In Florida, schools let students out into the recess yards to watch the launches. Many of us saw it live, and I'll never forget what a cold clear day it was (cold by Florida standards).
At first we didn't now if that would destroy the lunch, cause part kept going up for a bit. Maybe the boosters separated, but the main part was still ok. We went inside to turn on the tv and find out that it was a full break up and all were lost. As a child, NASA was where astronauts came from, and it was all awesome and space. It never really occurred to us then as children, how dangerous space flights were. I would say as a kid, it changed the entire way I looked at space and launches . . . they had become routine at that time, then suddenly I realized they were very dangerous, and no matter how hard they tried they could not prevent every wrong thing that could happen.So as the 30 yr anniversary of the 1st Space Shuttle disaster rolls by us..Well some of us. Where were you, if you remember?
I was 18 yrs old, spending the day in various sexual positions with my girlfriend who was a senior in high school, she was out of school for the snow day and I was "on call" at work as a warehouse manager, ended up getting called in to work to make a run across Atlanta because I had the only 4wd company truck...She and I were watching TV between rounds when it happened, she actually sent me a message on FB today and asked if I remembered it...Every detail is still fresh in my mind...
I really did not think about it too much until until the second Challenger disintegrated upon re-entry a few years back. I don't recall the Russians having these problems with their space program but some critics have said That NASA never should have ventured away from the rocket program. Just sayin.
broke the news!. We went to our dorm and watched it in dismay ...
I was a sophomore in high school sitting in Spanish class when they came in and told us. A tv was brought into the room and we sat there and watched it along with another class. It hit close to home as a teacher in our school was in the final group before they selected who would go on the mission. This person was actually at the launch that day. I can't imagine what must have been going through their mind.
We were all very excited because the first civilian, a teacher, was going. In hindsight, I guess it was a good thing that our class wasn't one of the "lucky" ones to have been able to borrow a tv from the a/v dept. that day; some classes saw it happen. We found out a few minutes later when our principal made an announcement over the p.a. and asked for a moment of silence. We were all shocked and as kids, it was like we lost a hero and a little bit of innocence.
Side note: I just visited the U.S. Space and Rocket Center in Huntsville today (again lol!) and I continue to be awed.
xoxo
Caylee
-- Modified on 1/28/2016 5:18:56 PM
I had a crush on her but I was stuck in the much maligned Friend Zone. There we were, at a restaurant, eating and laughing about her latest idiot boyfriend messing her over ("this time it was with a black girl") when we saw the launch on the TV, then....stunned.
Sure, we see explosions and deaths all the time in the movies, but there's a part of your brain that laughs it off as fake. Challenger was Real. Anyrate, we ordered more drinks, cried, held hands, and basically consoled each other. She resolved to find a nice guy like me who could help her hold up. I resolved to enjoy Life by getting laid and she had an 'easy friend' (which was a lie).
We never got out of the friend zone, but we kept in touch whenever one of us would catch a documentary on the disaster. We kept this up until she passed away more than a decade ago from domestic violence. She always loved the Bad Boys... and it only takes one bad choice.
Like the OP said, you remember and you talk to those who shared that kind of memory with you.
ga_kosh
...we returned to work. We watched the news to see the video of it.
-- Modified on 1/28/2016 5:28:08 PM
Asleep on a flight from Atlanta to West Palm and didn't know about it until reporters in the West Palm airport were asking passengers if they had seen it. Apparently some had.
I was 18 yrs old, spending the day in various sexual positions with my girlfriend who was a senior in high school, she was out of school for the snow day and I was "on call" at work as a warehouse manager, ended up getting called in to work to make a run across Atlanta because I had the only 4wd company truck...She and I were watching TV between rounds when it happened, she actually sent me a message on FB today and asked if I remembered it...Every detail is still fresh in my mind...
I went to lunch with a friend from work at Chili's on Holcombe Bridge Road and you could hear a pin drop when we walked in the door. I asked the hostess what was going on and she told us that the Shuttle had blown up. We watched the first replay along with everyone else in the place in absolute silence. Most surreal moment in my life until 9/11.
In Florida, schools let students out into the recess yards to watch the launches. Many of us saw it live, and I'll never forget what a cold clear day it was (cold by Florida standards).
At first we didn't now if that would destroy the lunch, cause part kept going up for a bit. Maybe the boosters separated, but the main part was still ok. We went inside to turn on the tv and find out that it was a full break up and all were lost.
As a child, NASA was where astronauts came from, and it was all awesome and space. It never really occurred to us then as children, how dangerous space flights were. I would say as a kid, it changed the entire way I looked at space and launches . . . they had become routine at that time, then suddenly I realized they were very dangerous, and no matter how hard they tried they could not prevent every wrong thing that could happen.
Was on the sales floor of a 'company' store, a store for employees, in Cumberland MD. We all stopped and watched the launch on the sales floor. I will never forget 2 things. 1. The deafening silence in the immediate aftermath. Even though the commentators where still talking, the people in the room just went absolutely silent. It was chilling. 2. I have never felt a change in atmosphere like I did @ the instant it happened. You could physically feel the emotional change in the room. I have experienced rapid change before, news of Kennedy's assassination etc., but this was instantaneous, everyone comprehended the situation instantly. To go from very positive to extreme negative in an instant was emotionally devastating. I was 2 1/2 hours from home and just called it a day right then & there. It was a long drive home.
I probably shouldn't even look at your photos for risk of cradle robbing.........nah, your hot, I will look anyway even if you are less than half my age
Never forget that day. I was in a restaurant/bar at O'Hare, killing time between connections.