CHALLENGER'S LOST LESSONS - ER - NASA

3CHALLENGER’S LOST LESSONS[Background: In 2007, the space shuttle mission STS-118 launchedwith Christa McAuliffe’s backup Teacher in Space candidate BarbaraMorgan. Though more than a score of years after the loss ofChallenger’s crew, STS-118 was a reminder of the morning ofJanuary 28, 1986. That week Christa McAuliffe planned to performboth live and filmed science lessons. These lost lessons, preparedfor the nation and world’s school children, were never done. Thisproject delves into those undone educational activities. Indeed, afterstudying its content, all will appreciate NASA’s, Christa’s andBarbara’s efforts as well as Bob Mayfield’s in carefully researching,preparing and training for the performance of the six “Challenger lostlessons.” Though lost in the sense that they perished withChallenger and her crew, recounting, redoing, and examining themis, in a sense, a resurrection. As such, they become a tribute toChrista and her courageous crewmates, the CHALLENGER SEVEN.Chronology: The happenstance of this editor discovering a copy ofBob Mayfield’s, discussion of the six planned on orbit sciencedemonstrations led to the project. Mayfield was a NASAEducational Specialist during the 1980s. His work greatly impressedthis author, a spacecraft design engineer. Fascination focused on theextent of the science and engineering performed in the conception,preliminary planning, and earth-based exercises of the lost sixlessons. Added to this were the mock-up planning practices andzero-g demonstrations of the lessons by Christa, Barbara, Bob, andthe NASA team.Mayfield’s narrative descriptions of the apparatus involved in each ofthe six science experiments were excellent. All were written in thebest descriptive technical writing prose. However, not being able toview the described hardware made understanding difficult. Thepaper did not include sketches. Able assistance from NASA JSCmedia sources, Mike Gentry, Celeste Wicks and Dr. Jennifer Ross-