I must say though that this is expected; following the history of early flight in the years after the Wright Brothers.
“If we die, we want people to accept it. We’re in a risky business, and we hope that if anything happens to us it will not delay the program. The conquest of space is worth the risk of life.”
- Gus Grissom
I was thinking the same thing. Think of what it was like back in early 20th Century as we started to fly, that was a risky business, and a lot of people died.
This is a terrible thing.
But I have to admit, for a second it filled me with a small thrill when it highlighted the context. Imagine what spaceflight could be in 100 years, it it travels the same continuum as the first explorations of manned powered flight.
I suspect these men who were injured or died today held and hold that very spark of thrill inside them as well, when they surely realized at some point the possibility of walking in the shoes of the Wright Brothers as they pushed the commercialization of spacecraft. They all understand and readily accept the risks and the dangers, because it is in our blood to push our boundaries that way.
I love that about mankind.