Friday, January 28, 2011

In Memorium

25 Years Ago Today, We Lost The Challenger

Just over a minute into their flight, Commander Francis Scobee was given the go to “throttle up.”

What happened next was just unthinkable to those of us watching on TV or on the ground.  Space travel had become so “ordinary” by then when all of a sudden we were given a horrifying reminder of just how technically intricate man’s foray into space really was, and how quickly the lives of seven brave astronauts could be taken from us.

Image: Space shuttle Challenger explosion, Jan. 28, 1986 (© Bruce Weaver/AP)

It was a shock around the world really as millions of people witnessed the loss of the Challenger, STS-51-L over and over again on television sets around the world. 

Today we remember:

Mission Specialist Ellison S. Onizuka

Payload Specialist and Gradeschool Teacher Christa McAuliffe.

Payload Specialist Gregory B. Jarvis

Mission Specialist Judith A. Resnik

Pilot Michael J. Smith

Commander Francis “Dick” Scobee

Mission Specialist Ronald E. McNair

May God bless and keep them, and give their families comfort this day.

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