Challenger Quotes

“Discovery first flew in 1984, the third orbiter to join the fleet. It was named for one of the ships commanded by Captain James Cook. Space shuttle Discovery is the most-flown orbiter; today will be its thirty-ninth and final launch. By the end of this mission, it will have flown a total of 365 days in space, making it the most well traveled spacecraft in history. Discovery was the first orbiter to carry a Russian cosmonaut and the first to visit the Russian space station Mir. On that flight, in 1995, Eileen Collins became the first woman to pilot an American spacecraft. Discovery flew twelve of the thirty-eight missions to assemble the International Space Station, and it was responsible for deploying the Hubble Space Telescope in 1990. This was perhaps the most far reaching accomplishment of the shuttle program, as Hubble has been called the most important telescope in history and one of the most significant scientific instruments ever invented. It has allowed astronomers to determine the age of the universe, postulate how galaxies form, and confirm the existence of dark energy, among many other discoveries. Astronomers and astrophysicists, when they are asked about the significance of Hubble, will simply say that it has rewritten the astronomy books. In the retirement process, Discovery will be the “vehicle of record,” being kept as intact as possible for future study.

Discovery was the return-to-flight orbiter after the loss of Challenger and then again after the loss of Columbia. To me, this gives it a certain feeling of bravery and hope. ‘Don’t worry,’ Discovery seemed to tell us by gamely rolling her snow-white self out to the launchpad. 'Don’t worry, we can still dream of space. We can still leave the earth.’ And then she did.”
― Margaret Lazarus Dean, Leaving Orbit: Notes from the Last Days of American Spaceflight

“Kun katson nyt Challengerin miehistön kuvaa, en näe seitsemää hymyilijää, kaunista Judy Resnickiä enkä oikeastaan edes pienoismallia sinänsä. Näen vain piilotetut rakastavaiset, joiden kohtalot ovat kietoutuneet toisiinsa kuin heidän vartalonsa ja jotka odottavat kiihkeästi vapautuvansa painovoimasta, joka on aina pitänyt heidät maassa.”
― Michael Chabon, Moonglow

“If it's not difficult,
if it's not challenging,
if it's not going to demand the most from me, if it's not practically impossible to achieve, please don't call me.”
― Augusto Branco

“He feared no challenger face-to-face, but war was deception, as Khevat had taught him, and not all men fought their enemies with spear and fist.”
― Peter V. Brett, The Desert Spear

“You want to survive in this universe? Then you are in a no-choice-positon! You have no choice but to be strong, you have no choice but to be hopeful, you have no choice but to be clever and challenger!”
― Mehmet Murat ildan

“Space shuttle Challenger was a total loss on its 10th flight.”
― Steven Magee

“Rocket into Heaven.”
― Steven Magee

“Watching the space shuttle challenger explode on live television was a profound experience for a teenager.”
― Steven Magee

“The space shuttle Challenger disaster was a classic example of what happens when engineers are overruled by incompetent managers.”
― Steven Magee

“Challenger and Chernobyl: the only felicitous accidents, like a freeze-frame of the system. In the same way as a photo arrests movement and restores the unforgettable character that it had lost, the Challenger explosion has revived our imagination where space is concerned. The photos of Challenger were only so beautiful because they fixed in our minds the secret destination of the adventure of space travel, whereas its speed only gives us the apparent movement.”
― Jean Baudrillard, Cool Memories

“Let no man’s heart fail because of Goliath. - David”
― Pearl S. Buck, The Story Bible: Volume 1

“To live is to face challenges.
Who never faced challenges,
just passed through life, did not live.”
― Augusto Branco