Roger Bruce Chaffee was an American astronaut and naval aviator. He was one of the three astronauts who died in the Apollo 1 disaster, which occurred during a pre-launch test on January 27, 1967.
Chaffee was born on February 15, 1935, in Grand Rapids, Michigan. He received a bachelor’s degree in aeronautical engineering from Purdue University in 1957 and was commissioned as a second lieutenant in the United States Marine Corps. He later received a master’s degree in aeronautics and astronautics from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
In 1963, Chaffee was selected as one of the third group of astronauts by NASA. He served as a backup pilot for the Gemini 3 and Gemini 6 missions, and was the prime pilot for the planned Gemini 9 mission.
However, Chaffee’s career was cut short by the Apollo 1 disaster, in which a fire broke out in the spacecraft during a pre-launch test, killing Chaffee and fellow astronauts Virgil “Gus” Grissom and Edward White. The disaster was a major setback for the Apollo program and led to significant changes in the design and safety procedures of the spacecraft.
Chaffee was posthumously awarded the Congressional Space Medal of Honor in 1978. He was also inducted into the United States Astronaut Hall of Fame in 1993.