The Challenger
 

I was following the link that SmartBlondeGphiB posted on the Seahawks, and saw an article on the Challenger. I had no idea that happened 20 years ago today!

Even worse, the name of the article is Seven Myths about the Challenger shuttle disaster. Among them is the fact that the astronauts did NOT die instantly; they lived for about 2 minutes 45 seconds afterwards. Wild stuff for those into NASA and the Space Program!

I too was in the 1st grade when the shuttle exploded.

It was early in the morning, and many of us came to school early because we wanted to all watch the liftoff together. It was a special morning because Ellison Onizuka, a hometown hero, was among the crew.

I still remember being 6 years old and horrified at what happened. The principal came over the PA and we said prayers for the lost crew. The local news stations ran pieces on Ellison Onizuka all day that day, and whoever wanted to go home could go home. :(

I can't beleive that was 20 years ago.

I think I've said before that my uncle worked as a subcontractor for NASA (through PanAm), and designed the original gantry, which is the elevator that the astronauts take to get into the actual capsule). So, I've been interested in the lift offs since I was little.

I am just shocked that they were still alive after the explosion!

It was huge news where I'm from as well, being the hometown of Christa McAuliffe.

I was in 6th grade, home sick from school. I remember my mom's rule was "no tv"- if you were too sick for school you were too sick for tv. I laid in bed and watched the news all day long. Very sad!!

I was just going on nightshift duty at the chow hall at Spangdahlem Air Base, Germany when it happened. (Germany's six hours ahead of Eastern time.) One of the guys who just got off dayshift ran into the kitchen and told us the news, and we immediately tuned our radio to Armed Forces Network, while the German civilian KPs listened in on RTL (Radio-TV Luxembourg) German programming.

I got the early out (working an eight-hour instead of a 12-hour shift) that evening; most everyone was still up at 0200 hours watching the news rerunning video of the disaster.

Hard to believe it's been 20 years... on Sunday, it'll be 39 years since the Apollo 1 tragedy, and on February 3, it'll be 3 years since Columbia's last flight.

It was a huge shock to me because I looked at those names and felt like I almost knew them. I mean yeah it was a bit superficial, but I think we could have been best friends.

That launch has been studied extensively in public policy circles and that author doesn't know what he's talking about on a few points he tries to make.

-Rudey

Jim Oberg's no slouch when it comes to technical knowledge about the space program. As for the political aspects... well, that can be a bit tough to pinpoint without getting into one's personal political beliefs. There's always some strings being pulled behind the scenes... :)

I am really dating myself:

I was in college when the tragedy occurred. The fact that Judith Resnick was a Carnegie Mellon alumna really hit home for many of us.

http://starbulletin.com/2006/01/26/news/art2c.jpg

"The crew of the space shuttle Challenger honored us by the manner in which they lived their lives. We will never forget them, nor the last time we saw them, this morning, as they prepared for their journey and waved good-bye and slipped the surly bonds of earth to touch the face of God." -- Ronald Reagan

The rest of President Reagan's speech is here.

Onizuka was a big story here in Denver as well since he studied at the University of Colorado at Boulder.

Since we're all talking about where we were, I was Production Manager at an NBC Owned TV station and was in the Chief Engineer's office -- next door to mine -- when the News Operations Manager came in and told us.

We spent the rest of the day juggling news programming -- which never got on the air because the network news organizations pretty much took control.

I was in school. I walked into the cafeteria and saw the students from the astronomy class who looked devastated and shocked. Someone said, "They're dead. They're all dead." That's how I found out. I was glad that I didn't watch it live. My youngest sister and her class did, and I think that she had post traumatic shock for months after.

I remember a few years earlier one of my teachers had applied to the teacher in space program which is how Christa McAuliffe was selected. I was so glad that she was not chosen.

I remember it - I was home waiting to go to school. I remember feeling really sad, and I remember my mom's reaction as she watched with us.

My cousin in California went to a school (elementary I believe) that had been named after Christa McAuliffe. I imagine that may have been the case in other parts of the country as well.

As a side note, her mother spoke at my National Honor Society induction in high school. Her address (and the accompanying slide show) were extremely moving.

I was in my freshman astronomy class at UT when I found out. At the time, my father was the assistant news editor and Page 1 designer at the paper where I've worked for almost 16 years (he retired about 10 years ago -- yay for nepotism). We were an afternoon paper then, and one of my first thoughts was that Dad would be working overtime. It happened just after he'd sent the A1 dummy up the pneumatic tube to the composing room. (Things certainly have changed. I miss the sound of that tube.) I was a journalism major, and he brought home a proof of the new front page for me.

It was the first time I realized that if you want to work in a newsroom, you have to be able to put your emotions in a little box when a tragedy like that occurs, and just get on with the job. You can think about the ramifications later. And if you can't do that, you need to find another line of work.

I have a couple friends in broadcasting. They've told me that, when tragedies occur, the sick jokes start flying like bees to a hive. Having a sick sense of humor myself, I can imagine how that would relieve the tension of having to deliver news that's really horrific.