Step 1 : Introduction to the question "1. A terrible tragedy happened on January 28, 1986 when a US Space Shuttle broke apart just one minute and thirteen seconds into the flight. What was the name of the tragic spacecraft?"
...1. Challenger 2. Endeavor 3. Columbia 4. Discovery Not a great way to start the year. The Space Shuttle Challenger flying its tenth mission broke up 73 seconds into the flight. All seven crew members were killed though there is debate as to whether all the deaths were instantaneous or whether they died when the Shuttle hit the Atlantic Ocean. The disaster was caused after an O-ring seal in the right solid rocket booster (SRB) failed at liftoff permitting hot gas from within the solid rocket motor to compromise the external fuel tank. The disaster resulted in a 32-month hiatus in the shuttle program. The ensuing investigation revealed that NASA managers had known of a potentially catastrophic flaw in the O-rings since 1977 and disregarded warnings from engineers about the dangers of launching in low temperatures. The launch was viewed by a large audience across the world, partly because of the presence of Christa McAuliffe the first female teacher in space. Columbia, Discovery and Endeavor were names of other space shuttle vehicles.
