Sublime

to

think

Some say “ignorance is bliss,” but in this case it contributed to a national disaster.

Feynman credits my testimony for enabling the Presidential Commission to find the real cause of the Challenger accident:

“Well, on that particular evening, I heard what

was now evident that the joint failure had been initiated at ignition by a failure of the O-rings to seal off in the aft right-hand solid rocket booster field-joint.

It was the first time in my two-year career in the Shuttle program that we were experiencing a last-minute crisis of this magnitude just before a launch.

Whereas the success of the Commission depends on the freedom of individuals to communicate the whole truth, without fear of reprisal by employers who supply parts, service, or technical assistance in connection with the space shuttle program or who participated in the decision to launch the space shuttle Challenger;

examination, I felt sure of my conclusion: that the accident was most likely caused by a leaking aft field-joint in the right-hand solid rocket booster. The failure of the joint to seal was