The O Ring Challenger

This had failed due to the low temperature 31 f 0 5 c at launch time a risk that several engineers noted but that nasa management dismissed.

The o ring challenger. But nasa was under pressure to keep to its ambitious flight schedule and the risk was deemed acceptable. An investigation found some workers had warned nasa about the danger of launching challenger because the o rings grew brittle in cold weather. Morton thiokol discovered that both o rings booster sealers had malfunctioned which led to the fuel tank blowing up. In challenger s case the o ring got so cold it hadn t expanded properly and allowed the leak.

The cause of the disaster was traced to an o ring a circular gasket that sealed the right rocket booster. The crew members cabin remained in tact but fell to the atlantic ocean at approximately 200 miles per hour. Nasa s space shuttle challenger accident was a devastating tragedy that killed seven astronauts and shocked the world on jan. The challenger itself didn t technically explode but rather disintegrated from the result of the o ring malfunction.

The o ring was known to be sensitive to cold and could only work. This raised a more pressing question. Nasa s own pre launch estimates were that there was a 1 in 100 000 chance of shuttle failure for any given launch and poor statistical reasoning was a key.