Story Created:
Jan 28, 2011 at 5:42 PM EDT
Story Updated:
Jan 28, 2011 at 5:42 PM EDT
The widow of the space shuttle Challenger commander is calling on Americans to "boldly look to the future" in space travel, and in space and science education.
CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (AP) - The widow of the space shuttle Challenger commander is calling on Americans to "boldly look to the future" in space travel, and in space and science education.
June Scobee Rodgers delivered that message at a ceremony today at NASA's launch site in Florida, to mark the 25th anniversary of the day her husband and six others died in the Challenger explosion.
Dick Scobee and the others, including schoolteacher Christa McAuliffe, had lifted off 73 seconds before the shuttle exploded in the skies, as a crowd of onlookers and a nationwide TV audience watched.
Today's chilly outdoor ceremony drew space ageny managers, former astronauts, and family and friends of the crew. There were also schoolchildren who weren't born yet when McAuliffe, a New Hampshire high school teacher, died.
A New Hampshire woman who attended today's ceremony, Pat Cassidy, recalled the joy she felt when McAuliffe was named as NASA's teacher in space -- and the shock and sorrow that followed the explosion.
Most Popular