"It is the worst disaster in the history of the American space program." Forty years ago on January 28, 1986, the space shuttle Challenger exploded 73 seconds after liftoff from Cape Canaveral, killing all seven crew members, including school teacher Christa McAuliffe from New Hampshire, who had won a national competition to become the first teacher in space. Peter Jennings anchored ABC's World News Tonight from Washington, with John Quiñones leading off the broadcast's coverage. | ABC World New

The Challenger space shuttle took off on Jan. 28, 1986. Seventy-three seconds later, the mission ended in an explosion and a disaster. But, even through the tragedy, the lives and legacy of the crew have endured, especially that of Christa McAuliffe, who even all these years later, is still changing lives. https://www.wmur.com/article/space-shuttle-challenger-disaster-anniversary-2026/70145107 #christamcauliffe #nh #newhampshire #nasa #spaceshuttlechallenger #spaceshuttle #challenger | WMUR-TV