Debris from the Challenger Space Shuttle found on the ocean floor

Cape Canaveral, Florida –

Most of the wrecked Space Shuttle Challenger was found buried in sand at the bottom of the Atlantic Ocean. More than 30 years have passed since the tragedy that took the lives of a school teacher and her six.

NASA’s Kennedy Space Center announced the discovery on Thursday.

“When you first hear about it, it takes you back to 1986,” said Michael Cianniri, the NASA manager responsible for the lost shuttle wreckage of both Challenger and Columbia.

In an interview with NASA, he said it was one of the largest fragments of Challenger found in decades since the crash.

A TV documentary crew diver first spotted the piece in March while searching for WWII plane wreckage. NASA recently confirmed in a video that this piece was part of a shuttle that fell apart shortly after its January 28, 1986 launch. All seven of his people aboard died, including Christa McAuliffe, the first schoolteacher to go into space.

The wreckage is over 15 feet by 15 feet (4.5 meters by 4.5 meters). It may be larger because it is partly covered with sand. It is believed to be from the abdomen of the shuttle because of the presence of square thermal tiles, officials said.

Debris remains on the ocean floor off the coast of Florida near Cape Canaveral until NASA decides on its next steps. It remains the property of the US government.

Sianiri said the families of all seven Challenger crew members had been notified.

A History Channel documentary detailing the discovery will air on November 22nd.

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