4. Challenger Spacecraft Explosion
On January 28, 1986, NASA launched the Space Challenger Shuttle Craft with seven crew members on board. Launched off the coast of Florida at 11:59am, the craft fell apart and began to disintegrate 73 seconds into the launch. Not only was this broadcast on live television, it was not uncommon at the time that live science-related events would be shown in classrooms all over the country to students. One of the most publicized launches in over a decade, The Challenger was especially remarkable because it was sending a civilian up to space, a school teacher Christa McAuliffe, from New Hampshire would be on board. It has been estimated that as much of 17% of the entire American population had been watching it live on television. Due to the amount of young people watching, the moment resonated in pop culture and shows targeted to young people like Punky Brewster, attempted to reassure the audiences about the event.
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