[DouglasKC]

I was in the Air Force and had just come home and was fast asleep after pulling a 7 to 7 night shift. My wife woke me up and told me that the space shuttle blew up. She had been watching it live. I was awake instantly and ran to the TV to watch the replays.

I think for many in my generation (I'm in my early 40's now) this was one of the first events that was seared into our consciousnesses.

[Indy Pendance]

You're my age, we remember JFK (I was 5) getting shot, but we were little kds. The Challenger was the first real thing that shook our bones. At least mine were shook, and it's one of those things in life that I'll never forget.

[X-USAF]

I also was in the Air Force at the time. Worked a midnight shift when a guy in the next room knocked on my door and woke me up with the news.

A long day that was.

Rest in peace, Challenger crew.

[Nebr FAL owner]

You are right about it being one of the first events to sear itself into our memories(I turned 40 last Sept.) I was lucky my folks got me out of bed as a small child to watch "moonwalks" & "splashdowns" of the Apollo space flights . I remember hearing the announcement that Pres. Reagan had been shot , I remember watching on CNN elements of the 10th panzer division out of Stutgart Germany rolling down the main drag in Paris France on Bastille Day at the invitation of the French ,the fall of the Berlin Wall ,the striking of the blood red communist banner from over the Kremlin to be replaced by a red,white & blue flag.God I feel positively ANCIENT.