Space Shuttle Challenger disaster Space Shuttle Challenger disaster On January 28, 1986, the NASA shuttle orbiter mission STS-51-L and the tenth flight of (OV-99) broke apart 73 seconds into its flight, killing all seven crew members, which consisted of five NASA astronauts and two payload specialists. The spacecraft disintegrated over the Atlantic Ocean, off the coast of Cape Canaveral, Florida, at 11:39 EST (16:39 UTC). The disintegration of the vehicle began after a joint in its right solid rocket booster (SRB) failed at liftoff. The failure was caused by the failure of O-ring seals used in the joint that were not designed to handle
Space Shuttle Atlantis Space Shuttle Atlantis Space Shuttle "Atlantis" (Orbiter Vehicle Designation: OV‑104) is a Space Shuttle orbiter vehicle belonging to the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), the spaceflight and space exploration agency of the United States. Constructed by the Rockwell International company in Southern California and delivered to the Kennedy Space Center in Eastern Florida in April 1985, "Atlantis" is the fourth operational and the second-to-last Space Shuttle built. Its maiden flight was STS-51-J from 3 to 7 October 1985. "Atlantis" embarked on its 33rd and final mission, also the final mission of a space shuttle, STS-135, on 8 July 2011.