The future doesn't belong to the fainthearted; it belongs to the brave.

-Ronald Reagan

Judy Resnik was born on April 5, 1949 in Akron, Ohio.

She attended Fairlawn Elementary School, Perkins Middle School, and Firestone High School.

She graduated from Firestone High School in 1966.

Education

JUDITH A. RESNIK

COMMUNITY LEARNING CENTER

CareerJudy received a Bachelor of Science

degree in electrical engineering from Carnegie-Melon University and a doctorate in electrical engineering from the University of Maryland.

Dr. Resnik was a design engineer conducting support for NASA sounding rocket and telemetry programs.

She was also a biomedical engineer at the National Institution of Health.

Judy in her office at NASA.

NASADr. Resnik was chosen to be an astronaut and qualified to be a mission specialist. Her first mission was the maiden voyage of the space shuttle Discovery.

DiscoveryJudith Resnik was the second American

woman to go into space.

Dr. Resnik was a well respected eye doctor in Akron. (pictured on the far left)

CHALLENGER

Judy was chosen to fly on a historic mission on the Space Shuttle Challenger.

This mission would include the first civilian to go into space, an American school teacher.

The shuttle launch was planned for January 28, 1986.

A Diverse Crew

RON MCNAIR

CHRISTA MCCAULIFFE

MICHAEL SMITHJUDY RESNIK

GREGORY JARVIS

ELLISON S. ONIZUKA

RICHARD SCOBEE

Christa McCauliffe

This flight was special because it included a high school science teacher named Christa McCauliffe.

She had been chosen from thousands to become the first civilian in space.

More media attention was paid to this flight than had been in many years.

Space shuttle flights had become commonplace.

January 28, 1986 was the coldest day NASA ever attempted to launch a space shuttle.

Photos taken on the day of the launch.

Traditional Breakfast

It is tradition that the astronauts have a breakfast together before the launch.

The flight had been delayed five times due to weather so despite the conditions they proceeded with the launch.

This was the 25th Space Shuttle mission and the 10th flight for Challenger.

Heading for the Launch Pad

Video: Boarding the Space Shuttle

As family and friends watched from Cape Canaveral and school age students watched on television across the country, the space shuttle

lifted off.

Seventy-two seconds after lift-off a catastrophic explosion

occurred.

Click on picture to start video.

Dark smoke can be seen 0.678 second after ignition.

A small flame appears in the area of the leaking joint. The plume of hot exhaust spills across the bottom of the shuttle’s main fuel tank.

Mission Control

The two rocket boosters, still firing, fly onward until they are destroyed by radio command.

Wreckage found on the beach.

Ronald Reagan was informed of the accident as he sat in a meeting to prepare for his State of the Union address that was planned for that evening.

Click for video.

Ronald Reagan’s State of the Union Address.

NASA Investigates

O-Ring

It was determined by the NASA investigation that the Challenger disaster was caused by a frozen O-Ring.

The O-Ring is a rubber ring that uses moisture to keep its seal.

When the ring became frozen on that fateful day it became brittle and broken.

The seal failure caused a breach in the SRB joint it filled, allowing a flare to reach the outside and impinge upon the adjacent attachment hardware and external fuel tank.

Many memorials were held after the accident.

The memorial service for Judith A. Resnik was held at Firestone High School on February 3, 1986.

John Glenn Eulogy We have come here today not just to mourn Judy

Resnik's death, but even more to celebrate her life. And in my judgment, there is no better way to celebrate her life than to celebrate the cause for which she died.

-John Glenn

Judith Resnik Scholarship

• A $1,000 scholarship will be awarded to a young woman graduating from a public or private high school in the greater Akron area.

• This scholarship is designated for a student accepted into a baccalaureate degree program in the physical sciences, engineering or mathematics at an accredited college or university.

Judy Resnik Award

Judith A. Resnik Award was established by the IEEE Board of Directors in 1986 to recognize outstanding contributions to space engineering, within the fields of interest of the IEEE. This award is presented to an individual or team, with preference given to an individual

Carnegie-Melon Memorial

Fresco that hangs in the U.S. Capitol Building in Washington D.C.

Arlington National Cemetery

A historic marker has been placed at Firestone High School to recognize Judy Resnik’s contributions to the space program.

Every year during the week of the anniversary of the accident flowers are delivered by an anonymous person.

People have speculated throughout the years who sends the flowers but nobody knows for certain.

Judy Resnik was known to wear a ILY necklace that displayed “I Love You” in sign language. It was one of the few personal items recovered from the wreckage.

Other Accidents in the history of the U.S. Space Program

APOLLO 1

On January 27, 1967 Apollo 1 astronauts Virgil (Gus) Grissom, Roger Chaffee, and Edward White were killed in a flash fire during a simulated launch.

The astronauts were already strapped into the capsule and sealed in with bolts when the fire broke out. There was no way to escape.

The capsule is seen at the left.

The space shuttle Columbia burned up on re-entry into the earth’s atmosphere.

It was later determined that a missing tile on the belly of the shuttle allowed excessive heat to get into the vessel.

The shuttle is moved from one side of the country to the other by a piggy back ride on a specially designed plane.