O-ring Failure
The commission found that the Challenger accident was caused by a failure in the O-rings sealing the aft field joint on the right solid rocket booster, causing pressurized hot gases and eventually flame to "blow by" the O-ring and make contact with the adjacent external tank, causing structural failure. The failure of the O-rings was attributed to a design flaw, as their performance could be too easily compromised by factors including the low temperature on the day of launch.
Read more about this topic: Rogers Commission Report
Famous quotes containing the word failure:
“There is no loneliness greater than the loneliness of a failure. The failure is a stranger in his own house.”
—Eric Hoffer (1902–1983)