Space Shuttle Challenger Explosion

The Space Shuttle Challenger Explosion occurred on January 28, 1986, shortly after the launch of the US space shuttle Challenger from Cape Canaveral, Florida, and lost the lives of seven astronauts. It was the first fatal accident involving an American spacecraft in flight.

The failure of two redundant O-ring seals in a joint in the Space Shuttle's right solid rocket booster caused the disaster. The launch's record-low temperatures weakened the rubber O-rings' flexibility, decreasing their capacity to seal the joints. Shortly after liftoff, the broken seals caused a breach in the joint, allowing pressurized gas from the SRB to seep and burn through the wall to the neighboring external fuel tank. This caused the right-hand SRB's aft attachment to separate, causing it to fall into the external tank, resulting in the external tank's structural failure and explosion. Aerodynamic forces split up the orbiter, which included the crew compartment, after the explosion.

The Space Shuttle replacement cost $2 billion ($4.5 billion in today's money). Investigation, problem-solving, and equipment replacement costs were $ 450 million from 1986 to 1987 ($ 1 billion today), making it become one of the most expensive accidents ever.

Total loss: $5.5 billion