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"Twenty-one years ago today, in 1986, the space shuttle Challenger exploded 73 seconds after liftoff, killing the entire crew in what, until then, was the worst accident in the history of the U.S. space program.
The immediate cause of the accident was traced to the failure of an O-ring seal in the Challenger's right solid rocket booster, but a subsequent investigation placed the ultimate blame on NASA's organizational culture and flawed decision-making processes.
The O-ring's failure caused a flame leak in the solid rocket booster that ignited the external propellant tank. A massive structural failure then occurred and the orbiter broke up over the Atlantic Ocean.
Among those killed was Christa McAuliffe, a civilian who was to be the first teacher into space.
The accident disrupted the space shuttle program for 32 months."
(Source: Wikipedia)
This is one of those events that I can remember vividly (and probably always will...), even though I was only 8.
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Did you actually see it happen, chris? It must have been one of the most scary and surreal things to witness live.
I was only 3 at the time, so don't remember any of it.
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I would have been five. I remember seeing footage of it on the news... strange how things like this become seared into your memory.
Come say hi on twitter
@MattMerritt
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I watched it live on TV... and it was frightening.
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Young'uns.
I was 20, in the Army stationed in California. Going about my normal daily routine. Not long after we heard about it, my Sergeant Major pulled out a small TV from his office and we spent the rest of the day watching the footage again and again. I can remember that day vividly.
F**k, I'm old!
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BroKen, you're not old... just mature!
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There's video of it on YouTube..
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Imagine a world before the "beginning was the word.”
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Although I was not born yet, I do remember the Columbia tragedy, which will be 4 years ago on Thursday.
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I was on a family vacation at the time when a stranger mentioned to me that the space shuttle blew up. Wasn't until we got home that we saw it on the news.
My best friend told me that he was in school at the time, and all the kids had been brought into a special room to view the launch. After the explosion, they cancelled the rest of the school day & sent all the kids home.
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I was a sophomore in high school at St. Joe's in Buffalo New York. We were in the lunch room where the science teacher had set up a television for us to watch the shuttle launch. Back then it was a big deal and every shuttle launch was an event. We really didn't pay attention until the initial problems began to develop. When the Challenger exploded we all sat in silence watching our science teacher cry.
