Spotsylvania Courthouse VA
1-28-2026 6:51pm

The 40th Anniversary of The Challenger Explosion

Today 40 Years Ago The Space Shuttle Challenger Exploded over the Florida Coast right after Liftoff from Cape Canaveral/Cape Kennedy . 

According the final report concerning the explosion the shuttle exploded 73 seconds into its flight, killing all seven crew members, including teacher Christa McAuliffe. The cause was the failure of O-ring seals in the right solid rocket booster due to cold temperatures.

This led to major changes in how NASA. from then on looked at safety of launches.  

The seven man and woman crew included the first teacher and private citizen in Space Christa Mc Aulliffe  

Here is the list of the members of the crew who perished in the explosion . 

  • Gregory Jarvis (1944-1986), payload specialist on the Challenger mission
  • Christa McAuliffe (1948-1986), schoolteacher who was part of the Challenger crew and the first private citizen to go into space
  • Ronald E. McNair (1950-1986), mission specialist on the Challenger mission
  • Ellison Onizuka (1946-1986), mission specialist on the Challenger mission
  • Judith Resnik (1949-1986), mission specialist on the Challenger mission
  • Dick Scobee (1939-1986), shuttle commander on the Challenge 
  • Michael Smith (1945-1986), pilot on the Challenger mission
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