![]() By that time SRBs were familiar technology, and had its share of opponents and proponents. This company had made a name for itself in the production of solid rocket boosters (SRBs) and was contracted in the late 1950s for the Minuteman ICBM program.Īs the Shuttle program got under way, Morton-Thiokol was contracted to produce the SRBs for the Space Shuttle in August of 1972, which saw McDonald among the engineers in charge of the Shuttle SRB program. After graduating from Montana State University with a degree in chemical engineering, he began to work for Morton-Thiokol in 1959. ![]() He grew up the son of a grocer but did not follow in his father’s footsteps. McDonald was born on July 9, 1937, and grew up in Billings, Montana. Until his death on March 6th of 2021, the experiences surrounding the Challenger disaster led him to become an outspoken voice on the topic of ethical decision-making, as well as a famous example of making the right decision, no matter how difficult the circumstances.Īllan J. They had warned against launching the Shuttle due to the very cold weather, fearing that the O-ring seals in the SRBs at these low temperatures would not be able to keep the SRB’s hot gases from destroying the SRB and the Shuttle along with it.Īllan McDonald was one of these engineers who did everything they could to stop the launch. This group consisted of engineers at Morton-Thiokol, responsible for components in the Shuttle’s solid rocket boosters (SRBs). ![]() Yet as traumatizing as this experience was, there was one group of people for whom their dire predictions and warnings to NASA became suddenly reality in the worst way possible. The Space Shuttle Challenger disaster on Januwas a life-altering event for many, ranging from people who had tuned in to watch the launch of a Space Shuttle with America’s first teacher onboard, to the countless people involved in the manufacturing, maintenance and launching of these complex spacecraft.
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