Introduction

Columbias final mission - a multimedia case study about the 2003 Columbia Space Shuttle
disaster is designed to help you understand how failures evolve, how to prevent failures in
your own organization, and how to effectively manage risk in a complex organization.
This case puts you in the shoes of one of six key NASA managers or engineers involved in
the Columbia Space Shuttles last mission. It will take you through the first eight days of the
mission, as if you worked in NASA at the time. The case will prepare you for the key mission
management team meeting that took place on Flight Day 8, a meeting will re-enact during our
class session.

Navigation details:

1. There is no back button in the case - the idea is to see the case chronologically, as did
the protagonists whom you represent. If you attempt to move haphazardly, you may
be confused with the details of the mission.

2. If you want to revisit specific aspects of the case, or if you want to pause the
preparation and pick up later, please note the following:

calendar function: click on the calendar icon in the taskbar at bottom of the screen to
go to any specific day within the mission. Recommended to use this option only after
having viewed the case once chronologically

all documents viewed by you will be in the My documents folder. The material in the
"My documents" folder can be sorted by Flight Day, Media Type or in Alphabetical
Order

all windows open in the simulation can be "dragged" on the "desktop", meaning that
one can easily access prior documents that have been viewed and are sitting just
below the current piece of material in view. However, if you wish, you can also close
documents on the desktop, by clicking on the "X" button, in the upper-right hand
corner of each piece of material.






Assignment Questions
Please prepare to participate in a simulation of the key Mission Management Team meeting
that took place on Flight Day 8 of this mission. The information provided to you in the
multimedia case will assist you in assuming the role of your designated programme engineer
or manager. For class, please be prepared to role-play the meeting as you believe the
individuals at NASA actually conducted themselves during the meeting.

1. How would you characterize the culture of NASA? What are its strengths and weaknesses
2. How has NASA treated foam strikes historically? Why has NASA treated strikes in this
manner?
3. How did the history of the space shuttle program shape peoples behaviour during the first
8 days of the mission?
4. How would you characterize NASAs response to the foam strike in comparison with its
response to the Apollo 13 incident? How does the Columbia mission compare to the
Challenger accident in 1986?
5. What differences did you perceive in the behaviour of managers versus engineers?
6. Putting yourself in the shoes of the managers or engineer whose actions you have followed
in the multi-media case, consider the following questions:
a) What prior assumptions and beliefs shaped the way you thought and behaved during the
multimedia mission
b) What pressures affected your behaviour? Where did these pressures originate?
c) In what ways did the culture impact your actions?
d) If you were in that persons shoes during the Columbia mission, would you have behaved
differently? Why or why not?