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Challenger: The disaster five people saw coming Forty years ago, the Challenger space shuttle disintegrated just after lift-off, killing its crew and changing the history of spaceflight. A small team of engineers tried to prevent the tragedy — but they were overruled. January 28, 1986 was an unusually crisp winter morning at Cape Canaveral in Florida. When the sun rose at 7:12am, the air temperature was about -5 degrees Celsius. Icicles hung from parts of the launch pad as preparations were made to send the Challenger space shuttle into orbit. Thousands of spectators were gathering along nearby roads and shorelines....

<p>CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - A Nobel Prize-winning member of the board investigating the space shuttle Columbia disaster says he fears NASA may be doomed to suffer more tragedies unless it changes the culture that has led to flawed decision-making.</p> <p>The "same faulty reasoning" that led to the 1986 Challenger accident also led to Columbia, said Douglas Osheroff, one of the 13 board members wrapping up the report on the Columbia accident.</p>