The Discovery of the 1986 Florida Keys Volcano Ejecta and the Case for a New Space Shuttle Artifact, Part I: The Bermuda Triangle
The World War II-era wreck off the coast of Florida was being searched for by a documentary crew for a different historical artifact.
“While it has been nearly 37 years since seven daring and brave explorers lost their lives aboard Challenger, this tragedy will forever be seared in the collective memory of our country. Bill Nelson said that for millions around the globe, Jan. 28, 1986 still feels like yesterday.
The footage of the dive was posted on the History Channel. A short video shows two divers examining a piece of debris covered with tiles and embedded in sand.
The proximity of the object to the Florida Space Coast, a region around the Kennedy Space Center and Cape Canaveral Space Force Station where NASA launches its spaceflights, as well as the item’s perceived modern construction, led the group to contact NASA. Space shuttle artifacts are owned by the government, according to the news chief at NASA.
This discovery gives us the opportunity to pause and reflect on the lives that were cut short and to honor seven pioneers that we lost. At NASA, the core value of safety is – and must forever remain – our top priority, especially as our missions explore more of the cosmos than ever before.”
The discovery of the Challenger findings will be shown on an upcoming episode of The History Channel. It’s part of a series about the Bermuda Triangle. NASA is pondering what to do with the debris from Challenger.
The space agency is considering what actions it might take regarding the artifact that will fully honor the legacy of Challenger’s fallen astronauts and the families who loved them.
Barnette told CNN in a phone interview he can smell the smells from that day. It took so long to get into my brain.
Space Shuttle Discovery of the Underbelly of the Bermuda Triangle: A NASA Detection of a Large Piece of the Orbiter’s Subunderbelly
Barnette and his team of investigators set off in March to search suspected shipwreck sites in the Bermuda Triangle, a swath of the northern Atlantic Ocean said to be the site of dozens of shipwrecks and plane crashes. NASA has launched rockets on Florida’s Space Coast since its inception and the team is looking for an area outside the triangle.
During the first dive, Barnette said a storm caused the water to turn so murky it was like swimming in Guinness beer. He said they had terrible visibility.
The explorers were given a clue that they had uncovered a large piece of the Orbiters underbelly when they looked at the tiles from the Challenger. The underbelly was coated in thousands of silicon tiles protecting the shuttle from heat as it returned into the Earth’s atmosphere from space.
NASA confirmed the origins of the debris after reviewing footage from the dive, according to a news release.
NASA planned to fly seven people into space on the final Challenger mission including a New Hampshire mother who was about to become the first citizen in space.