Thanks for bumping this up Scott, it's a day I remember very well.
20 years ago today I was in Las Vegas with friends. We rented a car and were on our way to tour Hover Dam that morning, on the radio I heard there was an accident with Challenger. We checked out the Dam then headed back to Vegas, once in the hotel there was a strange feeling, very quiet.
I went to my room and my roommate who stayed back was watching TV, he said "I think you better watch this". It was a replay of the launch, I watched then my heart just sunk. I just stared at the TV, they kept playing it over and over. There was a bottle of tequila next to the set and I poured a glass and shot it down, then I went out on the the balcony and broke down. After awhile I went to the lobby, TV's were on and Regan was addressing the nation.
The next day, my friend and I drove to to Edwards Air Force Base for a tour but sadly the base was close. This was I trip I planned long before and I was very happy to return that year in September.
"We will never forget them, nor the last time we saw them, this morning, as they prepared for their journey and waved good-bye and "slipped the surly bonds of earth" to "touch the face of God."
24 names of those who died in the space programs of the United States are remembered at the
Space Mirror Memorial at the Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex.