Anniversary of Shuttle Challenger Tragedy

Teachers are always teaching

Today is the anniversary of the Space Shuttle Challenger tragedy.  For my generation, the Space Shuttle launches were very defining. During my youth, we ranged from the excitement of the first shuttle launch to routine launches to tragedy.  Nearly all these events we watched in school classrooms with my teachers.

On January 28, 1986, the NASA Space Shuttle orbiter undertook mission STS-51-L and the tenth flight of Space Shuttle Challenger broke apart 73 seconds into its flight, killing all seven crew members: five NASA astronauts, one payload specialist, and a civilian school teacher, Christa McAuliffe.

Many of us likely remember where we were when we learned of the event. I can well remember being on a school bus coming back from a field trip listening to our Walkman radios when we started hearing breaking news about the tragedy. As we got back and began walking in our high school every TV available was tuned into the horrible event. Classrooms were solemnly quiet listening to the newscasters. I went to my science class and my teacher said something, as we watched the news that profoundly stuck with me for all these years about the passion teachers, have for learning and teaching their students. Our teacher was asked by a student, “Ms. Sand

Ms. Bent, seeing what happened to the shuttle, if you were asked to go on a mission next week would you?” I was a little surprised that without any hesitation she replied, “absolutely”! Ms. Bent went on to explain that she would want the opportunity to learn all and come back and share with us that knowledge. She said that Ms. Christa McAuliffe well understood those risks, but she was willing to for her students and their learning.

Over the years as we learn more about what I happened I have from time to time I have asked teachers that same question asked of Ms. Bent in 1986, perhaps not surprising is I hear different versions of the same answer. Each has said they would go, even knowing the risk because they are teachers, and learning and sharing are who they are.

God bless the crew and family of Space Shuttle Challenger/STS-51-L;

Francis R. Scobee, Commander

Michael J. Smith, Pilot

Ronald McNair, Mission Specialist

Ellison Onizuka, Mission Specialist

Judith Resnik, Mission Specialist

Gregory Jarvis, Payload Specialist

Christa McAuliffe, Payload Specialist, Teacher

(Portions of this column used information found at: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Space_Shuttle_Challenger_disaster)

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