#alton keel

Following the Space Shuttle Challenger accident in January 1986, President Reagan appointed a Presidential Commission to investigate the accident. The fourteen members of the Commission included former Secretary of State William Rogers as chairman, astronauts Sally Ride and Neil Armstrong, and Nobel Prize winner Richard Feynman. After months of investigation, the Rogers Commission identified the cause of failure as an O- ring in the right Solid Rocket Booster that ruptured due to the cold temperatures of the launch.

Here, Alton Keel (left), the representative to the Commission from the Executive Office of the President, and chairman William Rogers (center) arrive at the Galaxie Theatre at KSC’s Visitor’s Information Center for a one day briefing and tour of the NASA facility