The Challenger space shuttle tragedy

The Challenger space shuttle tragedy

On 28 January 1986, a space shuttle launch went wrong.

Six astronauts and a teacher, Christa McAuliffe, were killed.

In 1984, US President Ronald Reagan had announced that Nasa would search for a member of the public to accompany experienced astronauts on the space shuttle Challenger.

Barbara Morgan was chosen as the teacher backup and had trained alongside the Challenger team.

She watched as the shuttle was destroyed a little more than a minute after take-off.

In 2012, Barbara Morgan spoke to Chloe Hadjimatheou.

Eye-witness accounts brought to life by archive. Witness History is for those fascinated by the past. We take you to the events that have shaped our world through the eyes of the people who were there. For nine minutes every day, we take you back in time and all over the world, to examine wars, coups, scientific discoveries, cultural moments and much more. Recent episodes explore everything from the death of Adolf Hitler, the first spacewalk and the making of the movie Jaws, to celebrity tortoise Lonesome George, the Kobe earthquake and the invention of superglue. We look at the lives of some of the most famous leaders, artists, scientists and personalities in history, including: Eva Peron – Argentina’s Evita; President Ronald Reagan and his famous ‘tear down this wall’ speech; Thomas Keneally on why he wrote Schindler’s List; and Jacques Derrida, France’s ‘rock star’ philosopher. You can learn all about fascinating and surprising stories, such as the civil rights swimming protest; the disastrous D-Day rehearsal; and the death of one of the world’s oldest languages.

(Photo: Launch of Space Shuttle Challenger. Credit: Oxford Science Archive/Print Collector/Getty Images)

Jaksot(2000)

Elvis visits Scotland

Elvis visits Scotland

In 1960, as he headed home from military service, the King of Rock ’n’ Roll made an unexpected stop at Prestwick Airport.It's believed to be the only time Elvis Presley is known to have set foot on Br...

3 Maalis 11min

Sweden’s diplomatic freeze with the USA

Sweden’s diplomatic freeze with the USA

Outraged by the Christmas bombings of Hanoi in 1972 by the USA during the Vietnam War, the Swedish Prime Minister Olof Palme made a critical speech. He compared the US’s actions to several massacres ...

2 Maalis 9min

Syria's secret library

Syria's secret library

A group of young men in the besieged town of Darayya came together to build a secret library during the Syrian civil war, which started in 2011 and ended in 2024. Braving snipers and bombardment, th...

27 Helmi 10min

Charles Taylor and the blood diamond trial

Charles Taylor and the blood diamond trial

In 2008, the former President of Liberia, Charles Taylor, faced a courtroom in the Hague accused of war crimes.His trial would last more than three years at the UN-backed Special Court for Sierra Leon...

26 Helmi 10min

The Japanese invasion of Malaya

The Japanese invasion of Malaya

On 8 December 1941, Japanese troops landed in northern Malaya marking the start of the second world war in the Pacific.Invasion forces moved quickly down the British colony – which is now called Malay...

25 Helmi 10min

The Aga Khan meets Florence Nightingale

The Aga Khan meets Florence Nightingale

In 1898, the British founder of modern nursing, Florence Nightingale, invited the Muslim leader Aga Khan III around to her London home for tea. They were two of the most famous figures of the 20th cen...

24 Helmi 10min

The storming of Spain's parliament

The storming of Spain's parliament

In February 1981, armed Civil Guards tried to take control of the Spanish parliament.A total of 350 politicians were held hostage for 18 hours in the debating chamber including Joaquin Almunia, a youn...

23 Helmi 10min

The playboy spy who inspired James Bond

The playboy spy who inspired James Bond

During the 1940s, a playboy spy became one of wartime’s most successful double agents, as well as the reported inspiration behind James Bond. A gambler and womanizer who spoke several languages, Dusko...

20 Helmi 10min

Suosittua kategoriassa Yhteiskunta

olipa-kerran-otsikko
siita-on-vaikea-puhua
kaksi-aitia
i-dont-like-mondays
gogin-ja-janin-maailmanhistoria
uutiscast
joku-tietaa-jotain-2
poks
antin-palautepalvelu
kolme-kaannekohtaa
sita
aikalisa
mamma-mia
yopuolen-tarinoita-2
rss-palmujen-varjoissa
meidan-pitais-puhua
rss-murhan-anatomia
lahko
rss-nikotellen
rss-napy