January 28th, 1986 - STS-51-L

[DGuller]

School was cancelled. So big deal. People took it seriously at the time.

Columbia wasn't such a big deal?

Breaking up on re-entry isn't quite the same.

[Josephus]

I remember it very well. Was in reporting class, first year journalism school.

One of our teachers came running in with a dot-matrix printout we used for our "wire machine" (we got Canadian Press feeds).

"Holy shit," he said. "The space shuttle exploded."

I guess being in journalism school was kinda lucky, cause we were all allowed to crowd around TV sets and watch the news coverage.

[Ed Anger]

I skipped school that day. I was "sick".

[MadImmortalMan]

I think people really admired Reagan that day TBH. His speech was pretty good. Also happened with Bush on 9/11 and Clinton in Oklahoma City.



You know, I have this theory that extreme circumstances make ordinary people better.

[CountDeMoney]

I think people really admired Reagan that day TBH. His speech was pretty good.

Yeah, nobody did the flag-draped casket thing better than Reagan.  Lord knows he had enough opportunities.

[MadImmortalMan]

I think people really admired Reagan that day TBH. His speech was pretty good.

Yeah, nobody did the flag-draped casket thing better than Reagan.  Lord knows he had enough opportunities.

True. I dunno though. Sometimes events make people...better. Maybe no possible president at that time would have looked bad in that situation. But credit to the guy, he did a good job that day.

[Caliga]

I still don't understand why it was such a huge deal though.  Certainly sad, but I don't see the long term consequences.

The 'Teacher in Space' program was kind of a big deal.  Millions of students, myself included, watched the launch (and explosion) live on TV.  When it blew up, our teacher was like "uhhhh" and then after a moment or so started crying.  Me and most of the other boys in the class started mocking her.

Later in life, I found myself with a co-worker who used to teach with Christa McAuliffe.  I naturally refrained from sharing that story with her.

[Caliga]

School was cancelled. So big deal. People took it seriously at the time.

Columbia wasn't such a big deal?

No.  I think it wasn't because a) due to the Challenger disaster, we had become more cynical about our space program, b) society is more cynical in general now than it was in 1986, and c) IIRC it happened on a weekend morning while most people were still asleep and thus wasn't 'experienced' live like Challenger was.

[Ed Anger]

I still don't understand why it was such a huge deal though.  Certainly sad, but I don't see the long term consequences.

The 'Teacher in Space' program was kind of a big deal.  Millions of students, myself included, watched the launch (and explosion) live on TV.  When it blew up, our teacher was like "uhhhh" and then after a moment or so started crying.  Me and most of the other boys in the class started mocking her.

Later in life, I found myself with a co-worker who used to teach with Christa McAuliffe.  I naturally refrained from sharing that story with her.

Nice empathy there, Ted Bundy.

[Monoriu]

When I was a kid, I used to buy the dreams that space was the future.  I knew back then that gundams were unreal, but I really thought that some humans would move to the moon soon.  Challenger didn't really change that.  I just thought accidents were inevitable.

I think it took another 10 or 15 years before I realised that robots could explore Mars, and it wasn't necessary to send humans there. 

[The Brain]

You know, I have this theory that extreme circumstances make ordinary people better.

Sitting through Valhalla Rising made me a saintlike figure.

[garbon]

I wasn't even 3 months old at the time.

[Caliga]

Nice empathy there, Ted Bundy.

Thanks!  Yeah, she didn't need to know how I reacted when I was a little punk elementary school kid.

[Siege]

You know, I have this theory that extreme circumstances make ordinary people better.

Sitting through Valhalla Rising made me a saintlike figure.

You didn't live through Valhalla Rising, you just watched it.
It is not the same.
Had you lived through the story told in that stupid movie, then it would have certainly change you for the better.

[derspiess]

The 'Teacher in Space' program was kind of a big deal. 

By the time the launch was getting near, we (my friends and I anyway) were pretty fatigued by the over-coverage of teacher angle.  Our teachers wouldn't shut up about it, particularly my feminist English teacher who in retrospect kind of bore a resemblance to Ms. McAuliffe.

Millions of students, myself included, watched the launch (and explosion) live on TV.  When it blew up, our teacher was like "uhhhh" and then after a moment or so started crying.  Me and most of the other boys in the class started mocking her.

IIRC the launch happened to coincide with our lunch period, so they were showing it on the TV in the library.  My friends & I did our usual thing and ate our lunch in one of the hallways.  Some kid we barely knew ran up & told us the space shuttle exploded which we assumed was a joke of some sort.  But out of curiosity we headed to the library, making our own jokes about it along the way.  Was a bit awkward when we walked into the library and everyone was either crying or in stunned disbelief.

Later that afternoon in English class, the teacher asked if any of us would like to donate money to a fund she was putting together to build a statue of Christa McAuliffe.  Then I was in stunned disbelief.