The day of January 28, 1986 in Cape Canaveral, Florida was by far one of the coldest days of the year. On a launch pad there were icicles hanging from the launch tower, platform structure and other launch equipment as the space shuttle Challenger sat there awaiting its historic launch. For over thirty-eight days, the Challenger's solid rocket boosters and external tank were drenched in seven inches of rain that had caused an enormous amount of icicles to form. After nearly five days of delays filled with wind, rain and freezing temperatures, the Challenger was finally ready to go on Mission 51-L. It would be the 25th mission for the world's first fleet of reusable manned spaceships. A spike in public interest in the flight had been caused by the fact that an ordinary US citizen had been chosen to fly abroad on the space shuttle. The lucky person was Sharon Christa McAuliffe, 37 years old. She was a high school teacher who had been selected through the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) sweepstakes from over 11,000 applicants to be the first teacher in space. His work, during a once-in-a-lifetime experience, was to demonstrate and explain the effects of microgravity in the context of Newtonian physics and the scientific, commercial and industrial applications of space flight. Thanks to this space flight, America was no longer just the exclusive right of astronauts, scientists and engineers, but an experience that could be shared by all of society. Other crew members included spacecraft commander Francis R. (Dick) Scobee, pilot Michael J. Smith, mission specialists Judith A. Resnik, Ronald E. McNair, and Ellison S. Onizuka, and payload specialist Gregory B. Jarvis. 1986, was the coldest day that… center of paper… on the opposite side of the scale an O-ring at 20 degrees F takes 1.9 seconds to seal. It is this time difference that most likely caused the Challenger explosion. On January 29, 1986, live coverage from the national press allowed even the most rural communities to participate and feel part of the event. Somehow NASA and Christa McAuliffe had created something so wonderful that it seemed as if all the American people were joining together as if there was an invisible flow of holding hands nationwide. As NASA looks to the future, finding ways to go higher, faster and farther, the tragedy of Mission 51-L will never be forgotten. The crew of the ill-fated Challenger staked their claim in the history books and through widespread media coverage. It is truly a shame that such a heartfelt and collaborative event had a tragic end that forever crushed America's social invincibility.