Posted on 01/28/2005 5:17:59 PM PST by silverleaf
Edited on 01/28/2005 7:01:57 PM PST by Admin Moderator. [history]
I was in high school. It happened during Band, I had history afterwards where we watched the coverage. My history teacher had taped it for the historical value, not realizing how historical it would become. I bet she still has the tape!
Reagan memorial BUMP
To paraphrase Lincoln, it's altogether "fitting and proper" that you do this.
Ain't that something. I was at CPAC when Columbia burned up on reentry.
Thank you so much for the link.
It was cold out, I was getting my classroom ready for Monday. I walked out of my side door, and look overhead hoping to see the shuttle fly over. Instead, I saw what must have been what I now figure was part of the debris cloud (it looked like a strange sort of contrail).
I ran inside and turned on the radio, and found out that contact with the shuttle had been lost and that Houston was trying to find the shuttle. Later, the announcement was made that it had broken up on re-entry.
Yes I do actually. I was stationed at Brooks AFB in Texas when someone from the clinic called and said to turn on the television that Challenger had blown up. Needless to say we sat glued to that set the entire day.
I was at 33 W. Monroe in Chicaco at Merrill Lynch, walking into the VP's office to break the news.... ...ironically...4 floors below us was the headquarters of the someday-to-be-disgraced Arthur Andersen.
I remember it so well. It still brings tears to my eyes.
The term 'tragedy' really comes to truth in this case - the hubris, political pressure and bureaucratic buck-passing ingrained in NASA made something like this all but inevitable, and in fact had been loosely predicted by some.
You would have thought they learned their lesson from Apollo I. It was one of those catalytic days where all of a suddent everyone involved clearly saw what he or she had been doing wrong.
One of the more revealing incidents came by Nobel-prize winning physicist Richard Feynman of CalTech. He showed how an Oring is resilient at room temperature, then put the Oring in ice water to simulate launch temperature. The Oring then broke cleanly in his fingers.
I don't remember seeing Challenger, but I did hear about it from a teacher (I was 5 at the time.) I do remember the first launch after that, the Discovery in 1988. I have it on tape as a matter of fact.
Walking back from classes at James Madison University, I started seeing a couple of girls running around crying. I had no idea what was going on until I got into my dorm's TV lounge and there were 40-50 people packed in there watching the endless replays. Everyone was mesmerized until one girl finally snapped and started screaming at the TV, "STOP SHOWING IT! JUST STOP IT!", and ran out of the room in tears. That broke the spell and we all filtered out.
As for Columbia, I was sitting in front of my computer, and read about the disaster here on FR.
}:-)4
Yes, when you see something live and then hear a few minutes later the broadcast announcement leaves you in a daze. Very weird feeling.
I was about 3 months away from being born. Sorta glad I missed it..
Wow, how great that NASA wrote back to you!
I can't believe it has been that long, maybe because I remember it so well.
Makes me sounds like my grandma, writing that.
I was home sick in Gaylord, Minnesota from the 4th grade. I was listening to the radio (KDWB 101.3) and the announcer broke the news that the Challenger had exploded. I will always remember the next song they played on the radio was 'Conga' by Gloria Estefan and Miami Sound Machine. Whenever I hear that song now, I think of Challenger.
I spent the afternoon watching the replays and the amazing thing was, up until then I was never really interested in space. After that, I wrote to NASA and gathered as much information as I could and then I saw the movie Space Camp and in July, 1988 I attended Space Camp and was Commander of my flight crew. I have been into the space program since then. I will never forger their names, their faces and their courage. I never met them, but their sacrifice changed my life.
I cannot believe it has been 19 years...it seems like it was just yesterday. I still have the Time magazine about the explosion and several newspapers from that day. God bless them all.
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