It’s been more than 40 years since the first successful space shuttle launch. However, as we saw with the recent NASA launch, we still have launch failures. Why is it so tough to achieve reliability in space shuttle launches? Does this apply to all space technology?

Question

It’s been more than 40 years since the first successful space shuttle launch. However, as we saw with the recent NASA launch, we still have launch failures. Why is it so tough to achieve reliability in space shuttle launches? Does this apply to all space technology?

In:

Answer 1

The forces involved are huge, and the machines have to be as light as possible. You can’t “over engineer” due to the weight requirements, and even slightly “under engineered”, or even a tiny flaw in the materials, can cause failure. “Just right” is a thin line.