What is Allan J. McDonald?
{{Infobox person |name = Allan J. McDonald |image = Allan J. McDonald in 2012.jpg |image_size = |caption = Allan J. McDonald in 2012 |birth_date = {{birth date|1937|6|9}} |birth_place = [[Cody, Wyoming]], US |death_date = {{death date and age|2021|3|6|1937|7|9}} |death_place = [[Ogden, Utah|Ogden]], [[Utah]], US |death_cause = |nationality = [[United States|American]] |other_names = |known_for = |alma_mater = [[Montana State University]] <br /> [[University of Utah]] }} '''Allan James McDonald''' (July 9, 1937 – March 6, 2021) was an American engineer, aerospace consultant and author.<ref name=LATimesJan2016> {{cite news |url= https://www.latimes.com/socal/daily-pilot/tn-wknd-et-0131-space-shuttle-chapman-20160129-story.html |title= Engineer who refused to OK Challenger launch report donates papers to Chapman University |work= Los Angeles Times |date= January 31, 2016 |access-date= March 8, 2021 |author= Kandil, Caitlin Yoshiko}}</ref> He was the director of the Space Shuttle Solid Rocket Motor Project for [[Thiokol|Morton-Thiokol]]. In January 1986, he refused to sign off on a launch of the [[Space Shuttle Challenger|Space Shuttle ''Challenger'']] which [[Space Shuttle Challenger disaster|broke apart 73&nbsp;seconds into flight]].<ref name=NASA>{{cite web |url= https://www.nasa.gov/centers/langley/news/researchernews/rn_Colloquium1012.html |title= Engineer who opposed Challenger launch offers personal look at tragedy |publisher= NASA |date= October 5, 2012 |access-date= March 8, 2012 |archive-date= October 28, 2021 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20211028055037/https://www.nasa.gov/centers/langley/news/researchernews/rn_Colloquium1012.html |url-status= dead }}</ref> McDonald died in [[Ogden, Utah]] at the age of 83 on March 6, 2021.<ref name= NYTobit> {{cite news |url= https://www.nytimes.com/2021/03/09/us/allan-mcdonald-dead.html?searchResultPosition=1 |title= Allan McDonald dies at 83; tried to stop the Challenger launch |work= The New York Times