Apollo 1 Fire
(January 28, 1967) Officially designated Apollo/Saturn 204, but more commonly known as Apollo 1, this close-up view of the interior of the Command Module shows the effects of the intense heat of the flash fire which killed the prime crew during a routine training exercise. While strapped into their seats inside the Command Module atop the Saturn IB rocket, a spark ignited the pure oxygen environment. The speed and intensity of the fire quickly exhausted the oxygen supply inside the crew cabin. Unable to open the hatch due to its cumbersome design, the crew lost consciousness and perished. They were: astronauts Virgil I. "Gus" Grissom, (the second American to fly into space) Edward H. White II, (the first American to "walk" in space) and Roger B. Chaffee, (a "rookie" on his first space mission).
Credit: NASA
Image Number: S67-21294
Date: January 28, 1967
Apollo 1 Fire
(January 28, 1967) Officially designated Apollo/Saturn 204, but more commonly known as Apollo 1, this close-up view of the interior of the Command Module shows the effects of the intense heat of the flash fire which killed the prime crew during a routine training exercise. While strapped into their seats inside the Command Module atop the Saturn IB rocket, a spark ignited the pure oxygen environment. The speed and intensity of the fire quickly exhausted the oxygen supply inside the crew cabin. Unable to open the hatch due to its cumbersome design, the crew lost consciousness and perished. They were: astronauts Virgil I. "Gus" Grissom, (the second American to fly into space) Edward H. White II, (the first American to "walk" in space) and Roger B. Chaffee, (a "rookie" on his first space mission).
Credit: NASA
Image Number: S67-21294
Date: January 28, 1967