The Burning Blue: The Untold Story of Christa McAuliffe and Nasa's Challenger Disaster
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- Create Date：2021-05-26 17:31:05
- Update Date：2025-09-06
- Status：finish
- Author：Kevin Cook
- ISBN：1250755557
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Summary
The untold story of a national trauma—NASA’s Challenger explosion—and what really happened to America’s Teacher in Space， illuminating the tragic cost of humanity setting its sight on the stars
You’ve seen the pictures。 You think you know what happened。 You do not。
On the morning of January 28， 1986， NASA’s space shuttle Challenger exploded shortly after blasting off from Cape Canaveral。 Christa McAuliffe， America’s “Teacher in Space，” was instantly killed， along with the other six members of the mission。 Right？ Wrong。
Thirty-five years after NASA’s revitalization program literally went up in smoke， Kevin Cook uncovers the untold story of the disastrous order to launch on an ice-cold Florida day。 For the first time， he takes readers inside the shuttle for those agonizing two minutes and forty-five seconds after the fire which， yes， some of the astronauts survived。
But this is more than a simple corrective to a now-dimming memory。 Centering on McAuliffe， a charmingly ordinary civilian on the cusp of history， The Burning Blue animates the mission’s colorful cast of characters， which featured the second female astronaut （who was also the first Jewish astronaut）， the second Black one， and the first Asian-American and Buddhist in space。 Drawing intimate portraits of the people wearing the spacesuits and detailing how they earned the right to suit up， Cook makes readers temporarily forget the tragedy toward which the tale is hurtling。 Infused with drama， immediacy， and compelling characters， The Burning Blue reveals the human price paid for politics and capital-P Progress on that ill-fated， unforgettable morning。
You’ve seen the pictures。 You think you know what happened。 You do not。
On the morning of January 28， 1986， NASA’s space shuttle Challenger exploded shortly after blasting off from Cape Canaveral。 Christa McAuliffe， America’s “Teacher in Space，” was instantly killed， along with the other six members of the mission。 Right？ Wrong。
Thirty-five years after NASA’s revitalization program literally went up in smoke， Kevin Cook uncovers the untold story of the disastrous order to launch on an ice-cold Florida day。 For the first time， he takes readers inside the shuttle for those agonizing two minutes and forty-five seconds after the fire which， yes， some of the astronauts survived。
But this is more than a simple corrective to a now-dimming memory。 Centering on McAuliffe， a charmingly ordinary civilian on the cusp of history， The Burning Blue animates the mission’s colorful cast of characters， which featured the second female astronaut （who was also the first Jewish astronaut）， the second Black one， and the first Asian-American and Buddhist in space。 Drawing intimate portraits of the people wearing the spacesuits and detailing how they earned the right to suit up， Cook makes readers temporarily forget the tragedy toward which the tale is hurtling。 Infused with drama， immediacy， and compelling characters， The Burning Blue reveals the human price paid for politics and capital-P Progress on that ill-fated， unforgettable morning。
Reviews
Terri Wangard
，
I remember the day of Challenger’s last flight。 I was driving to work， listening to the countdown on the radio。 I arrived at the library shortly before the launch， so I didn’t hear the liftoff。 Later， when I went to the front desk， a clerk asked if I’d heard about Challenger， and that teacher。Since I’ve read most books on the space shuttles， I didn’t learn much new stuff from Burning Blue， the Untold Story of Christa McAuliffe and NASA’s Challenger Disaster。 The effort of Steve McAuliffe， Christ I remember the day of Challenger’s last flight。 I was driving to work， listening to the countdown on the radio。 I arrived at the library shortly before the launch， so I didn’t hear the liftoff。 Later， when I went to the front desk， a clerk asked if I’d heard about Challenger， and that teacher。Since I’ve read most books on the space shuttles， I didn’t learn much new stuff from Burning Blue， the Untold Story of Christa McAuliffe and NASA’s Challenger Disaster。 The effort of Steve McAuliffe， Christa’s widower， to prevent Judy Resnik’s family from receiving an equal award in the lawsuits because they weren’t spouses or children， was a surprise。 From the subtitle， you know there’s an emphasis on Christa and the Teacher in Space program。 There is also emphasis on the importance of teachers and their lack of appreciation。 The brief bios on the other six astronauts are appreciated， but it’s almost like they were just along for the ride。 Challenger was lost thirty-five years ago。 This book offers a good look at the disaster for those unfamiliar with it。 I voluntarily reviewed a complimentary copy of this book。 All opinions are my own。 。。。more
Evan
，
I received an advance reading copy of this book， for free， through Goodreads First Reads program in exchange for my honest review。Having been born after the Kennedy Assassination， the Space Shuttle Challenger Disaster was the first moment in my life in which I remember exactly where I was when I heard the news。 I had just taken my seat in my eighth-grade history class， when my usually emotionless teacher entered the room with tears in her eyes。 She explained to the class what had happened， and I I received an advance reading copy of this book， for free， through Goodreads First Reads program in exchange for my honest review。Having been born after the Kennedy Assassination， the Space Shuttle Challenger Disaster was the first moment in my life in which I remember exactly where I was when I heard the news。 I had just taken my seat in my eighth-grade history class， when my usually emotionless teacher entered the room with tears in her eyes。 She explained to the class what had happened， and I can recall the sense of shock and disbelief felt by all。In The Burning Blue: The Untold Story of Christa McAuliffe and NASA’s Challenger Disaster by Kevin Cook， the story of the Challenger Disaster is told in comprehensive， and at times gut-wrenching， detail。 The focus of the narrative is Christa McAuliffe， who beat out over 10，000 other teachers to be named NASA’s first-ever Teacher in Space。 Readers are introduced to McAuliffe’s family， and follow her through her teaching career， her NASA training， and her experiences dealing with her sudden celebrity。 Along the way， we meet the other six crew members of the Challenger mission and follow their journey right up to， and beyond， that fateful moment 73 seconds after liftoff。The big reveal of the book， as hyped on the blurb on the back， is that the astronauts survived the explosion of the shuttle， only to perish when the plummeting crew cabin collided with the Atlantic Ocean。 This was not really news to me， as I remember hearing this 15 years ago， but the reenactment of their descent and the disturbing facts about the recovery of the crew’s bodies were revelations。The Burning Blue then shifted focus to the disaster aftermath。 The fighting and politics regarding the placement of blame， the resurrection of the shuttle program， and the “what happened to” stories of the families of the seven shuttle astronauts are all examined。 Overall， the author provided the reader with a exhaustive look at the events leading up to， and the 35 years that have passed since， January 28， 1986。My only complaint about the book is the pervasiveness of politics of it。 I expected some politics to be involved in the hearings and investigations following the disaster， but I did not expect to learn about Christa McAuliffe’s political leanings， her husband’s politics， the politics of the other crew members， etc。 It all seemed unnecessary。 One cannot turn on the television， watch a movie， or open a book today without being bombarded by political agendas。 Literally， in the last five pages of the book the author cites an unnamed source （a Dunkin’ Donuts Deep Throat） who states （without proof） that President Reagan threated NASA officials with ‘If you don’t get that bird up in the air， we’ll cut your funding’。” In what had otherwise been a well-researched and factual account of events， this left a bad taste in my mouth by stooping to hearsay and innuendo。 Overall， The Burning Blue is an interesting read。 I just could have done without the political slant。 。。。more
QOH
，
This was my first "Where were you when？" historical event， and as a result I remember a particular stairwell in a Massachusetts junior high school （which would otherwise not be remembered at all）。 About ten years later I watched another shuttle launch， in person， and I held my breath a lot longer than I thought was possible。 I'd read quite a bit about the O rings in the past， and although I didn't need it to be rehashed， it would have been a more interesting book if it had more of the NASA/gover This was my first "Where were you when？" historical event， and as a result I remember a particular stairwell in a Massachusetts junior high school （which would otherwise not be remembered at all）。 About ten years later I watched another shuttle launch， in person， and I held my breath a lot longer than I thought was possible。 I'd read quite a bit about the O rings in the past， and although I didn't need it to be rehashed， it would have been a more interesting book if it had more of the NASA/government contractor culture and less repetition about whether the teacher-in-space program was a good idea and if Christa McAuliffe was a good fit。 Although the book flowed well， I had a sense we were missing a lot。 。。。more
Susan Kennedy
，
I really enjoyed this book。 I think some of that has to be because I was almost 13 years old when it happened and I remember it。 Reading the book and reliving that as an adult definitely allows me to look at if differently。 I think of things very differently from my almost 13 year old self， like the children of those that died watching。 That is just heartbreaking to me。 I think this book is well written， easy to read and full of things that I didn't know。 It was interesting going back and review I really enjoyed this book。 I think some of that has to be because I was almost 13 years old when it happened and I remember it。 Reading the book and reliving that as an adult definitely allows me to look at if differently。 I think of things very differently from my almost 13 year old self， like the children of those that died watching。 That is just heartbreaking to me。 I think this book is well written， easy to read and full of things that I didn't know。 It was interesting going back and reviewing this piece of history。 It was nice to learn about each of those crew members and a bit of their personalities。 I thoroughly enjoyed it。This is definitely one I would recommend。 I didn't want to put it down。 Not only do you get to know the crew， but you get a little peak into the families after the tragedy。 I think Kevin Cook did a great job putting this together。 。。。more
Jennifer Schultz
，
Read if you: Want an insightful and heartbreaking look at the last Challenger crew， with an emphasis on Christa McAuliffe。 I rarely wish a book was longer--but I could have easily welcomed 100+ more pages！ I was in second grade when Challenger exploded （did not watch live）， so while I remember the sadness of that day， there's not much I actually knew or remembered。 Cook creates a warm， winning， and admirable portrayal of McAuliffe that feels totally genuine and honest。 Librarians/booksellers: Wi Read if you: Want an insightful and heartbreaking look at the last Challenger crew， with an emphasis on Christa McAuliffe。 I rarely wish a book was longer--but I could have easily welcomed 100+ more pages！ I was in second grade when Challenger exploded （did not watch live）， so while I remember the sadness of that day， there's not much I actually knew or remembered。 Cook creates a warm， winning， and admirable portrayal of McAuliffe that feels totally genuine and honest。 Librarians/booksellers: With the recent documentary on Challenger （2020）， this will likely have interest， due to the lack of recent books about the disaster。 Many thanks to Henry Holt & Company and NetGalley for a digital review copy in exchange for an honest review。 。。。more
Nicole
，