Divers for a History Channel documentary have found a large section of the destroyed space shuttle Challenger, NASA says.
In a news release Thursday, the American space organization announced a large section of the destroyed space shuttle was discovered buried in sand at the bottom of the Atlantic Ocean. The discovery comes more than three decades after the space shuttle exploded, killing a teacher and six others.
“Of course, the emotions come back, right?” said Michael Ciannilli, a NASA manager who confirmed the remnant’s authenticity.
In this photo provided by the HISTORY Channel, underwater explorer and marine biologist Mike Barnette and wreck diver Jimmy Gadomski explore a 20-foot segment of the 1986 Space Shuttle Challenger that the team discovered in the waters off the coast of Florida during the filming of The HISTORY Channel’s new series, The Bermuda Triangle: Into Cursed Waters, premiering Nov. 22. (The History Channel via Associated Press).
The HISTORY Channel via AP
Most of the recovered wreckage remains buried in abandoned missile silos at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station, except for a left side shuttle panel that is on display at Kennedy Space Center’s visitor complex. It sits alongside the charred cockpit window frame from shuttle Columbia, which broke apart over Texas during reentry in 2003, killing seven astronauts.
Launched on an exceptionally cold morning, Challenger was brought down by eroded O-ring seals in the right booster. A History Channel documentary detailing the latest Challenger discovery premiers Nov. 22.
— With files from The Associated Press
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