ABSTRACT
This chapter suggests that the symbol of manned space flight that NASA intended to project came to be in contradiction with the social and organizational realities which were necessary for its staging. It discusses the internal working of NASA in terms of a theory about organizations as projects for the return to narcissism. In evaluating the symbol of manned space flight presented in the case of flight 51L, it is useful to compare it to an earlier symbol of manned space flight. For Tom Wolfe, the symbol called for by the American public, and happily generated by the original American astronauts was the symbol of the "single combat warrior." The manned space flight program was symbolic in intent right from the beginning. Looking at the transformation in the image of manned space flight, from the single combat warrior to Disneyland in space, gives ample material to consider the loss of technological capacity that gave rise to the space shuttle catastrophe.
