Remembering the Challenger

On January 28, 1986, the nation watched as the Challenger was lost just seconds after liftoff.  I remember being very excited about watching the launch of the Challenger as the first teacher was being sent into space.  My fellow classmates and I were huddled together in the 7th & 8th grade classroom to watch this historic event.  We were all chatting amongst ourselves and then finally there was liftoff!  But then tragedy struck.  Only 73 seconds after takeoff, the space shuttle Challenger exploded and we were all shocked into silence.  At first we weren't sure what happened beyond a huge explosion.  Then our worst fears were realized... the entire crew of the Challenger were killed in the explosion.  Although this was a tragic event, it did lead to safer space travel.  Here is a video from CNN from that tragic day.

For more information about the Challenger, check out the library collection and the links below.

Library Databases
http://www.infopeake.com/databases.asp
Search America's Newspapers, EBSCO Host, eLibrary, Gale Virtual Reference, and InfoTrac

Remembering the Challenger
http://abcnews.go.com/US/space-shuttle-challenger-disaster-25th-anniversary/story?id=12781669

Q&A:  Challenger Shuttle Disaster
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-12300227