Looking for ways to inspire children to care about space exploration, NASA decided to fly an icon to fly into orbit: Big Bird would be an astronaut. But, as relayed in the new documentary I Am Big Bird, actor Carroll Spinney's turn in the suit was stopped because Big Bird's costume, towering at more than 8 feet, was too tall for the Space Shuttle Challenger.
Christa McAullife, a social studies teacher from New Hampshire, went instead. And on the day it launched, January 28, 1986, a loose O-ring seal on the solid rocket booster caused an explosion which killed all seven crew members, including McAullife.
It was a tragic moment for NASA, for space exploration, and for the general public. And it almost took out an icon of many people's childhoods as well.
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