Remember the 7 we lost on this date in 1986. I was down by the beach watching the launch with friends, we knew something was wrong as soon as it happened, after you watch so many launches you know what to expect. We all rode our bikes to a friend's house because he lived the closest and turned on the news, there we sat and watched the tv, while looking out the front window of his house you could still see the contrails and debris falling from the sky.

It was a rough time to live in Satellite Beach Florida, just 50 miles from the Cape, everything shut down, stopped, all of beaches were closed down for weeks while they picked up the pieces, they brought them to Patrick Air Force Base just a mile down the road, locked away in one of the main hangers they started to assemble the pieces to start the investigation. There was an iconic picture of one of the helmets that washed up on the shore, it had a hole burned through it and they showed how it melted because of the incredible heat, a high school friend of mine was actually the person that found the helmet while walking on the beach.

It was almost 19 years to the day before that when the Apollo 1 accident happened.

Below is Ronald Reagan's speech to the nation where he spoke those iconic words, "Slipped the surly bonds of earth to touch the face of God."

Rest in Peace Francis R. Scobee, Commander - Michael J. Smith, Pilot - Ronald McNair, Mission Specialist - Ellison Onizuka, Mission Specialist - Judith Resnik, Mission Specialist - Greg Jarvis, Payload Specialist and Christa McAuliffe, Payload Specialist and first teacher in space.

Reagan's Speech


Image

Again this is not important enough for CNN to cover.
[Reply]

I remember that day well.
[Reply]

I was 17, watching it in our 11th grade Civics class. It was also my dad's 40th birthday. Sad day indeed. Ron McNair was born and raised less than 20 miles down the road from our small town. Remember it all too well. There's a statue of Ron in the town of Lake City, SC right in front of the library that refused to lend looks to a young black kid, yet now holds his name. It's a solemn reminder every time I see it.
[Reply]

I was sick as a dog with the flu watching the coverage from my bed.
[Reply]

I remember watching it in my school library as a young child. It was hard to watch.
[Reply]

8th grade, remember that day well, watched it at school.
[Reply]

Like everyone else I also remember the day. My oldest son was 3 months old. I had been at work since 6am that morning. My wife called me and told me to get to a TV...
[Reply]

9 years old watching it at my Grandparents house. Reality touched my young mind that day.
[Reply]

very sad day that I wont forget. I used to have their posters all over the room in anticipation for this launch.

RIP pioneers!
[Reply]

A day I will never forget.
[Reply]

I was 12 years old excitedly watching the first space launch that I can remember on a 13 inch b/w tv in my bedroom. Very sad day.
[Reply]

9th grade French class. Rip.
[Reply]

Very sad day indeed. I was at Northern Illinois University, watching it in the student center with about 250 other people. The silence was deafening.
[Reply]

Sixth grade. Didn't watch it in class, but I remember distinctly a fourth grade teacher (Miss Marino) relaying the information in the hallway between classes to other teachers (and us students who were paying attention). It was a big deal to everyone, but with the build up for Christa McAuliffe being the first teacher in space I felt, as much as a sixth grader could, that it hit the teachers especially hard.

RIP to all seven.
[Reply]

I wasn't born yet :-)

That being said, the accident was talked about a lot in science classes when I was in school, and the footage of the break up, watching fellow Americans loose their life in the pursuit of furthering knowledge, sends chills down my spine similar to 9/11.

May we remember those we lost, their sacrifice, and most importantly their aspirations for our future...
[Reply]

Growing up in South Florida I remember that day all too well. Before they unfairly retired the space shuttle fleet I remember at each launch I watched at Kennedy space center or watched from home that every time I heard "Roll on throttle up" It would always come back to haunt me that that's the exact moment Challenger went down. I was at school when it happened and seeing my teachers crying and holding each other as they lost one of their own that day. There are just certain days in your life that will impact you in such a way that you'll be able to recall it with perfect, crystal clear, sharp remembrance and this was one of those days for me. Also anyone living in south Florida at the time will be able to tell you how cold it was that day and the night before. We don't get too many heavy freezes down here like that so it's easy to recall something like that as well. God bless the men and women who died that day as well as the families who lost their whole worlds collectively.

Space exploration is a dangerous game and we should always remember that. Every launch is a controlled explosion just dying reach critical mass so it's a wondrous age that we can ride a bomb into space.
[Reply]

The other thing that chilled me was when I heard that many of the astronauts had water in their lungs which meant they drowned. I don't know how that's possible but it's hard to dispute facts.
[Reply]

That part I had not heard of, that is chilling and probably why teachers left it out of class.

Wow.

I had always thought it to have been quick and instantaneous...
[Reply]

I remember hearing about it, rumors going around, while I was at school. Got home and found out that it was true. :-)
[Reply]

Here you go. Probably not instantaneous. http://youtu.be/uqcd_3daPQ8

I'll never forget. Hanging out in the library in fifth grade. I can't remember why I was there, but there were six of us that saw it. The principal came in and swore us to secrecy not to tell the other students that day. I recall the gravity in his face and that none of us betrayed that promise. He said everyone else should have their parents tell them and explain what happened.
[Reply]