I studied Aerospace Engineering and got my BS back in 84 ; the space shuttle has always been an icon for me and my peers as the years have gone by.
However, this weeks accident has brought back the sadness we all felt back in 86. With nothing but pride and best wishes for those lost, I immediately begin to feel that we might have been on the wrong course all these years. Is the space shuttle trying to do too much for its level of technology? Are there too many possible sources of failure in its design? It would make no sense to find the source of this accident, return the vehicles to service, and have the next accident occur at anything close to the rate that the program has experienced so far.
However, this weeks accident has brought back the sadness we all felt back in 86. With nothing but pride and best wishes for those lost, I immediately begin to feel that we might have been on the wrong course all these years. Is the space shuttle trying to do too much for its level of technology? Are there too many possible sources of failure in its design? It would make no sense to find the source of this accident, return the vehicles to service, and have the next accident occur at anything close to the rate that the program has experienced so far.