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Christa McAuliffe

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Christa McAuliffe
NationalityAmerican
OccupationTeacher
Space career
Spaceflight Participant[1]
SelectionTeacher in Space Project
MissionsSTS-51-L
Mission insignia

Sharon Christa Corrigan McAuliffe (September 2, 1948 – January 28, 1986), better known simply as Christa McAuliffe née Christa Corrigan, was an American teacher from Concord, New Hampshire, who was selected from among more than 11,000 applicants to participate in the NASA Teacher in Space Project.[2] She was one of seven crew members killed in the Space Shuttle Challenger disaster.

Early life

Born Sharon Christa Corrigan on September 2, 1948 in Boston, Massachusetts, McAuliffe was the oldest of five children of Edward Christopher Corrigan (1922-1990), an accountant, and Grace Mary (George) Corrigan, a teacher.[3][4][5] She was part Irish, Lebanese, German, English, and Native American.[6] McAuliffe's mother is of part Maronite Lebanese origin through her father (Christa's grandfather) and is a niece of historian Philip Hitti.[7]

The year Christa was born, her father was completing his sophomore year at Boston College.[3] Not long there after, he took a job as an assistant comptroller in a Boston department store and the family moved to Framingham, Massachusetts, where she attended and graduated from Marian High School in 1966.[8] As a youth, she was inspired by the Apollo moon landing program, and wrote years later on her NASA application form that "I watched the Space Age being born, and I would like to participate!"[3]

Career as an educator

McAuliffe attended Framingham State College in her hometown, graduating in 1970 with a B.A. in education and history.[9] A few weeks later, she married her longstanding boyfriend Steven J. McAuliffe, whom she had met at Marian High, and they moved to the Washington, DC metropolitan area so Steven could attend the Georgetown University Law Center.[8][3] They had two children: Scott and Caroline, who were nine and six respectively when she died.[10]

McAuliffe took a job teaching in the secondary schools, specializing in American history and social studies.[3] They stayed in the Washington area for the next eight years and she taught while completing a Master of Arts from Bowie State University in Maryland.[3] In 1978, they moved to Concord, New Hampshire, when Steven accepted a job as an assistant to the state attorney general. Christa took a teaching post at Concord High School in 1982. She was a social studies teacher and taught several courses including American history, law, economics, and a self-designed course: "The American Woman"[11] A large part of her teaching techniques were field trips or bringing in speakers. According to The New York Times, she "emphasized the impact of ordinary people on history, saying they were as important to the historical record as kings, politicians or generals."[12]

In 1984, President Ronald Reagan announced the Teacher in Space Project and she learned about NASA's efforts to find an educator to fly on the Space Shuttle.[13] NASA wanted to find an "ordinary person," a gifted teacher who could communicate with students while in orbit.[14][3] McAuliffe became one out of more than 11,000 applicants,[13] writing:

I cannot join the space program and restart my life as an astronaut, but this opportunity to connect my abilities as an educator with my interests in history and space is a unique opportunity to fulfill my early fantasies.

Christa McAuliffe, 1985[15]

Teacher in Space Project and disaster

File:Christa McAuliffe Experiences Weightlessness during KC-135 Flight.jpg
Christa McAuliffe undergoing pre-flight training experiences weightlessness during a KC-135 "vomit comet" flight
Main articles: Teacher in Space Project and Space Shuttle Challenger disaster

NASA selected McAuliffe for this position on July 19, 1985 (another teacher, Barbara Morgan, served as her backup).[3][16] In the autumn of that year, both she and Morgan took a year-long leave of absence from teaching (NASA paid their salaries) to train for an early 1986 space shuttle mission. While not a member of the NASA Astronaut Corps, she would be part of the STS-51-L crew and would teach lessons from space. McAuliffe was to conduct two 15-minute classes from space including a tour of the spacecraft called "The Ultimate Field Trip" and a lesson about the benefits of space travel called "Where We've Been, Where We're Going, Why."[14][17] The lessons were to be broadcast to millions of schoolchildren via closed-circuit TV.

After being chosen to be the first teacher in space, McAuliffe was a guest on several television programs, including Good Morning America, the CBS Morning News, the Today Show, and the Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson.[18] She had an immediate rapport with the media, and the Teacher in Space Project received tremendously popular attention as a result.[3]

On January 28, 1986, McAuliffe boarded Space Shuttle Challenger with the other six crewmembers of STS-51-L. Challenger broke apart 73 seconds into its flight, leading to the deaths of all seven crew members. According to NASA, it is in part because of the excitement over McAuliffe's presence on Challenger that the accident had such a significant effect on the nation.[3] Many schoolchildren were viewing the launch live, and media coverage of the accident was extensive.[19]

Barbara Morgan, McAuliffe's backup, became a professional astronaut in January 1998, 12 years after McAuliffe's death.[16] Morgan flew on the space shuttle mission STS-118 aboard Endeavour (the orbiter that replaced Challenger) to the International Space Station on August 8, 2007, 21 years after the Challenger disaster.

Legacy

The Christa McAuliffe Planetarium in Concord, New Hampshire

McAuliffe was posthumously awarded the Congressional Space Medal of Honor on July 23, 2004 by President George W. Bush.[20] She was honored at many events, including sports events such as the Daytona 500.[21] The Christa McAuliffe Planetarium in Concord, New Hampshire and the Christa Corrigan McAuliffe Center for Education and Teaching Excellence at Framingham State College are named in her memory,[22] as are asteroid 3352 McAuliffe,[23] the crater McAuliffe on the Moon,[24] and a crater on the planet Venus that was named McAuliffe by the Soviet Union.[25] Approximately 40 schools around the world have been named after her, including the Christa McAuliffe Space Education Center in Pleasant Grove, Utah.[26][27]

Scholarships and other events have also been established in her memory. The Christa McAuliffe Technology Conference has been held every year in Nashua, New Hampshire since 1986, and is devoted to the use of technology in all aspects of education.[28] The Nebraska McAuliffe Prize honors a Nebraska teacher each year for courage and excellence in education.[29] The Christa McAuliffe Reach for the Stars Award is a grant for teachers provided by the National Council for the Social Studies.[30]

McAuliffe was portrayed by Karen Allen in the 1990 TV movie Challenger.[31] The spaceship on the 1996–1997 children's science-fiction series Space Cases, about a group of students lost in space, was called the "Christa".[32] A documentary film about McAuliffe and Morgan, produced by Renee Sotile & Mary Jo Godges aired on CNN in January 2006, called Christa McAuliffe: Reach for the Stars.[33] It commemorated the 20th anniversary of her death. The 75-minute feature version was narrated by Susan Sarandon with songs by Carly Simon.

Christa's son Scott married in 2004 and finished graduate studies in marine biology.[26] Meanwhile, her daughter, Caroline, grew up to pursue the same career that her mother had pursued: teaching. Steve remarried and became a federal judge in 1992.[34] He serves with the United States District Court for the District of New Hampshire in Concord. Christa's mother Grace, is still talking to school children about McAuliffe.[26]

Christa McAuliffe is buried in Blossum Hill Cemetery in Concord, NH.[35]

Quotes

  • I touch the future. I teach.[36]
  • No teacher has ever been better prepared to teach a lesson.[37]
  • I have a vision of the world as a global village, a world without boundaries. Imagine a history teacher making history![9]
  • Reach for it, you know. Go push yourself as far as you can.[38]
  • What are we doing here? We're reaching for the stars.[39]
  • May your future be limited only by your dreams![40]

See also

Notes

  1. ^ "Astronaut Biographies: Space Flight Participant". NASA/Lyndon B. Johnson Space Center. 2008-12-05. Retrieved 2009-01-10. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  2. ^ "Teachers in Space: A Chronology". Education Week. 1998-01-28. pp. Vol. 17, Issue 20, p.12. Retrieved 2009-01-09. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  3. ^ a b c d e f g h i j "The Crew of the Challenger Shuttle Mission in 1986". NASA. 2004-10-22. Retrieved 2009-01-09. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  4. ^ "OBITUARY: Edward C. Corrigan, Astronaut's Father, 67". The New York Times. 1990-01-28. Retrieved 2009-01-10. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  5. ^ Corrigan 2000, p. 156
  6. ^ Corrigan 2000, p. 21
  7. ^ "20 Years Later...Remembering Lebanese American Astronaut Christa McAuliffe" (PDF). Lebanese Monthly Magazine. 2006. p. 18, Volume 1, Issue 2. Retrieved 2009-01-12. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help); Unknown parameter |month= ignored (help)
  8. ^ a b Corrigan 2000, p. 40
  9. ^ a b "Christa McAuliffe 1948-1986". Framingham State College - Henry Whittemore Library. Retrieved 2009-01-11. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  10. ^ Corrigan 2000, p. 123
  11. ^ Burgess & Corrigan 2000, pp. 15–16
  12. ^ "OBITUARY: The Shuttle Explosion, The Seven Who Perished in The Explosion of The Challenger". The New York Times. 1986-01-29. Retrieved 2009-01-13. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  13. ^ a b "The Challenger Story:Teacher in Space". Challenger Center for Space Science Education. Retrieved 2009-01-13. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  14. ^ a b Staff writer (1986-01-28). "McAuliffe: Teacher on 'Ultimate Field Trip'". The Washington Post. p. A10. Retrieved 2009-01-13. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  15. ^ Ware, Susan (2004). Notable American Women. Harvard University Press. p. 425. ISBN 067401488X. {{cite book}}: Unknown parameter |coauthors= ignored (|author= suggested) (help)
  16. ^ a b "Barbara Radding Morgan - NASA Astronaut biography". NASA. 2007. Retrieved 2009-01-09. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  17. ^ Magnuson, Ed (2001-06-24). "They Slipped the Surly Bonds of Earth to Touch". Time Magazine. Retrieved 2009-01-09. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  18. ^ Belman, Felice (2001). The New Hampshire Century: Concord Monitor Profiles of One Hundred People Who Shaped It. UPNE. p. 4. ISBN 1584650877. {{cite book}}: Unknown parameter |coauthor= ignored (|author= suggested) (help)
  19. ^ Wright, John C. (Spring 1989). "How Children Reacted to Televised Coverage of the Space Shuttle Disaster". Journal of Communication. 39 (2): 27. doi:10.1111/j.1460-2466.1989.tb01027.x. {{cite journal}}: Unknown parameter |coauthors= ignored (|author= suggested) (help)
  20. ^ "Congressional Space Medal of Honor". NASA History Division. Retrieved 2009-01-09. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  21. ^ "ELLIOTT HAS COMPETITION IN DAYTONA 500". Philadelphia Daily News. 1986-02-15. p. 35, Sports. {{cite news}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  22. ^ "Christa McAuliffe Scholars". 2006-2007 Undergraduate Catalog. Framingham State College. Retrieved 2009-01-09. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  23. ^ Staff writer (1997-09-14). "NASA to put probe to the test: New technologies to be tried in flight". The Washington Times. {{cite news}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  24. ^ Burgess & Corrigan 2000, p. 103
  25. ^ "The Magellan Venus Explorer's Guide: Chapter 8 What's in a Name?". NASA JPL Publication 90-24. 1990. Retrieved 2009-01-09. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help); Unknown parameter |month= ignored (help)
  26. ^ a b c "Then & Now: Grace Corrigan". CNN. 2005-08-15. Retrieved 2009-01-10. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  27. ^ Kapos, Katherine (1990-12-02). "School Launches Jaunts to Outer Space". The Salt Lake Tribune. p. B3. {{cite news}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  28. ^ "22nd Annual Christa McAuliffe Technology Conference". New Hampshire School Administrators Association. 2008. Retrieved 2009-01-12. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  29. ^ "Do You Know a Courageous Teacher?". University of Nebraska-Lincoln: College of Education and Human Sciences. 2008. Retrieved 2009-01-10. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  30. ^ "Christa McAuliffe Reach for the Stars Award". National Council for the Social Studies . Retrieved 2009-01-13. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  31. ^ Saunders, Dusty (1990-02-25). "'CHALLENGER' Playing McAuliffe Provided Karen Allen with the Greatest Challenge of her Career". The Rocky Mountain News. {{cite news}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  32. ^ Grahnke, Lon (1996-02-29). "2 New Series Fire Up Sci-Fi Shows Aim a Light Touch at Kids". The Chicago Sun-Times. p. 37. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |year= / |date= mismatch (help); Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  33. ^ "CNN Presents: CHRISTA MCAULIFFE REACH FOR THE STARS". CNN. Retrieved 2009-01-11. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  34. ^ "Their families today". The Houston Chronicle. 1996. Retrieved 2009-01-10. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  35. ^ Pohlen, Jerome (2008). Progressive Nation: A Travel Guide with 400+ Left Turns and Inspiring Landmarks. Chicago Review Press. p. 37. ISBN 1556527179.
  36. ^ Burgess & Corrigan 2000, p. 93
  37. ^ Burgess & Corrigan 2000, p. 70
  38. ^ "CNN PRESENTS Christa McAuliffe: Reach for the Stars". CNN. 2006-01-22. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  39. ^ "Christa McAuliffe 1948-1986". Time Magazine. 1986-02-10. Retrieved 2009-01-11. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  40. ^ Drogin, Bob (1986-01-30). "New Hampshire Town Reeling From Shock, Grief". The Los Angeles Times. p. 1, National Desk. {{cite news}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)

References

  • Burgess, Colin; Corrigan, Grace George (2000), Teacher in Space, University of Nebraska Press, ISBN 0803261829 {{citation}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |1= (help).
  • Corrigan, Grace George (2000), A Journal for Christa: Christa McAuliffe, Teacher in Space, University of Nebraska Press, ISBN 0803264119.

Further reading

  • Hohler, Robert T. (1986), I Touch the Future: The Story of Christa McAuliffe, Random House, ISBN 0394557212.
  • Washington Post Staff (1986), Challengers: The Inspiring Life Stories of the Seven Brave Astronauts of Shuttle Mission 51L, Pocket Books, ISBN 0671628976.

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