challenger disaster : NPR

Twenty years after the Columbia disaster, a NASA official reflects on lessons learned

Mourners left a makeshift memorial outside NASA's Johnson Space Center in Houston after the Columbia disaster on Feb. 1, 2003. Brett Coomer/Getty Images hide caption

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Space

Twenty years after the Columbia disaster, a NASA official reflects on lessons learned

February 1, 2023 • Seven astronauts died when the Space Shuttle Columbia disintegrated upon reentry on Feb. 1, 2003. NASA Deputy Administrator Pam Melroy looks back on the tragedy and how it shaped the agency.

Twenty years after the Columbia disaster, a NASA official reflects on lessons learned

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Remembering Allan McDonald: He Refused To Approve Challenger Launch, Exposed Cover-Up

Allan McDonald in 2016 holds a commemorative poster honoring the seven astronauts killed aboard the space shuttle Challenger. Howard Berkes/NPR hide caption

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Obituaries

Remembering Allan McDonald: He Refused To Approve Challenger Launch, Exposed Cover-Up

March 7, 2021 • Allan McDonald, who directed the booster rocket project at NASA contractor Morton Thiokol, urged delaying the launch of the space shuttle before it exploded in 1986. He has died at age 83.

Remembering Allan McDonald: He Refused To Approve Challenger Launch, Exposed Cover-Up

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Challenger Engineer Who Warned Of Shuttle Disaster Dies

Bob Ebeling with his daughter Kathy (center) and his wife, Darlene. Howard Berkes/NPR hide caption

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The Two-Way

Challenger Engineer Who Warned Of Shuttle Disaster Dies

March 21, 2016 • Bob Ebeling was one of five booster rocket engineers at a NASA contractor who tried to stop the 1986 launch of the space shuttle Challenger, which exploded 73 seconds into its flight. He was 89.

Challenger Engineer Who Warned Of Shuttle Disaster Dies

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Your Letters Helped Challenger Shuttle Engineer Shed 30 Years Of Guilt

Bob Ebeling, now 89, at his home in Brigham City, Utah. Howard Berkes/NPR hide caption

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The Two-Way

Your Letters Helped Challenger Shuttle Engineer Shed 30 Years Of Guilt

February 25, 2016 • After NPR reported Bob Ebeling's story on the anniversary of the Challenger explosion, hundreds of people responded. Ebeling, now 89, says those letters "helped bring my worrisome mind to ease."

Your Letters Helped Challenger Shuttle Engineer Shed 30 Years Of Guilt

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An Enduring Lesson From The Challenger Disaster: 'The Sky Is No Limit'

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Opinion

13.7: Cosmos And Culture

An Enduring Lesson From The Challenger Disaster: 'The Sky Is No Limit'

February 10, 2016 • Though accidents may happen, there is no stopping human exploration of space: We are bound to outer shores as we were once bound to shores on this planet, says astrophysicist Marcelo Gleiser.