The Space Shuttle "Challenger," exploded on January 28, 1986. All crew members and mission specialists aboard were killed. After careful examination of the collected shuttle parts, the explosion was traced to to a failure in an O-ring. An O-ring is a seal that is linked to the fuel system of the shuttle and to the boosters used during launch. The explosion was further traced to mismanagement of the space program as well as various other design flaws. The Challenger disaster sparked conversation around the world about the purpose of the space program. Unmanned space probes that would serve to explore the unknown were examined to replace manned spaceships. Due to an ever shrinking budget these probes were never used in a wide spread manner. After the Challenger explosion another Space Shuttle was not launched for two years. In these years much of the Space Shuttle was redesigned and reoutfitted in a safer, more reliable manner. The redesigned Space Shuttle is said to be a safer, more advanced Shuttle With safer, better designed Shuttles, the space program has continued to launch shuttles while fighting budget cuts. The continued exploration of space is necessary because it is human nature to yearn for information about how and why. Space may offer these answers.
