On January 28, 1986, the space shuttle Challenger exploded shortly after liftoff, killing the seven crewmembers on board. The space shuttle disintegrated over the Atlantic Ocean, just off the coast of Cape Canaveral in Florida. NASA later determined that two rubber O-rings, which were designed to separate the sections of the rocket booster, had failed due to cold temperatures on the morning of the launch. The disaster resulted in a 32-month hiatus in the space shuttle program as NASA worked to r

132M views · 2.3M reactions | 35 YEARS LATER: On this day in 1986,...

On this day in 1986, the Space Shuttle Challenger exploded shortly after liftoff, killing all seven astronauts on board. Where were you when you heard the space shuttle had been destroyed? | This Blew My Mind

72K views · 2.7K reactions |  Celebrate space with Mission-Flown material from every Orbiter ! NASA's Space Shuttle program delivered 133 successful missions during its three decades in operation, beginning with Columbia's inaugural launch in 1981 and concluding with Atlantis' final flight in 2011. Buy individual specimens or complete the fleet with our Space Shuttle Bundle! | Mini Museum | Facebook