On this day March 7 1986 divers from the USS Preserver discovered the crew cabin of the Space Shuttle Challenger on the ocean floor. This grim discovery came more than a month after the shuttle tragically exploded 73 seconds after liftoff on January 28 1986 claiming the lives of all seven crew members.
The search for Challenger’s wreckage had been an extensive and heartbreaking effort. Finding the crew cabin provided investigators with crucial evidence as they worked to determine the exact cause of the disaster which was ultimately traced to a failure in the shuttle’s O-ring seals. The loss of Challenger led to major changes in NASA’s spaceflight safety protocols.
Fun fact: The discovery of the crew cabin was kept from the public for weeks as NASA worked to recover and analyze the wreckage before making an official announcement.
Trivia question: What was the name of the teacher who was set to become the first civilian in space aboard Challenger?
The search for Challenger’s wreckage had been an extensive and heartbreaking effort. Finding the crew cabin provided investigators with crucial evidence as they worked to determine the exact cause of the disaster which was ultimately traced to a failure in the shuttle’s O-ring seals. The loss of Challenger led to major changes in NASA’s spaceflight safety protocols.
Fun fact: The discovery of the crew cabin was kept from the public for weeks as NASA worked to recover and analyze the wreckage before making an official announcement.
Trivia question: What was the name of the teacher who was set to become the first civilian in space aboard Challenger?
