Every spectacular spacecraft failure proves the same thing: Space travel is a tough, expensive, risky business. Computers crash, rockets explode, probes miss planets and satellites smack into the atmosphere. And then there are human tragedies -- the Challengers, the Columbias. Yet for every glitch, space travelers find a fix, for every disaster, they find a renewed determination. Sometimes the solutions happen in mid-mission, sometimes, they aren't found until the accident review board finishes its work. …
showed first 75 words of 913 total

showed last 75 words of 913 total
…dock, forcing the temporary evacuation of the Mir. Dec. 3, 1999 -- Two U.S. probes bound for Mars were presumed lost as they entered Mars' atmosphere. Feb. 1, 2003 -- The Columbia broke apart over Texas on its return to Kennedy Space Center in Florida, killing the crew of seven, including the first Israeli in space, Ilan Ramon. In all, 22 people have died in space-related accidents -- 17 during American missions and five during under the Russian space program.