It seems fitting to unseal this #vinyl record today after 40 years when we remember the #space#shuttle#Challenger disaster that took place on January 28, 1986.
Jean Michel Jarre's Rendevouz album contains a song that astronaut Ron McNair was going to play on his saxophone as the first musical piece played and recorded in space. It's called Ron's Piece and includes his heartbeat. Ron was also going to take part in JMJ's Houston concert live from space.
Detail of the rear album cover of JMJ's Rendevouz with a description of Ron's Piece:
"This piece was specially composed for Ron to play on his saxophone in the shuttle and was to become the first musical piece played and recorded in space. Ron was so excited about this piece that he rehearsed it continuously until the last moment. May the memory of my friend the astronaut and artist Ron McNair live on through this piece."
A space shuttle on a mobile launch platform under a partly cloudy sky. The shuttle has “USA” and “NASA Challenger” written on its side, with a large orange external tank and two white solid rocket boosters. The launch platform is a massive gray structure with equipment and railings. In the background, there are vehicles on a road, grassy areas, and trees under a light blue sky with clouds.
In this Jan. 28, 1986 file photo, the space shuttle Challenger explodes shortly after lifting off from the Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Fla. (AP Photo/Bruce Weaver, File)
A meme created around the "small boulder the size of a large boulder" social post by the San Miguel Sheriff's department, but shows their squad car observing the Space Shuttle Challenger explosion instead of a boulder on the road.
Forty years ago, the #Challenger#space shuttle disintegrated just after lift-off, killing its crew and changing the history of spaceflight. A small team of engineers tried to prevent the tragedy — but they were overruled.
Challenger: A True Story of Heroism and Disaster on the Edge of Space by Adam Higginbotham, 2024
From the New York Times bestselling author of Midnight in Chernobyl comes the definitive, dramatic, minute-by-minute story of the Challenger disaster, based on fascinating in-depth reporting and new archival research—a riveting history that reads like a thriller.
On January 28, 1986, just seventy-three seconds into flight, the space shuttle Challenger broke apart over the Atlantic Ocean, killing all seven people on board. Millions of Americans witnessed the tragic deaths of the crew, which included New Hampshire schoolteacher Christa McAuliffe.