The Tragic Challenger Explosion
Space Travel. It is a sense of national pride
for many Americans. If you ask anyone who was alive at the time, they could
probably tell you exactly where they were when they heard that Neil Armstrong
was the first person to walk on the Moon. But all of the success in our space
programs is overshadowed by tragedy. On January 28, 1986, one of the worst
disasters in our space program's history occurred. Many people were watching at
the moment because it was the highly televised space mission where, for the
first time, a civilian was a member of the crew that was to be shot into space.
This civilian was the winner of the "Teacher in Space" contest, Christa
McAuliffe. The disaster: the ...
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McAuliffe, born in 1948, was the famous winner of the teacher-in-space
program, was a high school teacher at Concord, N. H., a wife, and a mother of
two children. She touched the lives of all those she knew and taught. As a
school official in Concord said after her death, "To us, she seemed average.
But she turned out to be remarkable. She handled success so beautifully." She
also wanted everyone to learn more, including herself. Demonstrating her
aspirations after entering the space program, she is quoted saying, "What are we
doing here? We're reaching for the stars." Also, after reflecting on her
position, she said in August 1995, "I touch the future, I teach (Gray 32)."
Francis R. (Dick) Scobee, born in 1948, was a tremendous enthusiast for aviation
and the space program. At 18 years old, he enlisted in the Air Force. While
working as a mechanic in the service, he put himself through night school,
eventually earning a degree in aerospace engineering that ...
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McNair, born in 1950, was the second
black man in space. He was truly remarkable growing up in his segregated South
Carolina school. He was remembered by those he knew as "one who was always
looking to the clouds." Jesse Jackson, one of his collage classmate's at N.C.
Agricultural and Technical State University said McNair saw participation in the
space program as "the highest way he could contribute to the system that gave
him so much." McNair did think much of the space program. He once said, "The
true courage of space flight comes from enduring . . . persevering and believing
in oneself (page 34)." Michael Smith, born in 1945, always had his head in the
clouds. At the age of ...
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"The Tragic Challenger Explosion." Essayworld.com. October 9, 2007. Accessed November 22, 2024. http://www.essayworld.com/essays/The-Tragic-Challenger-Explosion/72420.
"The Tragic Challenger Explosion." Essayworld.com. October 9, 2007. Accessed November 22, 2024. http://www.essayworld.com/essays/The-Tragic-Challenger-Explosion/72420.
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