Part Two

1. Part Two Background Information ENTER

2. Background Information Contents • Author—William Harwood • Space Shuttle Challenger Disaster • Movie Clip—Challenger’s Explosion • President Regan’s Address on Challenger’s Explosion

3. I. Author—William Harwood As the CBS News space consultant, William Harwood has covered America’s space program full time for more than 15 years, focusing on space shuttle operations, planetary exploration and astronomy. Based at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida, Harwood provides up-to-the-minute space reports for CBS News and regularly contributes to Spaceflight Now and The Washington Post. The end of Author—William Harwood.

4. II. Space Shuttle Challenger Disaster —A NASA Tragedy NASA’s Shuttle program was begun in the 1970s, to create reusable craft for transporting cargo into space. Previous space craft could only be used once, then were discarded. The first shuttle, Columbia was launched in 1981. One year later, the Space Shuttle Challenger rolled off the assembly line as the second shuttle of the US fleet. They were followed by Discovery in 1983 and Atlantis in 1985. The Space Shuttle Challenger flew nine successful missions before that fateful day of the disaster in 1986. To be continued on the next page.

5. II. Space Shuttle Challenger Disaster —A NASA Tragedy Shuttle mission 51L was much like most other missions. The Challenger was scheduled to carry some cargo, the Tracking Data Relay Satellite-2 (TDRS-2), as well as fly the Shuttle-Pointed Tool for Astronomy (SPARTAN-203)/Halley’s Comet Experiment Deployable, a free-flying module designed to observe tail and coma of Halleys comet with two ultraviolet spectrometers and two cameras. To be continued on the next page.

6. II. Space Shuttle Challenger Disaster —A NASA Tragedy One thing made this mission unique. It was scheduled to be the first flight of a new program called TISP, the Teacher In Space Program. The Challenger was scheduled to carry Sharon Christa McAuliffe, the first teacher to fly in space. Selected from among more than 11,000 applicants from the education profession for entrance into the astronaut ranks, McAuliffe was very excited about the opportunity to participate in the space program. “I watched the Space Age being born and I would like to participate.” To be continued on the next page.

7. II. Space Shuttle Challenger Disaster —A NASA Tragedy Besides McAuliffe, the Challenger crew consisted of mission commander Francis R. Scobee, pilot Michael J. Smith; mission specialists Ronald E. McNair, Ellison S. Onizuka, and Judith A. Resnik, and payload specialists Gregory B. Jarvis. Christa was also listed as a payload specialist. To be continued on the next page.

8. II. Space Shuttle Challenger Disaster —A NASA Tragedy From the beginning, though, Shuttle Mission 51L was plagued by problems. Liftoff was initially scheduled from at 3:43 p.m. EST on January 22, 1986. It slipped to Jan. 23, then Jan. 24, due to delays in mission 61-C and finally reset for Jan. 25 because of bad weather at transoceanic abort landing (TAL) site in Dakar, Senegal. The launch was again postponed for one day when launch processing was unable to meet new morning liftoff time. Predicted bad weather at Kennedy Space Center (KSC) caused the launch to be rescheduled for 9:37 a.m. EST, Jan. 27, but it was delayed another 24 hours when ground servicing equipment hatch closing fixture could not be removed from orbiter hatch. To be continued on the next page.

9. II. Space Shuttle Challenger Disaster — A NASA Tragedy The fixture was sawed off and an attaching bolt drilled out before closeout completed. During this delay, the cross winds exceeded limits at KSC’s Shuttle Landing Facility. There was a final delay of two hours when a hardware interface module in the launch processing system, which monitors fire detection system, failed during liquid hydrogen tanking procedures. The Challenger finally lifted off at 11:38:00 a.m. EST. Seventy three seconds into the mission, the Challenger exploded, killing the entire crew. The end of Space Shuttle Challenger Disaster.

10. III. Movie Clip—Challenger’s Explosion The end of Movie Clip—Challenger’s Explosion.

11. IV. President Reagan’s Address on Challenger’s Explosion Ladies and gentlemen, I’d planned to speak to you tonight to report on the state of the Union, but the events of earlier today have led me to change those plans. Today is a day for mourning and remembering. Nancy and I are pained to the core by the tragedy of the shuttle Challenger. We know we share this pain with all of the people of our country. This is truly a national loss. To be continued on the next page.

12. IV. President Reagan’s Address on Challenger’s Explosion Nineteen years ago, almost to the day, we lost three astronauts in a terrible accident on the ground. But we’ve never lost an astronaut in flight; we’ve never had a tragedy like this. And perhaps we’ve forgotten the courage it took for the crew of the shuttle; but they, the Challenger Seven, were aware of the dangers, but overcame them and did their jobs brilliantly. We mourn the seven heroes: Michael Smith, Francis Scobee, Judith Resnik, Ronald McNair, Ellison Onizuka, Gregory Jarvis, and Christa McAuliffe. We mourn their loss as a nation together. To be continued on the next page.

13. IV. President Reagan’s Address on Challenger’s Explosion For the families of the seven, we cannot bear, as you do, the full impact of this tragedy. But we feel the loss, and we’re thinking about you so very much. Your loved ones were daring and brave, and they had that special grace, that special spirit that says, “Give me a challenge and I’ll meet it with joy.” They had a hunger to explore the universe and discover its truths. They wished to serve, and they did. They served all of us. To be continued on the next page.

14. IV. President Reagan’s Address on Challenger’s Explosion We’ve grown used to wonders in this century. It’s hard to dazzle us. But for 25 years the United States space program has been doing just that. We’ve grown used to the idea of space, and perhaps we forget that we’ve only just begun. We’re still pioneers. They, the members of the Challenger crew, were pioneers. To be continued on the next page.

15. IV. President Reagan’s Address on Challenger’s Explosion And I want to say something to the schoolchildren of America who were watching the live coverage of the shuttle’s takeoff. I know it is hard to understand, but sometimes painful things like this happen. It’s all part of the process of exploration and discovery. It’s all part of taking a chance and expanding man’s horizons. The future doesn’t belong to the fainthearted; it belongs to the brave. The Challenger crew was pulling us into the future, and we’ll continue to follow them. To be continued on the next page.

16. IV. President Reagan’s Address on Challenger’s Explosion I’ve always had great faith in and respect for our space program, and what happened today does nothing to diminish it. We don’t hide our space program. We don’t keep secrets and cover things up. We do it all up front and in public. That’s the way freedom is, and we wouldn’t change it for a minute. We’ll continue our quest in space. There will be more shuttle flights and more shuttle crews and, yes, more volunteers, more civilians, more teachers in space. Nothing ends here; our hopes and our journeys continue. To be continued on the next page.

17. IV. President Reagan’s Address on Challenger’s Explosion I want to add that I wish I could talk to every man and woman who works for NASA or who worked on this mission and tell them: “Your dedication and professionalism have moved and impressed us for decades. And we know of your anguish. We share it.” To be continued on the next page.

18. IV. President Reagan’s Address on Challenger’s Explosion There’s a coincidence today. On this day 390 years ago, the great explorer Sir Francis Drake died aboard ship off the coast of Panama. In his lifetime the great frontiers were the oceans, and an historian later said, “He lived by the sea, died on it, and was buried in it.” Well, today we can say of the Challenger crew: Their dedication was, like Drake’s, complete. To be continued on the next page.

19. IV. President Reagan’s Address on Challenger’s Explosion The crew of the space shuttle Challenger honored us by the manner in which they lived their lives. We will never forget them, nor the last time we saw them, this morning, as they prepared for their journey and waved goodbye and “slipped the surly bonds of earth” to “touch the face of God.” [Note: The President spoke at 5 p.m. from the Oval Office at the White House. His address was broadcast live on nationwide radio and television.] The end of President Reagan’s Address on Challenger’s Explosion.

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