Space Disasters

by Michael Woods

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  L E R N E R P U B L I C AT I O N S C O M PA N Y

  M I N N E A P O L I S

  1

  To David Woods

  Text copyright © 2008 by Michael Woods and Mary B. Woods All rights reserved. International copyright secured. No part of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means—electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise—without the prior written permission of Lerner Publishing Group, Inc., except for the inclusion of brief quotations in an acknowledged review.

  Lerner Publications Company

  A division of Lerner Publishing Group, Inc.

  241 First Avenue North

  Minneapolis, MN 55401 U.S.A.

  Website address: www.lernerbooks.com

  Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

  Woods, Michael, 1946–

  Space Disasters / by Michael Woods and Mary B. Woods.

  p. cm. — (Disasters up close)

  Includes bibliographical references and index.

  ISBN-13: 978–0–8225–6775–2 (lib. bdg. : alk. paper)

  1. Astronautics—Accidents—Juvenile literature. I. Woods, Mary B. (Mary Boyle), 1946 II. Title.

  TL867.W66135 2008

  363.12'42—dc22

  2007030529

  Manufactured in the United States of America

  1 2 3 4 5 6 – DP – 13 12 11 10 09 08

  eISBN-13: 978-0-7613-3997-9

  Contents

  INTRODUCTION

  4

  What Are Space Disasters?

  6

  What Causes

  Space Disasters

  14

  Danger Zones:

  Air and Space

  22

  Measuring a Menace

  28

  Recovery

  38

  The Future

  48

  TIMELINE

  54

  GLOSSARY

  56

  PLACES TO VISIT

  57

  SOURCE NOTES

  58

  SELECTED BIBLIOGRAPHY

  60

  FURTHER RESOURCES

  61

  INDEX

  63

  ON THE MORNING OF FEBRUARY 1, 2003, SEVEN ASTRONAUTS WERE

  RETURNING TO EARTH AFTER A LONG TRIP. THE MEN AND WOMEN HAD

  BEEN IN SPACE FOR SIXTEEN DAYS. THEY HAD TRAVELED 6.6 MILLION

  MILES (10.6 MILLION KILOMETERS) ON THE SPACE SHUTTLE COLUMBIA.

  THE ASTRONAUTS’ FAMILIES WERE WAITING FOR COLUMBIA TO LAND AT

  THE JOHN F. KENNEDY SPACE CENTER IN FLORIDA. MILLIONS OF OTHER

  PEOPLE WERE WATCHING ON TELEVISION.

  Columbia was flying at 12,500 miles (about 20,112 km) per hour. It was 39 miles (63 km) above Texas. As Columbia neared Earth, the air that surrounds our planet rubbed against the craft causing friction. As Columbia got closer and closer to Earth, the rubbing increased. It made the outside of the shuttle heat up. It glowed red hot, like charcoal in a barbecue grill.

  Different kinds of insulation, or heat-proofing material, protect space shuttles. Some of the insulation is made of foam. Other insulation is made of heat-resistant tiles. Unknown to mission Pieces of the space shuttle

  controllers and the shuttle crew, a small piece of insulating

  Columbia streak across the

  foam had broken off Columbia’s fuel tank during launch. The sky after the shuttle breaks

  material had damaged the insulating tiles on the shuttle’s left apart over Texas on

  wing. As the shuttle heated up before landing, hot air

  }February 1, 2003.

  poured into the left wing. Parts of the shuttle

  began to melt.

  On the ground, mission controllers tracked

  the shuttle using radio signals and computers.

  They saw that one of the shuttle’s tires had

  gone flat. About the same time, Columbia

  commander Rick Husband sent a radio

  message to mission control. But controllers

  could not hear Husband clearly.

  4

  }

  “Columbia,” mission control replied, “we see your U.S. Forest Service workers

  tire-pressure messages—we did not copy [understand]

  search for debris from the

  your last [message].”

  space shuttle Columbia in

  “Roger,” Husband responded. “Erm . . . . ”

  eastern Texas in April 2003.

  Those were the last words from Columbia’s

  astronauts. After that, mission control heard only radio noise and crackling sounds. The shuttle had begun to break apart.

  People on the ground in Texas saw the disaster as it happened. Some reported seeing a ball of fire in the sky. Others saw the craft break into pieces. The pieces spiraled down to the ground.

  All seven astronauts died in the disaster. Columbia, which had cost more than $1.2 billion to build, was completely destroyed. Andy Gallacher, a British reporter, was in Texas when Columbia fell to Earth. He described the scene afterward. “The school playing field is scattered with wreckage, from charred [burned] pieces of metal the size of a finger nail, to large chunks,” he said. “The children of two farmers found the remains [body] of one crew member.” With the loss of the expensive shuttle and the deaths of all seven crew members, the Columbia accident was one of the worst space disasters in history.

  SPACE DISASTERS ARE SERIOUS ACCIDENTS INVOLVING SPACECRAFT. THE

  ACCIDENTS INCLUDE EXPLOSIONS AND FIRES. SOME SPACE DISASTERS HAVE

  HAPPENED IN SPACE. OTHERS HAVE OCCURRED DURING TAKEOFFS AND

  LANDINGS. SPACE DISASTERS HAVE KILLED MANY ASTRONAUTS. SPACE

  DISASTERS HAVE ALSO KILLED PEOPLE WORKING NEAR SPACECRAFT.

  Unlike some other kinds of disasters, such as airplane All seven astronauts

  crashes, space disasters usually kill only a few people at once.

  aboard Columbia died

  Only seven people died when Columbia broke apart in 2003.

  when the space shuttle

  Yet the accident also destroyed an important and expensive

  }broke apart in 2003.

  spacecraft. Columbia was one of only

  four U.S. space shuttles. Building a

  replacement would have cost $3 billion.

  After a space disaster, nations with

  space programs usually delay other

  spaceflights. Workers must check other

  spacecraft to make sure they are safe.

  After the Columbia disaster, the United

  States grounded (kept on the ground)

  the three other space shuttles. It took

  workers more than two years to make

  sure the three shuttles were safe. The

  repairs and delays cost billions of dollars.

  6

  “It sounded like a big boom.

  “It sounded like a b

  It rattled the windows for about 5 seconds

  and I didn’

  I didn t know

  ’

  what was going on.

  what was g

  —Adie Massaria, who heard

  ”

  —Adie Massaria, who heard Columbia break

  apart over T

  apart ov

  exas on F

  er T

  ebruary 1, 2003

  exas on F

  Space shuttle Columbia

  } takes off on its final

  mission on January 16,

  2003, from the Kennedy

  Spac
e Center in Florida.

  HOW MANY DEATHS?

  Nobody knows how many space disasters have happened. Years ago, the former Soviet Union (based in modern-day Russia) kept space disasters a secret. Soviet leaders thought that news of space disasters would embarrass their country. But we do know that from the time spaceflight began in the 1950s, space disasters have killed at least twenty-one astronauts. More than 150 workers on the ground have also died in space disasters. Other workers have been injured.

  The number of deaths seems small compared to an airplane crash, which can kill hundreds of people at once. However, the death toll is actually quite large because very few people have flown in space. In fact, disasters have killed almost 5 percent of people who have ever flown in space. Imagine if accidents

  killed 5 percent of the

  Star Sailors

  people—one in every twenty—

  who ever rode in cars.

  In the United States and Europe, men and

  women who fly in space are called

  astronauts. The word comes from the Greek

  words astron (star) and nautes (sailor).

  Russians call their space travelers

  cosmonauts, meaning “universe sailors.”

  The Chinese use the word

  taikonaut,

  U.S. astronaut John Glenn

  which means

  (right) and Soviet

  “space

  cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin }

  sailor.”

  (far right) were among the

  first humans in space.

  8

  } A Soviet spacecraft launches in 1975.

  For many years, the Soviet Union kept

  their space disasters secret.

  “[During a launch] you’re really taking an explosion

  “[During a launch] you’

  and you’re trying to contro

  ou’

  l it.

  re trying to contro

  You’

  Y

  re trying to

  ou’

  harness that energy

  harne

  in a way that will propel you into space.

  But there are a million things that can go wrong.

  But there are a million things that can g

  —astronaut Michael P. Anderson, who died in the 2003 Columbia ”

  —astronaut Michael P. Anderson, who died in the 2003 Columbia disaster

  MORE DISASTERS AHEAD?

  In the United States, an agency called the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) oversees spaceflight and exploration. NASA works to make sure that spaceflights are safe.

  But despite safety precautions, more space disasters will probably take place in the future. More and more countries are starting space programs and building spacecraft. Some private companies plan to take tourists into space. Someday thousands of people might fly into space on passenger flights. As the number of passengers and flights increases, so will the chances that disaster will strike.

  Mars Monster?

  When people count up space disasters, they include only accidents involving humans. But disaster can also strike unpiloted spacecraft (spacecraft that don’t carry people). These spacecraft use cameras and scientific instruments to explore faraway planets and other parts of space. Space workers control the spacecraft from Earth with radio signals and computers.

  Many unpiloted missions to Mars—the Red Planet—have ended in disaster.

  In fact, almost three out of every four spacecraft sent to the Red Planet have failed. Some of the spacecraft crashed. Others did not work properly.

  Some just disappeared. Space workers joke about the Great Galactic Ghoul—a Martian monster that eats spacecraft.

  One of the monster’s last meals was the Beagle 2 (left).

  This unpiloted British spacecraft tried to land on

  Mars in 2003. However, the Beagle disappeared without a trace. The spacecraft stopped

  sending radio signals to Earth. No one

  knows its fate.

  10

  The John F. Kennedy Space Center in

  Cape Canaveral, Florida, is where NASA

  }

  launches shuttles into space.

  The command module

  of Apollo 1 one day

  after a fire that killed

  }

  three crew members

  Three U.S. astronauts—Virgil

  series of space missions leading up to

  Grissom, Roger Chaffee, and

  an important goal: the landing of a

  Edward White—prepared for a space

  man on the Moon.

  mission in 1967. In their spacecraft,

  On January 27, 1967, Grissom,

  Apollo 1, they were supposed to orbit,

  Chaffee, and White were wearing

  or circle around, Earth. Apollo 1 was

  space suits. They were strapped into

  part of NASA’s Apollo program, a

  their seats in Apollo 1 at the Kennedy

  12

  Space Center in Florida. Apollo was on

  could not believe their eyes. Flames burst

  the launchpad. Its hatch, or door, was

  from the craft. Workers began screaming,

  locked shut.

  “There’s a fire in the spacecraft!”

  The craft was not getting ready to

  “Get [the astronauts] out of

  launch, however. The astronauts were

  there!” yelled space worker Donald

  just practicing. They were testing Apollo

  Babbitt. Suddenly, an explosion threw

  1 to make sure it would work properly

  Babbitt up against a wall. More flames

  in space. As they made the tests, they

  shot out of the spacecraft.

  spoke by radio to NASA workers in

  The workers grabbed fire

  the control center nearby.

  extinguishers. Frantically, they tried to

  At 6:31 P.M., Roger Chaffee radioed

  open Apollo’s hatch. It took them more

  the control center: “Fire! I smell fire,”

  than five minutes to reach the

  he cried. Four seconds later, Edward

  astronauts. By then the three men

  White gave more terrifying information:

  were dead. Chaffee was still strapped

  “Fire in the cockpit.”

  in his seat. Grissom and White had

  Workers in the control center

  struggled to open the hatch. All three

  watched Apollo on TV monitors. They

  were badly burned.

  Doctors later found that the

  men had died from breathing

  poisonous gases. The gases came

  “Fire!I smell fire.

  “Fire!I sm

  —Apollo 1

  ”

  —Apollo 1

  from burning plastic inside the

  astronaut Roger Chaffee

  spacecraft. After the disaster,

  engineers used

  knowledge from the

  tragedy to make

  spacecraft safer.

  The crew of the Apollo 1

  spacecraft (left to right),

  Virgil Grissom, Edward

  } White, and Roger

  Chaffee, died when the

  command module caught

  fire during a training

  session in Florida.

  13

  WHY DO SPACE DISASTERS HAPPEN? THERE ARE SEVERAL REASONS. THE

  FIRST IS MECHANICAL ERROR—THE FAILURE OF PARTS OR EQUIPMENT ON

  THE SPACECRAFT. THE SECOND IS HUMAN ERROR, OR MISTAKES BY PEOPLE.

  FINALLY, “SPACE JUNK,” INCLUDING OBJECTS LEFT OVER FROM PAST SPACE

  MISSIONS, CAN HIT A TRAVELING SPACECRAFT, WITH DISASTROUS RESULTS.

  WHEN MACHINES FAIL

  Spacecr
aft are complicated machines. A space

  shuttle, for instance, has more than 2.5 million

  parts. It has 230 miles (370 km) of electrical

  wiring inside. It has almost one thousand

  valves that open and close to let liquids and

  gases flow through. More than twenty-seven

  thousand pieces of insulation protect a space

  shuttle from heat. During a spaceflight, all the

  parts and pieces must work correctly. Valves

  must open and close at exactly the right time.

  Hatches must close tightly.

  }

  This technician performs

  maintenance on a space

  Cold to Hot

  shuttle’s main engine.

  Space shuttles must withstand very cold and

  very hot temperatures. In space, shuttles fly

  in temperatures as low as –250°F (–157°C).

  When landing back on Earth, shuttles get red

  hot—up to 3,000°F (1,649°C).

  14

  The space shuttle:

  How it Works and What Goes Wrong

  During the Columbia launch in 2003, a small piece of insulating foam broke off from the external fuel tank. The foam struck the orbiter’s left wing, damaging some insulating tile. During reentry, hot gases leaked through the damaged tile into the left wing.

  The shuttle burned and blew apart.

  The external fuel tank holds fuel for

  the shuttle’s main engines. About

  70 miles (113 km) above Earth, the

  shuttle jettisons, or releases, the

  tank. Most of it disintegrates in the

  atmosphere. The rest of it falls into

  the ocean.

  The solid rocket boosters

  propel the shuttle into

  space. Approximately 28

  miles (45 km) above Earth,

  the boosters separate from

  the rest of the shuttle.

  They descend by parachute

  into the ocean. NASA

  reuses the boosters.

  The orbiter holds the

  shuttle’s crew, cargo,

  living spaces, and

  work spaces.

  During the Challenger launch in 1986, hot gases leaked from the right rocket booster. The gases

  burned a hole in the external fuel tank. The fuel

  tank exploded. The shuttle tore apart, and the

  orbiter smashed into the ocean.

  15

  If an important part of a spacecraft breaks, disaster can result. Columbia broke apart because some its insulation broke off. Challenger exploded in 1986 when hot gases leaked from its rockets. The gases made Challenger’s fuel tank explode. The explosion The weather was unusually