New York, NY - A new home video of the shuttle Challenger disaster has surfaced, more than two decades after the incident.
The blog New Scientist posted the video on Tuesday. It comes from The Karman family of Hicksville, New York. The family was at Orlando International Airport, about 80 kilometers from the launch pad. In the video, which was taken from an Eastern Airlines terminal, you see the smoke from Challenger as it begins it's ascent. People inside the airport are heard commenting on the lift off, excitedly cheering on the shuttle.
After a few moments, the smoke suddenly stalls, then you see the explosion and the trail veer off in two directions as the solid rocket boosters fly off. People watching assumed that the smoke was normal, and seem unaware of what had occurred.
The video was posted by New Scientist employee Kim Karman, who was 3 years old at the time of the incident, and is seen in the home movie at the beginning of the clip.
To watch the video, visit the New Scientist website.The film was digitized off an old VHS tape earlier this week. It's one of only two known home video shots of the disaster.
The other was unearthed in 2010.
