NASA Challenger Tragedy

The crew of the space shuttle Challenger. Front row from left are Michael Smith, Dick Scobee and Ronald McNair. Back row from left are Ellison Onizuka, Christa McAuliffe, Gregory Jarvis, and Judith Resnik.

Today marks the 40th anniversary of the ill-fated NASA Space Shuttle Challenger mission. Like many, I remember exactly where I was as the nation watched the launch together. What I was too young to grasp is the devastation that tragedy brought to NASA itself, and especially the astronaut corps - seeing their friends perish and the institution they trusted with their lives fail before their eyes in the matter of moments.

A year and a half ago, authors Alex Higgin-Houser and Dan Gibson shared with Shannon and me the beginnings of Discovery: a musical telling the story of the NASA astronaut corps after the Challenger tragedy of 1986 and the lead-up to the 1988 launch of Space Shuttle Discovery. Based on interviews with astronauts, it dives deep into how catastrophe and grief can catalyze self-discovery, reinvention, and healing.

I’ve had the honor of collaborating with them in developing Discovery, and I look forward to doing my part to share this story with the world.

Take a listen to an early version of the opening of the show: the launch of Challenger, now forty years ago today.