[garbanzo]

Since the Challenger disaster they do wear their suit and helmet during ascent and re-entry in case of a rapid decompression.

Do you know if it's thought that it would have made much of a difference in the Challenger explosion ?

[nhoward14]

Debris recovered from Challenger showed that some astronauts survived the explosion and survived through the descent to Earth. They were then killed instantly upon impact with the water.

[nhoward14]

I guess I better also point out that there are dissenting viewpoints that suggest they did survive the explosion but would have gone unconscious within seconds due to lack of oxygen. The detail in dispute is if the cabin maintained pressure long enough. Once the cabin hit the water it was severely smashed such that it was impossible to determine its integrity in the air.

[snopercod]

Do you know if it's thought that it would have made much of a difference in the Challenger explosion ?

Yes I know, and no it wouldn't have. It might have kept the Challenger Astronauts alive until they impacted the ocean, that's all.