3 ms·

Challenger _really_ screwed things up

• ska 11y ago
  I don't think that's true, or rather it didn't help but it's not the problem. The program wasn't doing so many interesting things before Challenger, either. I think the "space race" was born with the seeds of its own doom. Wanting to beat the Russians to the moon provided the political and economic will to put a huge effort into the Apollo program - but after that was achieved the interest evaporated. If you are more interested in the pissing contest than the science and exploration, it isn't surprising that the latter gets short shrift in the long run.