The space shuttle Challenger is destroyed shortly after lifting off, Tuesday, Jan. 28, 1986, at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida. The cold weather caused an O-ring, which formed a seal between rocket booster sections, to lose its elasticity. Roger Boisjoly, an engineer at Utah-based Morton Thiokol, had raised serious concerns about the O-rings’ performance in cold weather and worried about the disaster that could happen. Later on he received awards from the American Association for the Advancement of Science and the Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineers for trying to halt the Space Shuttle Challenger launch. About the Challenger crewAboard the Space Shuttle Challenger were seven crew members: Francis Scobee, commander; Michael Smith, pilot; Ronald McNair; Ellison Onizuka; Judith Resnik; Gregory Jarvis; and McAuliffe, the teacher.