Underlying Cause(s)
Superficially, the Columbia space shuttle explosion was caused by critical damage to the Orbiter sustained during launch. Upon ascent, a piece of insulating foam separated from the external fuel tank’s bipod ramp and struck the Orbiter’s left wing, causing a buildup of atmospheric gas in the wing. Which upon reentry compromised the Orbiter’s structural integrity.

In-depth analysis of pre-launch decision-making revealed that NASA’s strict flight schedule placed unrealistic time pressures on the management team and engineers. The team was tasked with five launches in one year. As a result, they were constantly looking ahead to the next flight instead of focusing their full attention on the current flight, its mission, and its safe return. The pressure created a mindset that disregarded all concerns. A more realistic time schedule would have remedied this. After all, defying gravity takes time. …show more content…
The chain of command did not allow for direct communication between engineers and the Missions Management Team, which led to the obfuscation and dilution of salient information. Columbia’s outcome could have been different had a system been in place that allowed engineers to bypass bureaucracy in voicing their concerns and requesting data.

A direct result of NASA’s bureaucratic culture was an ambiguous vocabulary of safety. The precise term of “anomaly” was used interchangeably with the casual term of “out of family.” As one CAIB member stated, “Out of family is not as well defined, and if you see it enough it becomes part of the family.” The term’s ambiguity led to foam strikes being considered an accepted risk and thereby stunted management’s analysis of the STS-107