HOW FAR WE HAVE COME AND WHERE WE ARE GOING

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By Tammy Hoover English 122-003

The Past

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November 15, 1967

The x-15 was a joint project with NASA and USAF to study manned spaceflights and the possible use of a winged reentry from a craft but the project soon ended after the death of Major Michael J. Adams, USAF and headed way for the command capsules of the Apollo missions. (3)

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January 27, 1967

Apollo 1 caught fire on what was suppose to be a prelaunch test killing all three astronauts. NASA made several critical changes to the capsules, although the most significant was to the hatch door, allowing to be opened outward. (5)

Apollo 1 crew members: Virgil “Gus” Grissom (command pilot), Edward White (senior pilot), and Roger Chaffee (pilot) (6)

April 13, 1970

Apollo 13 is labeled as the “successful failure”. The explosion of the number two oxygen tank was caused by a faulty shelf and a bolt that held the shelf. The problem was overlooked but was fixed in other capsules prior to the launch of Apollo 13. (7)

Apollo 13 crew members: Jim Lovell (mission commander), John Swigert (command module pilot), and Fred W. Haise (lunar module pilot). (8)

January 28, 1986

14 years after the last Apollo mission and on its tenth mission Challenger exploded just 73 seconds after its launch, killing all seven crew members. It was later determined that the explosion was caused by the failure of an 0-ring on a solid booster rocket. These 0-rings were redesigned in order for the shuttle program to continue. (9)

Challenger crew members: Sharon “Christa” McAuliffe (payload specialist), Gregory Jarvis (payload specialist), Dr. Judy Resnik (misson specialist), Francis “Dick” Scobee (commander), Ronald McNair (mission specialist), Michael Smith (captain), and Colonel Ellison Onizuka (mission specialist). (10)

The Present

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February 1, 2003

Columbia exploded over Texas due to a damaged wing that essentially melted upon reentry. All seven crew members were killed including the first astronaut from Israel. The damage to the wing occurred during the launch process and NASA made changes to all remaining shuttles wings and heat shields to ensure that no further damage is caused during a launch. (12)

Columbia crew members: David M Brown (mission specialist), Rick D. Husband (commander), Laurel B. Clark (mission specialist), Kalpana Chawla (mission specialist), Michael P. Anderson (payload commander), William C. McCool (pilot), and Ilan Ramon (payload specialist). (13)

Atlantis - July 21, 2011

After 30 years and 130 shuttle missions the shuttle program came to an end. A top factor to its end was the cause of budget cuts to the program from Congress. (14)

Every Second of Every Day

With no shuttle missions left for the US, the International Space Station is our only form of space exploration in conjunction with the European and Russian space programs and the people onboard are at risk every second of the day from thousands of space junk/debris and satellites. (15)

The Future

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Space Tourism

With a price tag of $200,000 “anyone” can experience sub-orbital space travel. Although the space-crafts are still in their testing phases. With no actual launch date announced yet Virgin Galactic boasts that it has “500” astronauts waiting for travel. (17)

To the Moon…to Mars?Astronaut Buzz Aldrin actively supports a possible permanent human settlement on the moon or Mars. A risk of a settlement on Mars is that the planet has 2.5 times the radiation then what is experienced on the ISS. (18)

The Final Frontier

“To boldly go where no man has gone before…..” (19)

Work Cited1) www.nasa.gov/audience/forstudents/5-8/features/symbols-of-nasa2) www.nasa.gov/multimedia/imagegallery/image_feature_15383) www.astronautix.com/craft/x15a4) www.thexhunters.com/xpeditions/x-15_accident.html5) www.nasa.gov/centers/langley/news/researchernews/rn_apollo1,

www.nssdc.gsfc.nasa.gov/planetary/lunar/apollo1info6) www.nasa.gov/multimedia/imagegallery/image_feature_21607) www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/apollo/missions/apollo13, www.astronautix.com/flights/apollo13,

www.hq.nasa.gov/office/pao/History/apollo/apo13hist8) www.nasa.gov/multimedia/imagegallery/image_feature_22229) www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/shuttle/shuttlemissions/archives/sts-51L, www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-12306318,

www.enotes.com/history/q-and-a/what-was-impact-challenger-disaster-u-s-space-28751610) www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/shuttle/flyout/multimedia/challenger/1986-01-0811) www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/station/multimedia/iss_sts119_images12) www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/shuttle/shuttlemissions/archives/sts-107, www2.gcs.k12.in.us/bholt/Columbia

Disaster Facts13) www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/shuttle/shuttlemissions/archives/sts-107,

www.jpl.nasa.gov/news/news.php?release=2003-10814) www.nasa.gov/images/content/574257main_landingarchive,

www.whitehouse.gov/our-government/legislative-branch, www.photoblog.nbcnews.com/_news/2012/11/02/14890387-shuttle-atlantis-arrived-at-its-new-home?lite, www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/shuttle/behindscenes/shuttle_countdowns, Pace, Scott. "Strengthening Space Security." Havard International Review (Spring2012, Vol. 33 Issue 4): 54-59, 6p. Article.

15) www.nasa.gov/multimedia/imagegallery/image_feature_019, www.esa.int/SPECIALS/ESOC/SEMN2VM5NDF16) www.nasa.gov/multimedia/imagegallery/image_feature_26117) www.dodevice.com/2008/01/space-tourism-as-of-2009, www.virgingalactic.com18) www.buzzaldrin.com/the-man/faq/, www.nss.org/settlement/calendar/2009/RichardBizley-Art_Exhibition_on_Mars,

www.acceleratingfuture.com/michael/blog/2006/09/better-ways-to-get-into-space/19) www.startrek.com/,

www.aerospace.firetrench.com/2012/10/the-first-international-space-exploration-symposium-in-japan-space-exploration-for-humanity-and-the-future/