Challenger: A True Story of Heroism and Disaster on the Edge of Space

Content Warning: This section of the guide includes discussion of death.

Spouses of the deceased astronauts were escorted to their homes by police escorts in order to protect them from hounding media. On Friday, January 31, a memorial was held just outside Mission Control grounds. President Reagan once again shaped the rhetoric around the astronauts’ deaths by comparing them to pioneers who lost their lives in exploration.

Though NASA remained tight-lipped, within a week, what had happened to the shuttle became clear: Photographs taken from angles not visible on television footage showed fire bursting from the joint of the rocket booster. Still, NASA wanted to systematically examine all data thoroughly before publicly releasing any information about a cause. 

The press, however, quickly grew suspicious, as NASA had always been transparent. Reporters sought anonymous sources, and by Thursday, speculation about the rocket boosters had already begun. By Friday, President Reagan had decided that an outside review of the explosion must be conducted. On the same day, NASA released photos to the media of a 15-second video of the fire burning at the rocket joint. In its press conference, however, NASA’s spokesperson refused to acknowledge that this was indeed fire, calling it instead “an unusual plume” (382).