama when that first Columbia flight was launched with John Young and Robert Crippen aboard. It was great to see US astronauts in space again.

[@leebronock887]

@@jsmunitions1471 And what about the astronomers who tried to get NASA to allow them to survey the underside of the shuttle with a large telescope and were told to mind their own business, this is a strictly NASA affair? I have known people who worked at NASA and they uniformly described the worst sort of bureaucratic dysfunction in the management cadres they had ever seen. Don't let political managers run a science based organization. Don't even get me going about the first shuttle blow up. Feynman's Appendix to the Chalenger Report, and he was the only working scientist on the board of inquiry, displays the insanity of those running NASA. I feel very sorry for all those astronauts who died on the Shuttle disasters. They really did not have to die.

[@nortiusmaximus1789]

It is a heart-felt, beautiful presentation, marred by Spell-Os (Thorough, Ascent at 10:13). Also, not mentioned fundamentally, was discovery of the strike damage (known much earlier in mission flight) at Mission Control. Rescue/Shelter options were considered and dismissed as not feasible due to Mission equipment limitations (no tunnel/airlock that was ISS compatible, insufficient EVA suits to transfer by line crawl, no flight-ready back up Shuttle, and no onboard tile replacement kits. I cried. We all cried. We still weep.

[@jogman262]

I still believe they could have docked with the ISS. NASA says it wasn’t possible I say bs. What’s worse they knew there was possible damage and didn’t even tell them.

[@billsmith9966]

How unbelievably pathetic that none of the options you mentioned were available. They couldn't gain entry to ISS and wait for another shuttle?? Who the hell is in charge and where does the money go?? Assuming death was instantaneous.. RIP brave souls.

[@coreyzimmerman9782]

@@jogman262 I believe the ISS was too high above them

[@jogman262]

@ Corey Zimmerman Yes, you’re right I heard that.

[@johnnales6195]

After all the Covid, CDC, FDA, FBI, big pharma, big food bull schift lies and a pathetic congress, I’m not surprised NASA LIED TOO BY KNOWING THERE WERE PREVIOUS ISSUES AND DID NOTHING!!! I’ve been to the Kennedy Space Ctr visiting the Apollo, Shuttle and Mars exhibits… ALL INVOLVE ARE SPECIAL AND HEROS, EXCEPT THE F ING BEURACRATS…

[@philbrown9764]

I was on the phone with my fiancée, who was in Japan at the time and she heard the sonic boom over the phone and asked what happened. I thought it was a jet breaking the sound barrier and told her that’s what I thought it was. I had no idea what really happened until later on.

[@SuperLastboyscout]

I'll never forget the message my long gone dad left for me when the Columbia disintegrated....hes was one of the engineers who spent thousands of hours designing the shuttle, when I was a kid whe laughed as a joke that the shuttle really did drop 2 feet for every three feet they traveled.

[@henryrogers5500]

Huh??!!

[@007stopjockin]

@@henryrogers5500 Hi. I believe the joke was that the rate of decent was extremely steep, since the shuttle comes in without power. It is essentially falling the whole way down to it's landing. Last boy Scout, is this correct? Please advise, I am now curious. 007

[@billynowhere847]

@@henryrogers5500 If I'm not mistaken, he's referring to an old anecdote my Father & I shared, which I'll never forget, when Ford Pinto's disintegrated...He was one of the Engineers that spent thousands of hours designing the Pinto, when I were a wee bloke we laughed that the Pinto did slow 2mph for every 3mph they accelerated. I hope that clears things up for you my friend.

[@billynowhere847]

How creepy was that to get a message from your dearly departed father? Did it sound like him or was it a ghostly like tone? Were you sad you missed the call? What was the message he left? Was there caller id & did you try to call him back?

[@KyleInOklahoma]

May he rest in peace, my guy. I bet he was incredibly smart.🙏

[@joaobranco2164]

I remember seeing the first shuttle landing, and the last. In spite of today's achievements with SpaceX rockets landing back on earth and sea platforms, the Shuttle was one of a kind, and the greatest flying machine ever designed. Truly epic engineering.

[@archangelliii2536]

I was in Jr. HS when they launched the 1st shuttle back in April 1981.

[@steveskeggy61]

The greatest flying machine ever designed was the Supermarine Spitfire.

[@countalucard3405]

@@steveskeggy61 sure sure whatever you say

[@Elthenar]

Russia made an interesting clone of the Space Shuttle but the USSR broke up before we could see what it could do.

[@ShroomKeppie]

It didn't fly, it fell with style.

[@lavantwooten2581]

Some context here. The shuttle program with Rockwell International's Space program had managers going back to the Apollo missions, and they along with the engineers were very conservative in their approach. The Shuttle had contingencies for a return of flight if it was determined there was a problem with any part of the Vehicle (Orbiter, ET, Solid Rocket Boosters) where the ET and SRBs could be jettisoned and the Orbiter could return and land at various locations around the world, depending on where they were in the Ascent part of flight. Foam pieces had been chipping off since the missions started, and after the Challenger accident, cameras were placed all over the place to record anything, including debris hitting the Orbiter. Furthermore, there was a group of engineers that made if what was called the Debris team that performed an assessment to determine if the mission had to be scrubbed if it was shown this debris was severe enough to cause catastrophic results during the mission. Around this time of the late 90's, there was much pressure from NASA to relocate engineers from Southern California to the NASA centers in Houston and Florida. Since the Rockwell employees had roots in Southern California with many working on the Apollo Program and other programs related to space flight, Rockwell managers rejected this move. When Boeing bought out both McDonnall Douglas as well as Rockwells space programs going back to around 1996, eventually the Rockwell managers retired and McDac managers took over, and they didn't have the history of the program behind them. So when approached by NASA in the late 90s to move the engineers, they relented in exchange of some promises. I say all of this because that experience team that looked at debris strikes did not move to Florida, and while there was a debris team, those engineers were influenced by NASA to loosen up their analysis, and ultimately were given a thumbs up to continue the mission, thus dooming those astronauts the minute they hit space. At that point, there was essentially nothing that could have been done to save the crew.

[@louismcafee7248]

I remember being at Johnson Space Center the year before the Columbia disaster and seeing a craft that was in the design stage that was being developed to save astronauts trapped in orbit. Always wondered what became of it?

[@VoxLesPaul]

6:30 "ussually" should be "usually" 8:03 "disintergrated" should be "disintegrated" 8:29 "through out" should be one word "throughout" 9:14 "march 2.46" should be "mach 2.46" 10:13 "through" should be "thorough" 10:58 "inmemory" should be "in memory" Let me know if you need proofreading services.

[@mjp96]

"Endeavour" should be "Columbia"

[@ericthiel4053]

I remember watching challenger when I was 8 years old on TV, and I remember watching this. RIP to those astronauts. Truly brilliant persons who were literally the Best of the best at what they did.

[@danmatrixshow8763]

Obviously not the best.

[@TheHiredGun187]

I was in 2nd period social studies class when this incident started and our teacher turned on the TV

[@drearystate]

They were so good, they did what no one else could and didn't make it back safely.

[@Sean-ix2tb]

I was 14 when that happened.

[@stolearovigor281]

I remember watching Chinese falling on the streets 3 years ago. Still haven't seen one in real life. Challenger astroclowns are alive.

[@rrbabygirrl4822]

Still cry as I watch this. To see it in person was so heartbreaking. RIP TO THEM ALL.

[@michaelengle9062]

Heartbreaking of course, but after 20+ years of working in a long term care facility, I'd choose this way out vs a slow rotting death in a hospital bed.

[@timhaley3459]

The "slow rotting death in a hospital bed" I can appreciate, for my wife of 43 years has been paralyzed and bed-ridden for some 11 1/2 years, and is mentally ill, with me as her 24/7 caregiver since she came into this state. But whether death comes quickly like with the Columbia astronauts in 2003, which I well remember when the explosion occurred on February 1st of that year, that it shook me and my home at about 8 AM on a Saturday morning, or slowly in a hospital bed, death is still our enemy.(1 Cor 15:26 in the Bible) Since death was introduced in the garden of Eden some 6,000 years ago, an estimated 20+ billion people have lived and died, and of which we all have seen someone we knew die, from a mate to a child to a relative to people we did not personally know. But here is what God has promised for those who come to love him: "With that I heard a loud voice from the throne say: “Look ! The tent of God is with mankind (on the earth, not in heaven), and he will reside with them, and they will be his people. And God himself will be with them. And he will wipe out every tear from their eyes, and death will be no more, neither will mourning nor outcry nor pain (of heart) be anymore. The former things have passed away. And the One seated on the throne (God, whose name is Jehovah, see Isa 12:2, KJV) said: “Look ! I am making all things new (as it was before sin that leads to sickness and death was introduced with the rebellion in the garden of Eden, Gen 3:1-6).” Also he says: “Write, for these words are faithful and true". And he said to me: “They have come to pass ! I am the Alʹpha and the O·meʹga, the beginning and the end. To anyone thirsting I will give from the spring of the water of life free. Anyone conquering will inherit these things, and I will be his God and he will be my son."(Rev 21:3-7) So, Jehovah God has given a guarantee that he will give perfect health, perfect peace, perfect security and perfect love to those who love him, to those who are "conquering" against his archenemy Satan the Devil (see John 16:33 as well as 2 Cor 6:17, 18), on a paradise earth, to the "meek" ones at Matthew 5:5 as their "inheritance". And to mention one more thing, is that Jehovah God will resurrect qualified ones to give them an opportunity to measure up to being a "meek" one.(see Job 14:13-15; Isa 26:19; Rev 20:13)

[@garyk1334]

@@timhaley3459 I'll love your god when it demonstrates that it's actually worth loving . So far I've seen absolutely nothing from it , just a stony silence . I can logically only conclude it's all a fairytale

[@KCKingdomCreateGreatTrekAgain]

You forgot to mention someone noticed that chuck hit and quickly sent a message to head honcho’s at NASA but was yelled at and told to go through proper channels. If he had been listened to perhaps 7 people would still be alive today.

[@kevinmoore2929]

Unfortunately at that time, NASA didn't(and still doesn't) have the equipment or the capability to rescue a shuttle crew. Their booster turn around time was at least 30 days, not including the time it took to actually connect the shuttle to the main tank. SpaceX MAYBE could do it now. NASA probably would have had to have the shuttle crew dock with the ISS but then supplies would become a MAJOR issue depending on IF Russia could have launched a Soyuez capsule loaded with supplies. It's unknown when the Orion vehicle will be mission capable at this moment

[@KCKingdomCreateGreatTrekAgain]

@@kevinmoore2929 The space station would have been the best option with rationing of supplies and yes the Russians could have gotten a Soyuz capsule soon enough given the emergency situation I imagine 14 days would not be out of they question.

[@michaczerniak4120]

Exactly. If this came across less gullible population people responsible for this would be in jail for a very very long time. This was a murder.

[@tonycritcher3419]

Why were we watching Endeavour animation about Columbia? And what did the astronaut on the moon have to do with it all?

[@58biggles]

And why were the people in Mission Control wearing masks?

[@tonycritcher3419]

@@58biggles I missed that one! thank you!

[@meljahic3624]

In time on fake moon landing, they have better tehnology, then today...

[@tonycritcher3419]

They knew the Shuttle was damaged, so could have tried a rescue mission or letting them know to try and 'crab' the craft to try and reduce heat on the damaged side. But I doubt it would have worked. I believe moon landings were real, or Tom Hanks would have been a role down failing to get there in Apollo 13.

[@raven_fpv]

The dude did what he could with what he had.....THAT'S why. Give the man a break instead of critiquing his work.

[@CharlesSmith-io9fp]

Seeing this brings back the vivid memory of the Space Shuttle Challenger explosion. I was working in the middle of the state at the time. Our whole work crew stopped to watch liftoff. When it blew up we had a clear unobstructed view. Seconds after it happened and almost two minutes before it was officially announced, we all realized we had just witnessed the worst disaster in space flight history. After 36 years I can still clearly see this in my mind. And this video brought it all back. I still hurt inside thinking of the lives lost in mere seconds with these two tragedies .

[@trevorjameson3213]

Same here. When the Challenger disaster happened, I was at work driving to a job in north Dallas, Tx. when they came on the radio and announced it. And when the Columbia accident happened, it was early Saturday morning and I had just walked outside. I hear a loud boom, followed by several more booms. Looked around, then looked up and saw the multiple streaks going straight overhead. Absolutely awful feeling, knowing what was going on. Some of the debris that had come off further west, landed just west of here, and the majority of it landed way over in East Texas, about 150 miles from here. Both disasters are forever burned in my memory.

[@ponsau]

I was in grad school at the time in Dallas. I was out walking my dog the morning it happened. Heard the boom. Watched the debris streak across the sky. Watched the whole thing, not knowing exactly what I was seeing until right after.

[@jimmyclimer594]

If that's the one in the 80s I was in kindergarten watching it live because a teacher was on board.

[@edwardkrzynowek241]

@@jimmyclimer594 The 80's disaster was Challenger. I watched it on TV. The Columbia disaster was in the early 2000's. Those are my memories. Hope I steered you right.

[@CharlesSmith-io9fp]

@@jimmyclimer594 Yes sir. That was Christa McAuliffe. First civilian to be picked for a space flight. From reports, all of her students were watching as well. It was a shock to us all, but to realize it was your teacher that died is at a whole different level. I want to see an astronaut on Mars before I die. I'll probably miss the aliens by a few years though. Darn it.

[@markscarborough7580]

My parents found a small piece of the shuttle on our ranch. It was heartbreaking.

[@lozgod]

The accomplishments it takes just to be an astronaut are extraordinary. Then you become an astronaut to be even more accomplished. Hard working dedicated people. RIP.

[@maulekuul]

First time I'd heard the Emergency Broadcast System alert followed by actual instructions -- to be aware of and avoid Space Shuttle debris. That was in fact how the news broke for many, including me. I was traveling from Austin to Tyler, Texas at the time of the disaster. Growing up in the cold war, you always feared the EBS would be announcing global thermonuclear war. To hear it used for real was bone chilling.

[@billbombshiggy9254]

Bruh, you from Texas and never heard it with instructions? Methinks you're forgetting every tornado warning ever.

[@lalaithan]

@@billbombshiggy9254 Maybe they're a move-in.

[@dannylance5212]

My heart goes out to the families of those brave astronauts.

[@abab-ml1ym]

Brave.....an acceptable discription...

[@dannylance5212]

@@abab-ml1ym I could only imagine the guts it must take to be a astronaut. Such courage, and bravery. My hat goes off to them all.

[@mr.blackhawk142]

Too bad yer 'brain' went 'out' LONG ago!

[@IshadaKatzteilov]

Why, because they're all still alive? Look em up. Still alive.

[@scottgibson6735]

@@IshadaKatzteilov You despicable POS,they're all dead l

[@TracyA123]

What in the world does two people wearing fake spacesuits in a cheap fx spaceship have to do with the Columbia tragedy?

[@algodwin727]

Agreed. The fake footage is inappropriate.

[@Transilvanian90]

Almost all the imagery in this video, apart from the actual footage of Columbia's launch and reentry, is utter trash.

[@TracyA123]

@@Transilvanian90 Yup! What a waste of 5 minutes

[@kellyobrien1387]

I have on my wall a completely unique photo of the Columbia on the back of the 747 that carried it to Florida after the first flight. It stopped at Barksdale AFB, Shreveport/Bossier City, La. in April1982. My Photo shows the Shuttle pointed directly at me as I was on a 7 story hangar roof at the time. It's an awesome picture. It is a pic I love dearly as it graces my wall. I have turned down paltry offers by NASA to buy it. But this is indeed the best photo of my life, and I was just 21 when I took that shot. I followed this and other other shuttles throughout their service time. I watched the Challenger's last launch. I missed the Columbia's f9inal reentry though. Kinda glad I did. Wish I could show this to you all here.

[@peterdarr383]

Have it digitized and share it with other enthusiasts. You OWN IT - - right?? NASA is owned by Americans. I give you "permission" !!

[@jonathanpatterson2502]

I remember being woken up by my brother at 6 am after having been on an exhausting field exercise in the Marines to tell me the news. Crazy thing is he actually used to help construct the fuel tank in New Orleans and to this day I have a piece of that fuel tank foam

[@ChrisZwolinski]

Remember watching the launch from Disney world and couldn’t believe when it broke up on reentry. You would think they would have learned more from Challenger, but when money and pride are involved, people go out the window.

[@Fucktheworld14020]

Yes agreed seems like a lot of the same mistakes were made smh

[@spooner171]

And they knew they were going to die. For me that makes it worse then the Challenger.

[@geniousgeorge4973]

They could have went to the iss!

[@geniousgeorge4973]

@@spooner171 they could have went to the iss. But they did not know the foam had struck the shuttle . Nasa never told them! They could have come back with the iss crew or the russians! Nasa even refused to roll the orbiter to examine the damage with satellites!

[@Kaynos]

Can't believe this happen almost 20 years ago already. I still remember this like it was yesterday.

[@mjp96]

I woke up happy it was Saturday - then I put on the TV 😥

[@satishbennur7916]

My tribute to those 7 heroes on the mission. How helpless they may have felt in those final moments when they lost control over the spaceship.

[@talkswithvigy7860]

@@brandonbp122 for us indians, kalpana is a hero for the ages! She made us believe that we no dream is too big if you believe in yourself!

[@sexobscura]

are they only 'heroes' in your opinion because of the tragic fate they experienced call me old fashioned, but I thought a hero was defined by an action they purport on a situation

[@DavidDudley-yy2ui]

@@brandonbp122 there is a lameness to your existence.

[@DavidDudley-yy2ui]

@@brandonbp122 I went to medical school with one of those heroes. You are tasteless.

[@LgiovanniF]

​@@sexobscura then you are an idiot. Going to space is a million to one survival at any time... success has numbed you to the fact that they enter an environment perpetually trying to kill them. Take off and return are some of the most dangerous situations a human can be in and they do it so I can read your contrarian, look how alt thought bs.

[@paulaaron9109]

I was sleeping when this all happened, but I remember hearing the booms. It wasn't until a couple of hours later when I woke up and turned on the TV that I found out what happened and what the booms were. Had I known the shuttle was coming in that morning, I would have been up to watch it and would have seen this tragic event firsthand. RIP to them all.

[@alecx2899]

8th grade science teacher walked back into the classroom crying. He was one of the finalists to ride in the Columbia. Newburgh, Indiana.around 84,85.

[@barrymccokinner7773]

Why were the controllers all wearing facemasks? 😂😂😂😂 COVID THEN TOO!?!😂

[@tristanavakian]

The misspellings, use of the Endeavor simulation and the errors in timeline render this video an unwatchable waste of time.

[@PascalMeyer-f1h]

Agreed, but they did make sure all the useful idiots shown in the "mission control center" were wearing masks, so that was an important detail they were sure not to miss. 2003 was a long time before many brains were broken in 2020 Techno Fail.

[@oldsoulshow]

"Traveling at March 2.46" 😄

[@Nightrun007]

@@oldsoulshow IKR? When you travel at speeds measured in months, that seems slow enough to be safe! Go figure.

[@MadMonk67]

Yeah, this video is total dog crap.

[@Nightrun007]

Despite the mistakes it is still an honorable tribute to our lost heroes and is bringing awareness to their sacrifice all these years later. It hardly means it is a 'waste of time.'

[@akennas]

You really could have labeled the animated space shuttle "Columbia" instead of "Endeavour", just saying...

[@KINGMAT692]

Just enjoy the video

[@akennas]

@@KINGMAT692 - Hard to enjoy when it is such a sloppy melange of clickbait...

[@jeffreyli4879]

@@akennas there were so many typos. Shows a lack of effort

[@Transilvanian90]

@@KINGMAT692 Kinda hard to enjoy a video that's made in such poor quality.

[@BUNKERJR53]

May the crew "Rest in Peace". I hope and pray they never knew what hit them. It was a terrible and extremely sad day in history. The laid their lives on the line for science. God bless them all.

[@uberkloden]

The concussion of explosion stunned them. They rode that baby fully conscious until impact with Ocean. Space, a hostile environs

[@ghostwrench2292]

@Fred Taylor - you watched the wrong video. This one was about the shuttle that disintegrated over Texas upon reentry in 2003. I think your comment is for the Challenger explosion in the ‘80’s.

[@williamweir2744]

I'm sure they All died instantly God rest their soul

[@robertb1478]

@@williamweir2744 If you read the accident report you'll find all 7 did not have their visors closed, (Normally left open due to increased O2 level in the cabin if they did close them) On structural failure they would have passed out, it was also found the shoulder restraint belts did not restrain them and they all violently bashed into anything in front of them as the craft tumbled, slamming them back and forth. Heart beats were recorded during this stage, finally when the crew capsule broke apart, G forces and thermal events ended any life. They actually had time to close their visors and seal their suits, after reading the report I always wondered if they chose not to close them. They all knew the physics and that once things went south they were going to die, better knocked out than in a sealed suit.

[@eddarby469]

They knew before they began re-entry procedures that they might burn up. All the time it got warmer and then hotter they knew what was going to happen. The only important thing I learned from this video is that they lost hydraulics well before things got really bad. The pilots probably knew at that point, with questions about heat shielding and loss of control, they were going to burn up. I can only wonder when the whole crew knew.

[@haytguugle8656]

Aside from the visual errors mentioned (wrong shuttle, aviation nav lights, lower than accurate altitude...), it is extremely difficult to take seriously a document with so many grammatical and spelling errors. These are very simple things to get right. If there seems to be so many simple errors, it is hard to imagine that much greater care would have been given to the actual content of the presentation. Because these were people that took huge risks for the good and gain of scientific advancement for of all humanity, and ultimately paid the price of their lives in the process, it would be much appreciated as properly respectful to redo this video making sure the honor due them is given. Thank you.

[@MrPolymers]

I was thinking the same thing the other day when I briefly watched the video. I remember that Saturday morning well. My son was taking art lessons and as I waited for him, I stopped in a local McDonalds and there everyone was glued to the TV they had for the customers.

[@raven_fpv]

WTF is wrong with you? You must be one of them left wing snowflakes that have no life and lives in your parents basement.....Instead of criticizing this video, how about go criticize your parents for raising a snowflake that has no respect and likes to piss in peoples cornflakes.....idiot. People like you is why this world is so fucked up....

[@raphaelklaussen1951]

@@raven_fpv You sound like an illiterate Trump worshiper. The video is not only an insult to the people who lost their lives, it is also a cheap attempt at making a "documentary" using other people's work

[@haytguugle8656]

@@raphaelklaussen1951 There are always those who, instead of responding with sensible rebuttal, are quick with ad-homonym replies of which the know absolutely nothing about. I can't say for sure, but I think your assessment could be well founded. :-)

[@raphaelklaussen1951]

@@haytguugle8656 There are many "parasitic" channels on KZbin that regurgitate content from other sources without any factual knowledge, this is one of them.

[@theophilhist6455]

Thank you for this tribute, I actually found myself near tears. The crew was so professional and died doing what every well trained astronaut would hope to accomplish....give the next generation insight to the "beyond".

[@jurgenvandenbergh5082]

If you can read all of that text without pausing, you are superhuman.

[@Pianissimo1970]

Thank you...

[@uhclem50]

A proofreader would be a good addition to the staff of Techno Blog.

[@floridamike75]

Yup like at 9:19 it's MACH not MARCH check your spelling SMH!!!

[@zedzedski7382]

@@floridamike75 *your lol, smh...

[@owen7081]

at 9:30 bear should be bare.

[@newtcrew]

@@floridamike75 Also (same time stamp), it's 'traveling', not 'travelling'.

[@floridamike75]

@@zedzedski7382 thanks lol

[@AFreeThinkingDawg09]

When brilliance and pride get in the way of safety. That 2x nasa engineers ignored issues that ultimately cost many lives. When you’re dealing in lives it’s always your duty check, double check, and recheck.

[@VB-ob6bl]

Even with check, recheck , mega-retcheck, there will be always a risk in that kind of hight technology. We are in spécial world dealing dealing every day with death. They have been all so amazing, that I will never forget their sacrifices, they are humanity heroes.

[@marc-andrestefani4550]

@@VB-ob6bl, does that exonerate NASA not to have managed an already known recurrent foam problem? Soon after this deadly disaster evident procedures have been officialized. It probably could have and then should have been done far earlier. Maybe too much costly and some people at NASA decided to delay them, gambling on crew members lives. If that’s the case, I hope it’s not, these people hold a big and heavy guiltiness.

[@lawnservjoe]

NASA let her come in to Heavy. End of story.

[@AFreeThinkingDawg09]

@@lawnservjoe heavy? Mass or weight had nothing to do with the catastrophic failure. The shuttle entered the atmosphere damaged and incapable of landing. Which is why after this occurred they started inspecting the shuttle in space before attempting to make reentry. It doesn’t change the fact that this was a KNOWN issue and point of failure, just like the frozen O-rings from decades before. Instead of acting on the issue they essentially ignored it so missions wouldn’t be delayed. It almost cost the nation it’s space program

[@andrewrobinson8305]

The trouble is though, it’s very easy to be wise & critical with the benefit of hindsight.

[@LostPr3acher]

I was 16, it was my mother’s birthday, & I was soloing for my glider pilot’s license in an L-23 Blanik soar plane the next day at Greater Houston Soaring Association Gliderport. It was very sobering to make my first solo flight the next day in light of the disaster I’d just witnessed. My family lived in Houston at the time. My dad explained what had happened to all of us kids, and we all talked about it amongst ourselves for most of the day. It was suddenly very scary to think of flying by my lonesome. I remember hoping it wasn’t bad luck to fly, but I did it regardless. Later that year in October, I joined the Marine Corps & was so focused on the pre-bootcamp MEPS program that I never flew again. I spent 8 years in the Corps, but I badly wish to fly again after seeing this, just as a personal attempt to get back into sharing the skies with amazing, dedicated people such as these, even if it’s not a shuttle, & only in a small fiberglass aircraft. I will never ever forget that day. ☘️💚☘️

[@chemiker494]

I remember following Columbia's first flight in April 1981 as a 10-year old boy, and there were some fears back then that the space shuttle's heat shield would not withstand the stresses during launch, and the orbiter would burn up in the atmosphere during reentry. But those were proven wrong at the time, as only a few tiles were damaged, and this was deemed acceptable

[@flinch622]

I have seen the same tech up close [different application] and the challenge always was keeping them in place. Intense heat + pressure pushes anchoring methods to the edge.

[@robadams5799]

Sounds like you're about my age. 🙂I turned 12 about a week after STS-1.

[@wendycarothers]

I watched that first flight and the unfortunate last flight. If I remember correctly they were going to retire Columbia soon after this particular flight. Ironic in my book

[@texasred2702]

The video of Mission Control during the Columbia reentry is one of the most somber and affecting historical documents I've ever seen. You watch in real time as the mission goes from routine to uncertainty to tragedy and disaster, and it's just a bunch of people sitting in front of monitors, no effects or music.

[@ruthnagarya2028]

I was at the Cape watching Challenger in 1986 and it was unbelievable. We kinew istantly it had blown up with the entire crew and, frankly, had a hard time understanding what we witnessed, it was tragic. It shows you that without prayer and a commitment to God very little totally succeeds.

[@badlarry172]

God ? a commitment to God ? come on

[@markjulius2006]

Next time give your viewers more time to read the text!

[@packerbacker64]

Or you could just pause it?

[@georgehegarty7277]

They are all heroes in my book, " to be human is not a fact, but a task " they passed with full honors

[@stevegolofaro9467]

These 7 brave astronauts and the first 7 who died in 86 when the Challenger disaster happened will all be immortalized as hero's of space exploration in history.

[@henryrogers5500]

Heroes who I’m sure would much rather not be, had they been fully conscious and wide awake as they were burning alive in a tiny capsule. SHEESH!!!

[@joshuabates7424]

To know so many more missions were in jeopardy by several issues is terrible. NASA did not do the right thing throughout the entire program.

[@kdub1242]

Yup. It's like what Richard Feynman said many years earlier in his report for the Challenger disaster: "For a successful technology, reality must take precedence over public relations, for Nature cannot be fooled."

[@junefields1512]

Salute to the crew

[@redblade8160]

Techno Blog. You edited out the "Columbia Disaster", and then you showed the "Endeavour" orbiter. Make your mind up!

[@DanOKC]

With the ice and foam shedding problems, we are lucky we did not lose them all.

[@123sushilrathi]

I remember watching this on Live TV. The news channels were celebrating Kalpana Chawla, the first Indian woman in space. They were interviewing their relatives as to how happy they were on their daughter's successful return. They had run thst news all day. There was a live countdown on when Columbia will make the final touchdown. But then everything changed in a matter of minutes. First they showed, that they lost communication with Columbia. Then within a couple of minutes the video of columbia disintegrating was Live on all screens. I remember it so clearly, I was all teary eyed.

[@SanolandSanoland]

You can't fly in those rockets, the noise level is so high that you liquefy. Strange, 6 out of 7 cosmonauts who were on Discovery are alive. don't believe everything you see, especially Nasa. Look for Stanley Kubrick's film in which he reveals how he directed the moon landings.

[@charliedaubitz2046]

NO one says this: WHY : When you see that orange liquid fuel tank on the Shuttle, that's rotten foam, turned orange by UV rays. That's part of why it was discontinued. New, it was tan. it was kept in a field, open to the weather and Sun. Why wasn't it covered and protected from UV rays before being used.

[@tarn1135]

That moment when you realize the entire crew is younger then you are now and did and seen more then you have.

[@MrSeekerOfPeace]

I was only a child when this happened. But I vividly remember my father telling me about it. The look (of stress and sadness) on his face and the tone of his voice saying they picked up pieces of body parts in the Texan desert.

[@Penguin_of_Death]

I think you mean vividly, not visibly...

[@NoGMOGod]

I just hope to God they died quickly.

[@NoGMOGod]

@@Penguin_of_Death He did say "vividly".

[@johnmitchell2741]

that was a fine thing to tell a child

[@napalm1101]

The parts of Texas they found debris in isn't in the desert.

[@craigsimons817]

All these years on, my thoughts are with the loved ones of those lost that terrible day.

[@sprucy434]

I remember waking up and hearing it on the morning news shows that it happened overnight...how sad for them and their families.

[@JulesUS8386]

I was at home that day watching in North Texas. As i saw this vehicle break apart I was so heartbroken. The Pilot Willie McCool went to High School with my Husband and I. This was devastating to watch!! We like to think when we can actually see the vehicle that the crew is ok. Not this time. 😔 My heart sank for all of this crew and their family as well as friends. I could no longer watch space launches or landings. However, I was doing celestial photography out back one day and caught one of the SpaceX vehicles in frame. I wasn’t even out looking for that one. Very interesting find on in my view finder. My thoughts and prayers to those who have lost their lives in space programs. I understand crew members are well aware this is a possibility. It’s not any easier for those left behind.

[@garethwest9069]

The heaven, even the heavens, are the Lord’s; But the earth He has given to the children of men. - Psalm 115:16 We were not meant to go way up there.

[@tanner1985]

@@garethwest9069 Really are you saying this?

[@zachpowers4884]

Only praise belongs to those who dare to explore. I'm reminded of an old adage (forgive me for the paraphrase): "ships may look majestic sitting in the harbor, but that's not what ships were made for." Even the Americas would not have been discovered if not for explorers who dared put all behind and reach for the next horizon --- come what may.

[@TheMeanGreenGoblin]

I always found it odd, Rick Husband was from Amarillo, Willie Mccool was from Lubbock. Both were piloting the shuttle when it disintegrated. The shuttle started to break apart over I27 between Lubbock and Amarillo. That's where some of the first debris were found. Such a weird coincidence.

[@Leebetter]

@@TheMeanGreenGoblin Maybe not. I didn't realize this, but remember when it happened, as I am in west Texas. Sometimes, it seems, things just come full circle. Almost as it was meant to be. Very tragic event, just like the Challenger disaster when I was a young child. Columbia was an old ship, but still worthy of the air. It's disappointing NASA didn't address the foam issue sooner, but we'll never have to witness another Shuttle disaster again. God Bless them all for their service and bravery.

[@marcweeks9178]

You should have had someone proofread your captions, because the errors were too distracting. Otherwise, the graphics were good and it was informative.

[@gordyminiman]

Also,its Endevour thats been shown all the time!!!!

[@brandonflarity]

And the people in the flight control room were wearing masks like the pandemic was happening in 2003.

[@paulprovenzano3755]

heartache that is never quite gone. God rest the crews of Columbia and Challenger.

[@colleenpell2817]

did they ever find the bodies of the space shuttle Columbia?

[@paulprovenzano3755]

@@colleenpell2817 no. They didn’t find 70% of the inorganic matter composing the shuttle. Once the crew capsule breaks up in, there is no way for the organic bodies within to survive the fiery reentry.

[@FalconFlyer75]

@@paulprovenzano3755 hope it was quick and painless for the poor crew at the very least

[@kurtrosado3245]

I've been a space exploration fan since Project Gemini. My favorite Apollo missions are 11 & 15, because they flew during the summer school breaks. I got to watch every moment when the cameras were transmitting. Like everyone else, I had a hard time believing that Challenger had failed. I knew NASA would do everything possible to keep the future flights safe. By and large, they did recover. On a Sunday, after church, I took my family to a pizza parlor... Televisions weren't showing the usual sports...I first thought it was some documentary on Challenger, but the debris being filmed was on land...I asked the girl at counter about it. She said: "You haven't heard? The Shuttle disintegrated on coming back to earth." That one hurt me. It's been years ago, and that hurt's still there...

[@MsHighcee]

I was living in East Texas at the time and a loud rolling boom woke me, and something small sturck my roof. I also remember discussion at launch about some small pieces coming off. The crew knew there was danger to be faced entering the atmosphere. Heart breaking.

[@shorty1861]

I was living in the Dallas-Ft. Worth area at the time and was also awakened by the loud rolling boom, which made our house shake.

[@stevenserna910]

Yup, lived in Carrollton, TX at that time of Challenger, same thing. Early morning on a Sunday. Rumble boom noise. Thought it was just a bad wreck on the George Bush (lived in an apartment close to that hwy.). Pretty sad losing any folks that's doing space stuff. Child of the 60's/70's. Space stuff always been exciting to me. Hell, I remember being in school (3rd grade) when Apollo 13 happened. They sent us home. Next day teacher had us write a little report on why space exploring is both brave and dangerous. Glad at least Apollo 13 made it home. Sad still for the families that lost loved ones on Challenger.

[@ronaldholmes8525]

First off , you have to be practically a speed reader to read a lot of what is displayed on the screen during this video. The space shuttles were basically death traps and, indeed, did send 14 astronauts to an early death.because of faulty designed components ....One disaster going up and one disaster coming down . I'm glad the space shuttle program is over or, no doubt, more disasters would have followed. It's ironic that one of the Columbia's goals on this mission was to study astronaut safety....Too bad NASA didn't take astronaut safety more seriously. NASA knew about the piece of foam breaking off and hitting the wing at launch , but did little to nothing to ensure the shuttle's safety upon re-entry . Incompetence at its finest ! They also knew about the problem with the O-Rings and cold weather with Challenger , but ignored that too. Anybody else out there want to put your life in the hands of NASA? ....Good luck to you!

[@brianarbenz1329]

@John Smith No, there is a difference between assumed risks and undue risks. The needs of corporations and politicians to press forward when not really ready caused deaths.

[@brianarbenz1329]

The shuttle program was rife with political pressure, contractor interference, and financial cuts going back to the early 1970s that compromised safety.

[@ronaldholmes8525]

@John Smith Yes, I'm aware that space travel is dangerous, bubble HEAD., but in both the Shuttle disasters the thing that was most dangerous for the astronauts was the incompetence of NASA ! Get the bubbles out of your brain and try understanding what the REAL problems were with these space shuttle flights where no one came back home ...14 lives lost because NASA couldn't be bothered to delay the takeoff of Challenger once again , and couldn't be bothered to check out just how serious the damage was to Columbia from that chunk of foam hitting it on liftoff....No big deal, right? The letters in NASA came to stand for --- Need Another Seven Astronauts . Their SAFETY FIRST policy went out the window in both of these tragic ( and preventable ) disasters. We all know what's really important , and it's almost never lives ---IT'S THE MONEY!

[@moirapettifr7127]

Too bad that the inevitable lack of luck caught up with a flawed hierarchy that did not encourage input or discussion from "below". The engineers knew there were design flaws under certain conditions, but to management, it was like: if they ran across a highway so many times without getting hit, then in their minds, they were simply not going to get hit. Guess they were wrong.

[@ronaldholmes8525]

@@moirapettifr7127 The people at NASA were supposed to be some of the most intelligent people we have...Intelligence goes right out the window though when money and prestige is involved. NASA broke some of its own rules to launch ...And what's the point of having engineers to consult with if they're not going to listen to what they have to say ? Fact is , safety and lives are NOT the most important thing to NASA . Both shuttle disasters PROVED THAT! I don't know how anybody can ever again trust their lives to NASA in light of the incompetence they displayed in the shuttle disasters, but , hey, it's THEIR lives. All I can say is , GOOD LUCK !

[@DHarri9977]

Such a heartbreaking event will be stuck in many of our memories for many years to come.