30 Years Since The Space Shuttle Challenger Tragedy

30 years ago I was an 11 year old elementary school student about to watch a moment in history. The space shuttle Challenger taking off into space with a techer on it! When Christa McCuliffe was added to that flight, schools everywhere used the launch as a teaching moment, and rightfully so. What we got instead was a lesson in heartache and tragedy.

I remember the teacher in our classroom wheeling the TV out quickly and then jumping into a different topic. Others remember their teachers crying at what they saw. Who could blame them. The Challenger explosion is one of those 'where were you' moments. It was the first one that I had ever experienced.

[via Rueters]