Hello Internet - what is going on - and welcome, to Top 5 Scary Videos - the channel where
we compile the most terrifying tales from the deepest depths of the internet - so you
can get /absolutely/ horrified from the comfort of your own phone.
My name’s Jack Finch - and today I’ll be your host, as we check out 5 Scary Times
that Nasa Was Wrong.
Now - I’m sure, like me - we all love NASA.
That exciting, innovative space agency that dares to dream of a world where galactic travel
is as normal as riding a bus.
But - you know - space is a pretty unforgiving place, and it’s scary how little room for
error there is when you’re basically trying to launch a giant can of molten fire from
one planet to another - purely by the magical power of mathematics.
NASA has launched a total of 135 missions between 1981 and 2011 - totalling an insane
one thousand - 322 days of flight time.
But - in space, no one can hear you scream.
And sometimes - NASA can get it very, very wrong.
Jumping in at Number 5 - we have - Skylab.
Although it sounds like something straight out of a James Bond film - Skylab was NASA’s
first ever all-American Space Station.
It was a sheer engineering masterclass too - including a workshop, solar observatory
and all the features necessary to sustain a 3-person crew.
And they did all of this in /1973/ - just 4 years after the Moon Landings.
Skylab was in orbit for a little over 6 years, and it’s life cycle came to an end in 1979.
But - where NASA really dropped the ball was - well, they didn’t really think about how
they’d get it back down again.
This was pretty uncharacteristic for NASA - you know, cos you can’t just blag your
way into rocket science - and preparation is key when you’re launching tonnes of pure
metal into the sky.
Well - no one really remembers Skylab - but what they do remember, is the crash.
Because it was absolutely huge - and received worldwide media coverage.
Before it came hurtling down to Earth again - NASA finally got to crunching the numbers,
and calculated a 1 in 152 chance of human injury.
They figured that their best bet was to use Skylab’s remaining rockets to guide it over
the Indian Ocean.
And for the most part - they succeeded.
The larger parts of Skylab came hurtling down into the sea - but the majority of debris
landed over poor, old Australia.
Thankfully - no one was seriously injured, and Australia remained relatively undamaged.
NASA could finally stop holding their breath, and give each other a high-five over the fact
that a giant space station didn’t land on anyone.
Not everyone was happy, though - and shortly afterwards, the small Australian Shire of
Esperance fined NASA 400 dollars - for littering.
Coming up next at Number 4 - we have the Mars Polar Lander.
The Mars Polar Lander - or the MPL for short - remains to be one of NASA’s most ambitious
project to date.
Launched on January 3rd 1999 - the MPL was a 290kg robotic vessel with the primary objective
of surveying the southern polar region of Mars, and search for evidence of ancient Martian
climates.
With the MPL - NASA also wanted to ask the question - can the Red Planet sustain life?
Well - the curious probe finally reached its destination in December 1999 - and just as
it made its graceful descent through the Martian atmosphere - it fell off the face of the universe,
and NASA has no idea where it went.
Communication with the MPL up and died and never resumed - and no one - especially NASA
- really knew what the hell had just happened.
They spent a full month trying to get the lander to text back - frantically spamming
‘pls respond’ - until finally, NASA gave up the ghost and declared the mission an absolute
failure.
Although they’re not entirely sure, NASA’s best theory is that the MPL’s on-board computer
had been tricked into thinking it had already landed - but in reality, shut off it’s engines
prematurely and crashed dead into the big red rock.
The truth though - still remains a mystery.
Coming in at Number 3 - we have the infamous Apollo 13.
The infamous Apollo 13 mission, was so insane that they made it into a Hollywood blockbuster
starring Tom Hanks.
Launched on April 11, 1970 - Apollo 13 was planned to be NASA’s third manned mission
to the Moon.
The mission was led by veteran-pilot, Commander Jim Lovell, and had a relatively straight-forward
agenda - land on the Moon, and explore a 50-mile wide crater.
Well - from the beginning things started to unravel, and the whole mission never really
got back on the right foot.
To begin - one of Apollo 13’s primary astronauts, Ken Mattingly, contracted rubella and had
to be admitted to hospital.
Because of that, a pilot named Jack Swigert took up his place.
Although astronauts train extensively for months and months, this was Swigert’s first
ever time flying into space.
The bad luck didn’t stop there, though.
Shortly into the mission, an on board cryogenic tank burst open - and damaged another in the
process.
Apollo 13 lost its ability to generate power, maintain oxygen levels and produce water.
Pretty scary when you’re essentially floating around the lifeless void of space in a tin
can.
This is where we get the infamous line.
Houston - we have a problem.
And a pretty big problem, at that.
The mission was scrapped, and the astronauts soon forgot anything about the Moon - they
turned back with things looking pretty damn dire.
There was some good luck though - Apollo 13 still had a functioning backup, and the crew
were able to survive inside there during the trip back home, before switching to the original
craft on reentry.
That’s one hell of a U-turn.
Next up at Number 2 - we have the Challenger Disaster.
On January 28, 1986 - seven brave crew members of the space shuttle Challenger were tragically
killed in NASA’s first fatal accident during a planned Space Shuttle launch.
Five astronauts and two payload specialists made up the flight roster, and after just
73 seconds from it’s launch point - the vessel broke apart off the coast of Cape Canaveral
and plummeted into the ocean.
Over 17 percent of Americans actually witnessed the disaster live on national television - due
to crew member Christa McAuliffe, who was planned to be the first ever teacher in space
and had attracted a buzz from the media.
It was concluded that the disaster originated from a certain joint used to seal the spacecraft.
The O-Ring, a manufactured part that NASA had used despite warnings that it couldn’t
withstand cold conditions - was identified as the primary cause for the launch disaster,
and the seven tragic deaths of it’s brave crew members.
Shortly afterwards, NASA suspended all space shuttle programs for 32 months, while they
tried to learn from their tragic mistake.
Which leads us to our final Number 1 point - the Columbia Disaster.
Because on February 1, 2003 - tragedy struck again for NASA and its crew members.
The fateful launch was planned to be Space Shuttle Columbia’s 28th mission into orbit.
During the launch, a piece of foam used for insulation had broken off from the ships tank
and catastrophically damaged its left wing.
As the Columbia entered Earth’s atmosphere - the damage to the left wing allowed searing
atmospheric gases to break through its heat shield - causing the spacecraft to tragically
break apart as it made its way home.
After a detailed report, it was concluded that the crew had less than a minute before
the vessel depressurised - knocking them unconscious before the cabin disintegrated.
It was also concluded that the astronauts couldn’t have known that the Columbia had
a fatal flaw in it’s design - although NASA went to great lengths after the disaster to
ensure that it would never happen again.
The world went on to remember the brave crew members that gave their lives in the pursuit
of space exploration - Husband, McCool, Anderson, Ramon, Chawla, Brown and Clark.
NASA’s shortcomings and oversights led to the deaths of 14 pilots over 2 seperate shuttle
disasters, and is a mortal reminder of the incredible danger that surrounds space flight,
and the human cost that sadly came with it.
That’s all we’ve got time for today folks, make sure to hit that subscribe button - leave
us a comment in the box down below - and maybe hit that thumbs up button while your down
there.
My name’s Jack Finch - I sincerely hope you’ve enjoyed this video - and until next
time, take it easy.