1/28/86 The Challenger

[bruceolee]

Growing up in South Florida I remember that day all too well. Before they unfairly retired the space shuttle fleet I remember at each launch I watched at Kennedy space center or watched from home that every time I heard "Roll on throttle up" It would always come back to haunt me that that's the exact moment Challenger went down. I was at school when it happened and seeing my teachers crying and holding each other as they lost one of their own that day. There are just certain days in your life that will impact you in such a way that you'll be able to recall it with perfect, crystal clear, sharp remembrance and this was one of those days for me. Also anyone living in south Florida at the time will be able to tell you how cold it was that day and the night before. We don't get too many heavy freezes down here like that so it's easy to recall something like that as well. God bless the men and women who died that day as well as the families who lost their whole worlds collectively.

Space exploration is a dangerous game and we should always remember that. Every launch is a controlled explosion just dying reach critical mass so it's a wondrous age that we can ride a bomb into space.