Project Bootstrap

ISA SECURE DATABASE

PROJECT DELOREAN/BOOTSTRAP - SUMMARY

TOP SECRET//LG/SAR-HG//NOFORN

Appendix

Challenger crew fate

Of substantial scientific interest throughout Project Bootstrap was the fate of the crew of Shuttle Challenger. Prior to the events listed above in the summary of the mission, it was known that three Personal Egress Air Packs (PEAPs) had been activated on the flight deck. Additionally, it was known that Pilot Mike Smith activated several switches on the right hand panel of the flight deck. As the switches are lever locked and neither the force of the vehicle breakup or impact with the water were sufficient to move them, it had been inferred that Smith manually activated the switches following the breakup in a possible attempt to restore electrical power. No mention of the fate of the crew on the Orbiter middeck had been publicly released. The Rogers Commission Report on the Challenger accident provides limited information on the cause of crew death and states that the data is inconclusive to definitively determine the cause of death. Per a report by Joseph P. Kerwin:

The findings are inconclusive. The impact of the crew compartment with the ocean surface was so violent that evidence of damage occurring in the seconds which followed the disintegration was masked. Our final conclusions are:

• the cause of death of the Challenger astronauts cannot be positively determined;
• the forces to which the crew were exposed during Orbiter breakup were probably not sufficient to cause death or serious injury; and
• the crew possibly, but not certainly, lost consciousness in the seconds following Orbiter breakup due to in-flight loss of crew module pressure.

Crew cabin impact with the water had been estimated to be in excess of 207 mph (333 km/h) and generated forces of over 200 g, which far exceeded structural design and survivability limits. As such, the only conclusions which could be drawn were that death was certain on impact with the water, and that all or most of the crew were alive, but possibly unconscious prior to that point.

Due to these circumstances, the decision was made to insert monitoring and recording equipment aboard Challenger prior to liftoff in order to definitively verify the status of the crew during descent. On January 27th, 1986 at approximately 10:47 PM, Eastern Time, Director Rubin and Alexis Attwater entered the vehicle and placed the monitoring equipment in secure locations aboard the vehicle.