Claim: Thiokol was interested in rubber.

Thiokol -LRB- variously Thiokol Chemical Corporation , Morton-Thiokol Inc. , Cordant Technologies Inc. , Thiokol Propulsion , AIC Group , ATK Thiokol ; finally ATK Launch Systems Group before becoming part of Orbital ATK -RRB- was an American corporation concerned initially with rubber and related chemicals , and later with rocket and missile propulsion systems . Its name is a portmanteau of the Greek words for sulfur -LRB- θειον `` theion '' -RRB- and glue -LRB- κολλα `` kolla '' -RRB- , an allusion to the company 's initial product , Thiokol polymer .   The Thiokol Chemical Company was founded in 1929 . Its initial business was a range of synthetic rubber and polymer sealants , and Thiokol was a major supplier of liquid polymer sealants during World War II . When scientists at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory discovered that Thiokol 's polymers made ideal binders for solid rocket fuels , Thiokol moved into the new field , opening laboratories at Elkton , Maryland , and later production facilities at Elkton and at Redstone Arsenal in Huntsville , Alabama . Huntsville produced the XM33 Pollux , TX-18 Falcon , and TX-135 Nike-Zeus systems . It closed in 1996 . In the mid-1950s the company bought extensive lands in Utah for its rocket test range , and in 1986 was found at fault for the destruction of the Space Shuttle Challenger and the deaths of its astronauts . Thiokol continues to have major operations in the state , at Magna and Promontory -LRB- manufacture of the Space Shuttle 's solid rocket motors -RRB- , and its current headquarters at Brigham City . the company employed over 15,000 people worldwide and records annual sales of around .