"It is the worst disaster in the history of the American space program." ABC News coverage from this day in 1986, when seven astronauts died as the space shuttle Challenger exploded after liftoff from Cape Canaveral. https://abcn.ws/310q57b | ABC News

35 YEARS LATER: On this day in 1986, the Space Shuttle Challenger exploded after liftoff, killing all seven astronauts on board. The Challenger broke apart at 11:39 a.m., falling into the Atlantic Ocean. Investigators would later discover the disaster was caused by the failure of an “O ring” seal in one of the two solid-fuel rockets. As a result of the horrific accident, NASA did not send astronauts into space for more than two years as it redesigned a number of space shuttle features for improv

We mourn the passing of astronaut Bill Anders, lunar module pilot for Apollo 8, and backup pilot for the Gemini XI and Apollo 11 flights. One of the first three people to travel beyond the reach of our Earth and orbit the Moon, Anders took the legendary Earthrise photo. More on his legacy: https://go.nasa.gov/3x8VetA | NASA - National Aeronautics and Space Administration