President Ronald Reagan's January 28, 1986 Space Shuttle Challenger Tragedy Address

On January 28, 1986, Space Shuttle Challenger broke apart 73 seconds into its flight, killing all seven crew members. The spacecraft disintegrated 46,000 feet above the Atlantic Ocean, off the coast of Cape Canaveral, Florida, at 11:39 am. It was the first fatal accident involving an American spacecraft while in flight. President Ronald Reagan had been scheduled to give the 1986 State of the Union Address on January 28, 1986, the evening of the Challenger disaster. Reagan postponed the State of the Union, and instead addressed the nation about the disaster from the Oval Office.