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Space Shuttle Challenger & Columbia Accidents

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Space Shuttle Challenger & Columbia Accidents
Space Shuttle Challenger & Columbia Accidents Engineers have designed the world we live in. They are the ones that research what is safe and what is not, they are the ones that bring blue prints to life. However, this power can backfire on them. Engineers are expected to create products that are safe for everyone. The engineer affects many people 's lives. A single fault can possibly result in the death of a person. A serious fault can lead to the deaths of several people. It is of paramount importance that an engineer emphasizes on health and safety of the consumer. In some cases, the engineer will have to debate between two different kinds of thinking. Whether or not to think of the good of the company as a business, or if they should focus on the safety of the consumer and be loyal to them. In a couple cases that were discussed in class, the engineers were forced to listen to their manager and sub sequentially resulted in the deaths of several people. One January 28, 1986, the a space shuttle, Challenger, launched from the Kennedy Space Center at about 11:40 A.M. EST. Unfortunately, the glory of its launch was short lived as 73 seconds after the launch, it exploded and killed all seven astronauts in the shuttle. After investigation, it appears that the tragic incident was caused by the failure of an " 'O-ring ' seal in the solid-fuel rocket on the Space Shuttle Challenger 's right side" (Chinn). Due to the faulty design, hot gases leaked through the joint which then allowed rocket flames enter through the failed seal which would then cause the hole to get even bigger. Consequentially, the flames reached the Challenger’s external fuel tank which then triggered other events that lead to the overall destruction of the Challenger. What makes this event even more tragic is that it could have been entirely avoided. The faulty design had already been addressed prior to the launch, by about several years. At first glance, the entirety of the blame would be put


Cited: Chinn, Gary M. Web. 15 Oct 2012. <https://wikispaces.psu.edu/display/STS245/Ethical Issues of the Space Shuttle Challenger Disaster Team 2>. Rossow, Mark P. Web. 15 Oct 2012. <http://www.cedengineering.com/upload/Ethics Challenger Disaster.pdf>. Murata , Junichi. "From Challenger to Columbia: What lessons can we learn from the report of the Columbia accident investigation board for engineering ethics?." Virginia Tech: Digital Library and Archives. Web. 16 Oct 2012. <http://scholar.lib.vt.edu/ejournals/SPT/v10n1/murata.html>. Engineering Ethics Text Book
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