COMMISSION ACTIVITIES
An Overview
President Reagan, seeking to ensure a thorough and unbiased
investigation of the Challenger accident, announced the formation of
the Commission on February 3, 1986.  The mandate given by the
President, contained in Executive Order 12546, required Commission
members to:
  (1)  Review the circumstances surrounding the accident to establish
the probable cause or causes of the accident; and,
  (2)  Develop recommendations for corrective or other action based
upon the Commission's findings and determinations.

The Commission itself divided into four investigative panels:

  1.  Development and Production, responsible for investigating the
acquisition and test and evaluation processes for the Space Shuttle
elements;

  2.  Pre-Launch Activities, responsible for assessing the Shuttle
system processing, launch readiness process and pre-launch security;

  3.  Mission Planning and Operations, responsible for investigating
mission planning and operations, schedule pressures and crew safety
areas; and

  4.  Accident Analysis, charged with analyzing the accident data and
developing both an anomaly tree and accident scenarios.

More than 160 individuals were interviewed and more than 35 formal
panel investigative sessions were held generating almost 12,000 pages
of transcript.  Almost 6,300 documents, totaling more than 122,000
pages, and hundreds of photographs were examined and made a part of
the Commission's permanent data base and archives.  These sessions and
all the data gathered added to the 2,800 pages of hearing transcript
generated by the Commission in both closed and open sessions.

In addition to the work of the Commission and the Commission staff,
NASA personnel expended a vast effort in the investigation.  More than
1,300 employees from all NASA facilities were involved and were
supported by more than 1,600 people from other government agencies and
over 3,100 from NASA's contractor organizations.  Particularly
significant were the activities of the military, the Coast Guard and
the NTSB in the salvage and analysis of the Shuttle wreckage.