The NASA space shuttle Challenger exploded 40 years ago, on January 28, 1986, just 73 seconds after liftoff. The disaster claimed the lives of all seven astronauts aboard, including Christa McAuliffe, a teacher from New Hampshire who would have been the first civilian in space. “The crew of the space shuttle Challenger honored us by the manner in which they lived their lives,” President Regan said in an address to the nation that night. “We will never forget them, nor the last time we saw them,

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

On February 1, 2003, NASA’s Space Shuttle Columbia broke apart during re-entry, just 16 minutes before landing. The hidden damage from launch — a small hole in the left wing caused by falling foam — turned deadly as superheated air entered at over 1,650°C, ripping the shuttle apart over Texas skies. Among the seven astronauts who perished was Kalpana Chawla, the first woman of Indian origin in space, whose legacy continues to inspire millions. This video explains the step-by-step events of that