Challenger: A True Story of Heroism and Disaster on the Edge of Space
Adam Higginbotham
The definitive, dramatic, minute-by-minute story of the Challenger disaster based on new archival research and in-depth reporting. On January 28, 1986, just seventy-three seconds into flight, the space shuttle Challenger broke apart over the Atlantic Ocean, killing all seven people on board. Millions of Americans witnessed the tragic deaths of a crew including New Hampshire schoolteacher Christa McAuliffe. Like 9/11 or JFK’s assassination, the Challenger disaster is a defining moment in 20th-century history—yet the details of what took place that day, and why, have largely been forgotten. Until now. Based on extensive archival records and meticulous, original reporting, Challenger follows a handful of central protagonists—including each of the seven members of the doomed crew—through the years leading up to the accident, a detailed account of the tragedy itself, and into the investigation that followed. It’s a tale of optimism and promise undermined by political cynicism and cost-cutting in the interests of burnishing national prestige; of hubris and heroism; and of an investigation driven by leakers and whistleblowers determined to bring the truth to light. Throughout, there are the ominous warning signs of a tragedy to come, recognized but then ignored, and ultimately kept from the public. Higginbotham reveals the history of the shuttle program, the lives of men and women whose stories have been overshadowed by the disaster as well as the designers, engineers, and test pilots who struggled against the odds to get the first shuttle into space.
Publication Year: 2024
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0 0The book begins with the live reporting of the launch and explosion of the Challenger before jumping back in time to the explosion of Apollo during a pre-launch test in 1967. From there, Higginbotham explains the history of space travel, the boredom of American civilians, and the origins of the Space Shuttle program, as well as details of spacecraft machinery and engineering, specifically those aspects that failed in the Challenger launch.
It was painful and chilling to read about failure after failure, error after error, bad decision after bad decision. The imagery of this book was profound, as Higginbotham described the structure of the O-rings, the arrangement of the seats, the icicles forming out the outside of the Shuttle. The pressure put on NASA and thusly on Morton Thiokol to launch was repulsive and resonant of so many analyses of acceptable risk that politicians and organizations have to engage in now, and it is harrowing to accept that so many factors contribute to a decision, beyond the risk to human life.
I think Higginbotham did an excellent job of summarizing the events and the decisions, including where things went wrong, without wholly villainizing those who made those choices. He described the human elements of despair and pain, which felt especially significant because he built up the characters of the astronauts and their families throughout the book. I was also impressed with the way that he incorporated the language of Ronald Reagan and other political pundits throughout the development of the space programs and the devastation of this crash.
Some of the technical detail was challenging for me to follow, and there were points where I felt that the narrative was a bit disorganized, poorly integrating the information. I especially found it difficult to keep track of some of the families. In addition, there were quite a few grammatical and spelling errors in this copy, which irritated me.
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