The Challenger Disaster - Last Recording

The Challenger's

Last Recording

The following is the transcript of a voice tape taken from the Challenger's on board operational recorder. This includes only the discussions made by four of the Challenger's crew members. To the right, I have provided some commentary of my own.

Transcript

CDR..........Francis R. (Dick) Scobee

PLT..........Michael J. Smith

MS 1.........Ellison S. Onizuka

MS 2.........Judith A. Resnik

(The references to "NASA" indicate explanatory references NASA provided to the Presidential Commission.)

Time Crew Crew

(Min:Sec).........Position Comment

T-2:05............MS 2..... Would you give that back to me?

T-2:03............MS 2..... Security blanket.

T-2:02............MS 2..... Hmm.

T-1:58............CDR..... Two minutes downstairs; you gotta watch running down there?

(NASA: Two minutes till launch.)

T-1:47............PLT..... OK there goes the lox arm.

(NASA: Liquid oxygen supply arm to ET.)

T-1:46............CDR..... Goes the beanie cap.

(NASA: Liquid oxygen vent cap.)

T-1:44............MS 1..... Doesn't it go the other way?

T-1:42............ Laughter.

T-1:39............MS 1..... Now I see it; I see it.

T-1:39............PLT..... God I hope not Ellison.

T-1:38............MS 1..... I couldn't see it moving; it was behind the center screen.

(NASA: Obstructed view of liquid oxygen supply arm.)

T-1:33. .........MS 2..... Got your harnesses locked?

(NASA: Seat restraints.)

T-1:29............PLT..... What for?

T-1:28............CDR..... I won't lock mine; I might have to reach something.

T-1:24............PLT..... Ooh kaaaay.

T-1:04............MS 1..... Dick's thinking of somebody there.

T-1:03............CDR..... Unhuh.

T-59..............CDR..... One minute downstairs.

(NASA: One minute till launch.)

T-52..............MS 2..... Cabin Pressure is probably going to give us an alarm.

(NASA: Caution and warning alarm. Routine occurrence during prelaunch).

T-50..............CDR..... OK.

T-47..............CDR..... OK there.

T-43..............PLT..... Alarm looks good.

(NASA: Cabin pressure is acceptable.)

T-42..............CDR..... OK.

T-40..............PLT..... Ullage pressures are up.

(NASA: External tank ullage pressure.)

T-34..............PLT..... Right engine helium tank is just a little bit low.

(NASA: SSME supply helium pressure.)

T-32..............CDR..... It was yesterday, too.

T-31..............PLT..... OK.

T-30..............CDR..... Thirty seconds down there.

(NASA: 30 seconds till launch.)

T-25............PLT..... Remember the red button when you make a roll call.

(NASA: Precautionary reminder for communications configuration.)

T-23............CDR..... I won't do that; thanks a lot.

T-15..............CDR..... Fifteen.

(NASA: 15 seconds till launch.)

T-6...............CDR..... There they go guys.

(NASA: SSME Ignition.)

MS 2..... All right.

CDR..... Three at a hundred.

(NASA: SSME thrust level at 100% for all 3 engines.)

T+O...............MS 2..... Aaall riiight.

T+1...............PLT..... Here we go.

(NASA: Vehicle motion.)

T+7...............CDR.............Houston, Challenger roll program.

(NASA: Initiation of vehicle roll program.)

T+11..............PLT..... Go you Mother.

T+14..............MS 1..... LVLH.

(NASA: Reminder for cockpit switch configuration change. Local vertical/local horizontal).

T+15..............MS 2..... (Expletive) hot.

T+16..............CDR..... Ooohh-kaaay.

T+19..............PLT..... Looks like we've got a lotta wind here today.

T+20..............CDR..... Yeah.

T+22..............CDR..... It's a little hard to see out my window here.

T+28..............PLT..... There's ten thousand feet and Mach point five.

(NASA: Altitude and velocity report.)

T+30............ Garble.

T+35..............CDR..... Point nine.

(NASA: Velocity report, 0.9 Mach).

T+40..............PLT..... There's Mach one.

(NASA: Velocity report, 1.0 Mach).

T+41..............CDR..... Going through nineteen thousand.

(NASA: Altitude report, 19,000 ft.)

T+43..............CDR..... OK we're throttling down.

(NASA: Normal SSME thrust reduction during maximum dynamic pressure region.)

T+57..............CDR..... Throttling up.

(NASA: Throttle up to 104% after maximum dynamic pressure.)

T+58..............PLT..... Throttle up.

T+59..............CDR..... Roger.

T+60..............PLT..... Feel that mother go.

T+60............ Woooohoooo.

T+1:02............PLT..... Thirty-five thousand going through one point five

(NASA: Altitude and velocity report, 35,000 ft., 1.5 Mach).

T+1:05............CDR..... Reading four eighty six on mine.

(NASA: Routine airspeed indicator check.)

T+1:07............PLT..... Yep, that's what I've got, too.

T+1:10............CDR..... Roger, go at throttle up.

(NASA: SSME at 104 percent.)

T+1:13............PLT..... Uhoh.

T+1:13.......................LOSS OF ALL DATA.

The legend at the beginning uses abbreviations for Commander (CDR), Pilot (PLT) and Mission Specialist 1 & 2 (MS 1, MS 2, respectively). During the times covered by the recording, the other three crew members were not present at the cockpit , but were instead on the mid-deck of the Shuttle.

Throughout the transcript, you can see that although the astronauts are working hard and focused, they still manage to venture off into irrelevant topics of conversation.

As they prepare for launch, Resnik asks if everyone has their safety harnesses locked on and Commander Scobee replies a confident "I won't lock mine." The crew then continue to tinker with the controls and run diagnostics to ensure all the instruments and panels are working correctly.

The recording devices present on Space Shuttles usually start automatically at T-2:05 and continues until the end of the mission when the the Shuttle touches back down. However in the case of the Challenger's final departure, it was cut off just prior to T+1:14, rendering approximately just 198 seconds of tape with data.

T-6, nearing the pinnacle of public excitement, the Challenger's Solid Rocket Boosters (SRBs) suddenly ignite their fuel. Six seconds later, the craft blasts off into its 10th flight into space and control is transferred from the launch control at Kennedy to mission control in Houston. In the seconds following the lift off, the Astronauts rejoice and continue to routinely check in with mission control.

Amazed by it all, Smith comments on the wind as Scobee tries to look out the window. At T+28, the Shuttle reaches a height of 10 000 ft (3048 m) and a speed of 0.5 mach (612 km/h). The booster throttles do fluctuate from 104% down to 65% and back up again, but this goes as planned. Everything goes without fault as the Shuttle continues to ascend into the sky.

As they climb higher, past the region with the maximum dynamic pressure, Commander Scobee confirms with Houston, "Roger, go at throttle up." It was the last air-to-ground communication before the breakup of the vehicle at around T+73. The final and only exclamatory words were from Pilot Michael Smith, who said: "Uhoh."