Remembering The Challenger Disaster

There are very few instances in the last 50 years of American history that we can look back upon, and remember, in detail, exactly where we were when it took place.  My parents remember where they were when JFK was assassinated.  Their parents remember when Pearl Harbor was bombed.  My first memory with that kind of historical significance was on January 28, 1986.  

At 11:38am Eastern time, the Space Shuttle Challenger disintegrated over the Atlantic Ocean, one minute and thirteen seconds after launch.  On board were seven astronauts, including Christa McAuliffe, the first teacher in space.

NASA broadcast the launch live to thousands of schools nationwide.  I saw it live on a big screen television in the school library with my fifth grade class.  I was devastated.  I remember the worst part of all was watching McAullife's parent's in the crowd clapping.  They had no idea what was going on.  They had never seen a shuttle launch before.  I started crying.  They didn't know that they had just watched their daughter die.

Fast forward twenty five years.  The final shuttle mission is scheduled for April, NASA's future is in question, and the 25 year anniversary of the Challenger disaster is lucky to get a paragraph mention on page 3 or 4 of today's paper.  These five men and two women pioneered what we find ordinary today.  Without their sacrifice, there may not have been a possibility of "space tourism", the Hubble telescope, or the International Space Station.  We owe them our gratitude and respect.

For a detailed account of what happened on January 28th, 1986, take a look at the Wikipedia article on the Challenger disaster.  There is some interesting, and shocking, information about what happened to the shuttle and the crew during the accident.