This book will take readers back to a time when the Space Shuttle represented the dawn of a new age in space travel, a time when the fabled final frontier was drawing inexorably closer as each year passed. It details the stories of Challenger's missions from the points of view of the astronauts, engineers, and scientists who flew and knew her and the managers, technicians, and ground personnel who designed her and nursed her from humble beginnings as a structural test article into one of the most capable Shuttles in NASA's service. Coverage combines technical esoterica with interviews, stories, and anecdotes from the lifetime of this remarkable spacecraft. Challenger veterans, including Gordon Fullerton and Vance Brand, describe their experiences and the differences between Challenger and her sister ships. The development of Challenger herself is explored in detail, including her design, development, construction, and preparation for missions.

A comprehensive and readable history of the remarkable achievements of Space Shuttle Challenger Challenger's in-depth story, as told by the astronauts, scientists and engineers who flew and knew her A comprehensive reference source combining technical data, interview, stories and anecdotes First-hand accounts from Challenger veterans of their experiences and the differences between Challenger and her sister craft

Autorentext

Ben Evans was born in October 1976 in Solihull and attended the University of Birmingham, from where he gained a degree in Ancient History and Archaeology and later a teaching qualification. He has written extensively for SPACEFLIGHT, COUNTDOWN and ASTRONOMY NOW magazines since 1992 and has previously had two books published by Praxis. These were NASA'S VOYAGER MISSIONS (2003) and, most recently, SPACE SHUTTLE COLUMBIA (2005). He researched and wrote both books whilst training and working as a history and English secondary school teacher. He is not a professional scientist, but merely a space enthusiast with an interest in writing.

Klappentext

This book details the stories of Challenger's missions from the points of view of the astronauts, engineers, and scientists who flew and knew her and the managers, technicians, and ground personnel who designed her and nursed her from humble beginnings as a structural test article into one of the most capable Shuttles in NASA's service. Challenger veterans, including Gordon Fullerton and Vance Brand, describe their experiences and the differences between Challenger and her sister ships. The development of Challenger herself is explored in detail, including her design, development, construction, and preparation for missions.

Inhalt
Author's preface.- Acknowledgements.- The Geritol Bunch: The Development of the Shuttle, History of Challenger's Design, and Her First Mission.- Ride, Sally Ride: The Flight of STS 7.- Weightlifters: the Flight of STS 8.- A Heck of a Big Leap: the Flights of STS 41B, 41C, and 41G.- The Untouchables: the Flights of STS 51B, 51F, and 61A.- Don't Break our Airplane: the Disaster and Aftermath, including Rogers inquiry.- Appendix: Challenger's Planned Missions during 1986 and 1987.- Glossary of Acronyms.- Bibliography.- Index.