Bob Ebeling obit

Bob Ebeling, Challenger Engineer Who Forewarned Of Shuttle Disaster, Dead At 89

He was not on the list.

For three decades, retired NASA engineer Bob Ebeling blamed himself for being unable to stop the 1986 launch of space shuttle Challenger. He had warned that the shuttle might explode, and it did shortly after liftoff, killing seven crew members.

In the final weeks of his life, however, thanks to an outpouring of support following a National Public Radio story in January on the 30th anniversary of the disaster, Ebeling, 89, finally found peace.

“It was as if he got permission from the world,” Ebeling’s daughter, Leslie Ebeling Serna, told NPR on Monday. “He was able to let that part of his life go.”

Ebeling died Monday in his home in Brigham City, Utah, after a prolonged illness with prostate cancer, NPR reported.