Description

Winner of the 2024 Kirkus Nonfiction Prize
Shortlisted for the 2025 Andrew Carnegie Medal for Excellence in Nonfiction
Finalist for the 2024 National Book Critics Circle Award in Nonfiction
A New York Times Notable Book of 2024
New York Times Bestseller

Hailed as “stunning” by The Atlantic, “devastating” by The New York Times, and “dramatic” by The Wall Street Journal, Challenger is an extraordinary account of one of the most tragic moments in American history.

From the bestselling author of Midnight in Chernobyl comes the definitive, meticulously researched account of the Challenger disaster—a gripping true story that unfolds with the intensity of a thriller.

On January 28, 1986, just seventy-three seconds after takeoff, the space shuttle Challenger disintegrated over the Atlantic Ocean, killing all seven crew members. Among them was Christa McAuliffe, a schoolteacher from New Hampshire whose participation in the mission had captured the hearts of millions. The shocking event, witnessed by people across the country, became a defining moment in 20th-century America, shattering the nation’s confidence in its space program and altering its vision of the future.

Despite the magnitude of the tragedy, the full story of how and why it happened has never been fully explored—until now. Drawing on extensive archival research and original reporting, Challenger: A True Story of Heroism and Disaster on the Edge of Space follows the lives of the seven astronauts in the years leading up to the launch, offering a vivid and deeply human portrait of their experiences. It also provides a detailed reconstruction of the disaster and the subsequent investigation, exposing the political pressures, flawed decision-making, and overlooked warnings that contributed to the catastrophe.

At its core, this is a story of ambition and innovation compromised by bureaucratic neglect and the relentless pursuit of national prestige. It is a tale of both hubris and heroism—of engineers and whistleblowers who fought to bring the truth to light, and of a space program striving to achieve greatness while grappling with dangerous compromises.

Higginbotham also delves into the wider history of the shuttle program, shining a light on the engineers, designers, and test pilots who worked tirelessly to make spaceflight possible. Blending compelling human narratives with gripping scientific detail, Challenger captures the complexities of an event that shaped history, revealing a story even more astonishing than the tragedy itself.