The Challenger disaster still haunts NASA 25 years after the space shuttle exploded minutes after take-off.
The flight crew of the challenger trained together for months and several delays before finally getting the clearance for lift-off from NASA. Just minutes after take-off, the shuttle exploded killing all seven astronauts on-board.
Family and friends watched the shuttle explode in horror.
"As it got higher and higher, the solid rocket booster started to veer off, and I didn't know how I knew. But I knew they were gone," said Carl McNair, brother of challenger astronaut Ron McNair.. "I stood there with tears streaming down my eyes, saying 'Oh my God, oh my God' what so many people were saying in unison around the world."
That moment on Jan. 28, 1986 haunts NASA to this day. At that time, America was at the forefront of space exploration. It also shattered the illusion that NASA was the best space program in the world.
A subsequent investigation of the crash showed the disaster could have been prevented. The investigation found the cause of the accident was a faulty O-ring in one of two solid-fuel rocket boosters. A breach in the O-ring allowed hot gases to escape and burn a hole in the shuttle's 15-story external fuel tank, causing it to explode.
