January 17, 2026 • 11 mins
40 years ago this month, Americans of all ages were watching their TV's in suspense, following the nation's first ever "Teacher in Space", Christa McAuliffe, and six other crew members on the Challenger as it rocketed to space. Tragedy struck just seconds after lift-off, killing all seven on board, but the lessons and legacy of the Challenger crew live on, even today. Melissa Edwards, Executive Director of the McAuliffe-Shepard Discovery Center in Concord, NH, joins Nichole this week to talk about their upcoming exhibit and events to mark this important anniversary.
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Speaker 1 (00:07):
From WBZ News Radio in Boston. This is New England Weekend.
Each and every week we come together right here talk
about all the topics important to you and the place
where you live. Thanks for tuning in again this week.
I'm Nicole Davis. Americans of all ages were glued to
the TV and radio forty years ago later on this month.
It was on January twenty eighth, nineteen eighty six, when
(00:29):
the Space Shuttle Challenger was set to take off. On
board was the first ever teacher in space, Christa mccauliffe
from Conquered, New Hampshire. Tragedies struck as less than two
minutes after takeoff, the shuttle exploded. Al seven on board
were killed, including mccauliffe. The nation mourned those on board
and what might have been as part of that mission
(00:49):
here in New England. Even today, Christa mccauliffe is still
honored at the mccauliff Shepherd Discovery Center in Conquered and
coming up, they've got some very special programming to mark
this important anniversary. Executive director Melissa Edwards is here. And
you know, Melissa, the more I learn about Krista, the
more of an incredible person she really seems to have been.
Speaker 2 (01:08):
You know, I've come to know Christa a lot better
now as an adult than I ever did when I
was younger. I was very much younger when the whole
Challenger incident happened. But now I've learned about her much more.
I'm such even more impressed by her than I was originally.
And that you know, she was a teacher. She felt
pretty passionate, I think about teaching from a very early age.
(01:30):
She was you know, got married relatively young, had a
family relatively young, but moved into high school teaching. And
she's a former history teacher, which I also am a
former history teacher, so I have a lot of props
for that. But she was somebody who I think really
understood the value of understanding who we are and where
we come from and our history, and importance about telling
(01:53):
everyone's story, not just the rich and famous, but the
everyday person, and how all of those stories really help,
you know, us understand ourselves as a country. She was
also really excited about exposing people to new ideas. She
was a little bit of a I would say, I
would say revolutionary and but you know, progressive in her thinking.
She had a woman's studies class at her at Conquered
(02:14):
High School a little bit before that was you know,
kind of the thing that you did. And I think
she wanted people to learn new things is why she
decided to go forward the Teacher and Space program. And
I think that constant challenging herself and also wanting to
learn more so she could bring that back to her
students was something that really epitomied her as an individual.
(02:37):
And this is a I think as a person who
I think didn't take no for an answer.
Speaker 1 (02:43):
Her energy and enthusiasm, it seems like she really did
love life and that enthusiasm for everything, for education, for life,
for space. I mean, the Teacher in Space program itself
was groundbreaking, but it seems like she was a one
of a kind person to choose for that.
Speaker 2 (02:58):
Yeah, there's I think it's when you watch interviews and
you see her in person, you see that aura that
comes through that you it was a given that she
was going to be selected, honestly, because she does. She
has this effervescence about her, but she's not a judgmental.
She's not like you know, I know more than you.
She was just enthusiastic about all things, and it just
(03:19):
comes through in every interview and great footage everything. You
just see that energy and enthusiasm.
Speaker 1 (03:25):
Well, the launch with the challenger and the crew was
incredibly popular because she was on board, so you know
that day there was a lot of attention from all
over the country and the world. A teacher in space
back in nineteen eighty six, that was just beyond people's
thought at that point.
Speaker 2 (03:40):
I feel right, well, a private person in space. I
think you know, we were at that point still very
much in the mindset of you who had to be
an astronaut, and astronaut had to be a certain way.
We'd only had a few years of women actually being
in the Astronaut Corps, and so I think this idea
of somebody who hadn't their whole life and focused on
being an astronaut or trained to be an astronaut going
into space that was revolutionary.
Speaker 1 (04:02):
You're going to be marking forty years since the disaster,
and honestly I did not realize until recently that the
Planetarium when it first opened back in nineteen ninety, this
was a state memorial for Krista from the State of
New Hampshire.
Speaker 2 (04:15):
Correct. Correct, Yeah, built is a member a way to
remember her legacy.
Speaker 1 (04:19):
Yeah wow. And then obviously it was a planetarium at
first and now it is significantly more than that. So
tell us a bit about the history of the planetarium,
how it has evolved into the discovery center that we
know now and conquered.
Speaker 2 (04:33):
Yeah. Yeah, so it, you know, was for many years
the planetarium. It was the number one destination for many
students from across New Hampshire and around New England. I
have many conversations with older adults who are like, oh,
I remember going to the planetarum when I was a kid.
And then it grew the so it was owned by
the state, operated by the state, and then they decided
to increase the size. So around two thousand and nine
(04:56):
it increased it built a whole new wing close to
forty thousand square feet in addition to the planetarium, and
it was basically like that as the mcculloff Discovery Center.
And then just shortly there after Alan Shepherd's passing, it
was decided to add his name to give him, you know,
again very important to figure in New Hampshire history a
(05:18):
call out as well. So became the mccullugs Shepherd Discovery Center,
and then in twenty thirteen it actually became a separate
from the state, became its own five oh one c
three nonprofit and that's kind of how it's operated since then.
You know, I stepped into the footsteps of my predecessor,
Jane Jiroskis, who retired just two years ago, and it's
(05:39):
been an amazing organization. We have upgraded the planetarium the
last three years ago to it's one of only four
ten K digital planetariums in North America, which I tell
people means that the imaging the visuals are just so
much sharper. You can take a tour around the galaxy,
you can fly around the you know, Saturn, and swing around,
(05:59):
look the moons, all of those things that it's kind
of mind blowing to me. And what I'm so excited
is that I feel like it's right up what Chris
have wind want would be having young people, old people
see the universe in a way that kind of blows
your mind. It's kind of a little bit of like
we do live in the future when you can see
pictures that are being taken from a far away and
(06:21):
you can zoom around and look at it from the
comfort of your seat.
Speaker 1 (06:24):
Yeah, I mean, when I was younger, you talk about
people who are older talking about going to the planetarium
as a kid, I mean I remember going there and
taking it all in and just not wanting to leave.
And I actually really do credit the planetarium, your institution,
specifically for helping me learn to love space. I wanted
to go to that space camp for a while that
they had because of the planetarium. And there's probably so
(06:46):
many kids who feel the same way, because once you
finally get to see space in such a up close,
up close way, I mean, you never forget that.
Speaker 2 (06:56):
Oh it's so true. And I think I like to
say I'm kind of I've been involved with science centers
for decades. I've gone to every planetarium I can everything
I can possibly see, And when I sit down in
our planetarium and I look at them bring up the
milky ways it looks that night, it gives me shivers
down my spine. And I think it helps us to
recognize how vast the universe is and how we're not unimportant,
(07:21):
but we're also a very small part of the larger universe.
And getting the ability for us to see things that
even one hundred years ago people dreamed of but knew
they would never get to see, it's just so phenomenal. Yeah.
Speaker 1 (07:33):
I mean, you've got the James Web Telescope, you've got
all the rovers out there, you've got all of this
really cool exploration that's going on. I mean we're not
quite a like you know, Star Trek warp speed stuff
going on here, but still we're making huge strides.
Speaker 2 (07:45):
We are well and we're going back to space. That's
the thing that's super exciting. As NASA is planning for
the Artymous two mission to happen and probably in the
next two months right now, the launch window is between
February and April this year. We're going to send astronauts
around the Moon and we're going to send them farther
than any human has traveled ever, which is very exciting
to me.
Speaker 1 (08:04):
It's super exciting, and honestly, you all are going to
be right on the cusp of you know, being able
to be part of this as much as you can
without actually going into space. And before we get to
that point, you've got a really big anniversary when it
comes to Christa and the work you're doing over there.
It's the fortieth anniversary of Challenger, and so you've got
(08:26):
this great couple weeks of programming. Tell me about the
programming that you're about to offer and what people can
expect when they go.
Speaker 2 (08:33):
Yeah, So we want, as I said, we want to
make sure Christ's story is alive for generations to come.
So where I have a new exhibit that we're going
to be unveiling that's about Christa. My team is working
on that right now as we speak. We're very excited
about that. And then we're also going to be having
a panel that's going to be moderated by the Conquered
Monitor talking about Christmas legacy. And that's really the story
(08:54):
we're trying to tell, is that even though Challenger happened
forty years ago, her story continues on and her legacy
has acted many, many, many people since then. And we're
also going to have a one woman's show. Judith Klora
is going to be doing her Krista McCullough play and
that's going to be a special treat too, and that's
going to be on the Sunday. The other two events,
(09:14):
the dedication of the exhibit and the conquer Monitor panel
are going to happen on the twenty eighth, the actual
anniversary and.
Speaker 1 (09:21):
How long you see exhibit going to be up right now.
Speaker 2 (09:23):
We have it planned to have it open. As long
as we are open, we're going to be you know,
at some point in the future, we're hoping to do
a full redesign of the Discovery Center, but we're going
to definitely keep the exhibit, will be open throughout the
next year.
Speaker 1 (09:37):
Oh okay, so this isn't just like a couple weeks
thing and then you're going to miss that. This is
going to be more of a permanent exhibit situation.
Speaker 2 (09:43):
Exactly, exactly great.
Speaker 1 (09:45):
Are any of these events going to need tickets or
can people just kind of show up when they want
to come?
Speaker 2 (09:50):
Yeah? Yeah, we have a website that actually has all
the information and the tickets, so they are ticketed events. Okay,
if people go to star hop dot com Reach for
the Stars, that's where they can find more information about
the ticket prices. The exhibit is going to be open
to the general public with admission and won't be it
won't be an additional charge. But the two other events
(10:12):
are evening events, so those will be ticketed events that
people can choose to come to those specifically after hours.
Speaker 1 (10:17):
Website again one more time. Social media how people can
find out about everything you have to offer.
Speaker 2 (10:22):
Yeah, So star hop dot Com is our main page,
and if you go to star hop dot com slash
Actually it's a little bit longer. I'm gonna stay it
all together, Star hop dot Com, Slash Discover, slash Reach
for the Stars, all one where we'll take you to
all the details about the Krista. But if you just
go to star hop dot Com you'll find it too.
It's very much on the front page, so you can
(10:43):
see all the details about it there.
Speaker 1 (10:45):
Yep, I'm on the page right now. It's right here.
You can get tickets, you can learn about getting a membership,
how you can keep supporting the Discovery Center and all
the great work you're doing. And I just can't wait
to see how this all comes out. You must be
super excited.
Speaker 2 (10:58):
Oh I am super excited, and I just can't wait
to connect with people. I've been getting emails from folks
who've connected with the Center in the past. We're looking
forward to coming back, and I just feel it's going
to be a great community event me too.
Speaker 1 (11:08):
All Right, Well, Melissa, thank you so much for the
time on the show, and I wish you all the
best as we go into this next year of education.
Speaker 2 (11:16):
Thank you so much, and thank you so much for
taking the time to find out more about us.
Speaker 1 (11:20):
Hope you have a safe and healthy and warm weekend.
Please come back and join us again next week for
another edition of the show. I'm Nicole Davis from WBZ
News Radio on iHeartRadio.
From WBZ News Radio in Boston. This is New England Weekend.
Each and every week we come together right here talk
about all the topics important to you and the place
where you live. Thanks for tuning in again this week.
I'm Nicole Davis. Americans of all ages were glued to
the TV and radio forty years ago later on this month.
It was on January twenty eighth, nineteen eighty six, when
(00:29):
the Space Shuttle Challenger was set to take off. On
board was the first ever teacher in space, Christa mccauliffe
from Conquered, New Hampshire. Tragedies struck as less than two
minutes after takeoff, the shuttle exploded. Al seven on board
were killed, including mccauliffe. The nation mourned those on board
and what might have been as part of that mission
(00:49):
here in New England. Even today, Christa mccauliffe is still
honored at the mccauliff Shepherd Discovery Center in Conquered and
coming up, they've got some very special programming to mark
this important anniversary. Executive director Melissa Edwards is here. And
you know, Melissa, the more I learn about Krista, the
more of an incredible person she really seems to have been.
Speaker 2 (01:08):
You know, I've come to know Christa a lot better
now as an adult than I ever did when I
was younger. I was very much younger when the whole
Challenger incident happened. But now I've learned about her much more.
I'm such even more impressed by her than I was originally.
And that you know, she was a teacher. She felt
pretty passionate, I think about teaching from a very early age.
(01:30):
She was you know, got married relatively young, had a
family relatively young, but moved into high school teaching. And
she's a former history teacher, which I also am a
former history teacher, so I have a lot of props
for that. But she was somebody who I think really
understood the value of understanding who we are and where
we come from and our history, and importance about telling
(01:53):
everyone's story, not just the rich and famous, but the
everyday person, and how all of those stories really help,
you know, us understand ourselves as a country. She was
also really excited about exposing people to new ideas. She
was a little bit of a I would say, I
would say revolutionary and but you know, progressive in her thinking.
She had a woman's studies class at her at Conquered
(02:14):
High School a little bit before that was you know,
kind of the thing that you did. And I think
she wanted people to learn new things is why she
decided to go forward the Teacher and Space program. And
I think that constant challenging herself and also wanting to
learn more so she could bring that back to her
students was something that really epitomied her as an individual.
(02:37):
And this is a I think as a person who
I think didn't take no for an answer.
Speaker 1 (02:43):
Her energy and enthusiasm, it seems like she really did
love life and that enthusiasm for everything, for education, for life,
for space. I mean, the Teacher in Space program itself
was groundbreaking, but it seems like she was a one
of a kind person to choose for that.
Speaker 2 (02:58):
Yeah, there's I think it's when you watch interviews and
you see her in person, you see that aura that
comes through that you it was a given that she
was going to be selected, honestly, because she does. She
has this effervescence about her, but she's not a judgmental.
She's not like you know, I know more than you.
She was just enthusiastic about all things, and it just
(03:19):
comes through in every interview and great footage everything. You
just see that energy and enthusiasm.
Speaker 1 (03:25):
Well, the launch with the challenger and the crew was
incredibly popular because she was on board, so you know
that day there was a lot of attention from all
over the country and the world. A teacher in space
back in nineteen eighty six, that was just beyond people's
thought at that point.
Speaker 2 (03:40):
I feel right, well, a private person in space. I
think you know, we were at that point still very
much in the mindset of you who had to be
an astronaut, and astronaut had to be a certain way.
We'd only had a few years of women actually being
in the Astronaut Corps, and so I think this idea
of somebody who hadn't their whole life and focused on
being an astronaut or trained to be an astronaut going
into space that was revolutionary.
Speaker 1 (04:02):
You're going to be marking forty years since the disaster,
and honestly I did not realize until recently that the
Planetarium when it first opened back in nineteen ninety, this
was a state memorial for Krista from the State of
New Hampshire.
Speaker 2 (04:15):
Correct. Correct, Yeah, built is a member a way to
remember her legacy.
Speaker 1 (04:19):
Yeah wow. And then obviously it was a planetarium at
first and now it is significantly more than that. So
tell us a bit about the history of the planetarium,
how it has evolved into the discovery center that we
know now and conquered.
Speaker 2 (04:33):
Yeah. Yeah, so it, you know, was for many years
the planetarium. It was the number one destination for many
students from across New Hampshire and around New England. I
have many conversations with older adults who are like, oh,
I remember going to the planetarum when I was a kid.
And then it grew the so it was owned by
the state, operated by the state, and then they decided
to increase the size. So around two thousand and nine
(04:56):
it increased it built a whole new wing close to
forty thousand square feet in addition to the planetarium, and
it was basically like that as the mcculloff Discovery Center.
And then just shortly there after Alan Shepherd's passing, it
was decided to add his name to give him, you know,
again very important to figure in New Hampshire history a
(05:18):
call out as well. So became the mccullugs Shepherd Discovery Center,
and then in twenty thirteen it actually became a separate
from the state, became its own five oh one c
three nonprofit and that's kind of how it's operated since then.
You know, I stepped into the footsteps of my predecessor,
Jane Jiroskis, who retired just two years ago, and it's
(05:39):
been an amazing organization. We have upgraded the planetarium the
last three years ago to it's one of only four
ten K digital planetariums in North America, which I tell
people means that the imaging the visuals are just so
much sharper. You can take a tour around the galaxy,
you can fly around the you know, Saturn, and swing around,
(05:59):
look the moons, all of those things that it's kind
of mind blowing to me. And what I'm so excited
is that I feel like it's right up what Chris
have wind want would be having young people, old people
see the universe in a way that kind of blows
your mind. It's kind of a little bit of like
we do live in the future when you can see
pictures that are being taken from a far away and
(06:21):
you can zoom around and look at it from the
comfort of your seat.
Speaker 1 (06:24):
Yeah, I mean, when I was younger, you talk about
people who are older talking about going to the planetarium
as a kid, I mean I remember going there and
taking it all in and just not wanting to leave.
And I actually really do credit the planetarium, your institution,
specifically for helping me learn to love space. I wanted
to go to that space camp for a while that
they had because of the planetarium. And there's probably so
(06:46):
many kids who feel the same way, because once you
finally get to see space in such a up close,
up close way, I mean, you never forget that.
Speaker 2 (06:56):
Oh it's so true. And I think I like to
say I'm kind of I've been involved with science centers
for decades. I've gone to every planetarium I can everything
I can possibly see, And when I sit down in
our planetarium and I look at them bring up the
milky ways it looks that night, it gives me shivers
down my spine. And I think it helps us to
recognize how vast the universe is and how we're not unimportant,
(07:21):
but we're also a very small part of the larger universe.
And getting the ability for us to see things that
even one hundred years ago people dreamed of but knew
they would never get to see, it's just so phenomenal. Yeah.
Speaker 1 (07:33):
I mean, you've got the James Web Telescope, you've got
all the rovers out there, you've got all of this
really cool exploration that's going on. I mean we're not
quite a like you know, Star Trek warp speed stuff
going on here, but still we're making huge strides.
Speaker 2 (07:45):
We are well and we're going back to space. That's
the thing that's super exciting. As NASA is planning for
the Artymous two mission to happen and probably in the
next two months right now, the launch window is between
February and April this year. We're going to send astronauts
around the Moon and we're going to send them farther
than any human has traveled ever, which is very exciting
to me.
Speaker 1 (08:04):
It's super exciting, and honestly, you all are going to
be right on the cusp of you know, being able
to be part of this as much as you can
without actually going into space. And before we get to
that point, you've got a really big anniversary when it
comes to Christa and the work you're doing over there.
It's the fortieth anniversary of Challenger, and so you've got
(08:26):
this great couple weeks of programming. Tell me about the
programming that you're about to offer and what people can
expect when they go.
Speaker 2 (08:33):
Yeah, So we want, as I said, we want to
make sure Christ's story is alive for generations to come.
So where I have a new exhibit that we're going
to be unveiling that's about Christa. My team is working
on that right now as we speak. We're very excited
about that. And then we're also going to be having
a panel that's going to be moderated by the Conquered
Monitor talking about Christmas legacy. And that's really the story
(08:54):
we're trying to tell, is that even though Challenger happened
forty years ago, her story continues on and her legacy
has acted many, many, many people since then. And we're
also going to have a one woman's show. Judith Klora
is going to be doing her Krista McCullough play and
that's going to be a special treat too, and that's
going to be on the Sunday. The other two events,
(09:14):
the dedication of the exhibit and the conquer Monitor panel
are going to happen on the twenty eighth, the actual
anniversary and.
Speaker 1 (09:21):
How long you see exhibit going to be up right now.
Speaker 2 (09:23):
We have it planned to have it open. As long
as we are open, we're going to be you know,
at some point in the future, we're hoping to do
a full redesign of the Discovery Center, but we're going
to definitely keep the exhibit, will be open throughout the
next year.
Speaker 1 (09:37):
Oh okay, so this isn't just like a couple weeks
thing and then you're going to miss that. This is
going to be more of a permanent exhibit situation.
Speaker 2 (09:43):
Exactly, exactly great.
Speaker 1 (09:45):
Are any of these events going to need tickets or
can people just kind of show up when they want
to come?
Speaker 2 (09:50):
Yeah? Yeah, we have a website that actually has all
the information and the tickets, so they are ticketed events. Okay,
if people go to star hop dot com Reach for
the Stars, that's where they can find more information about
the ticket prices. The exhibit is going to be open
to the general public with admission and won't be it
won't be an additional charge. But the two other events
(10:12):
are evening events, so those will be ticketed events that
people can choose to come to those specifically after hours.
Speaker 1 (10:17):
Website again one more time. Social media how people can
find out about everything you have to offer.
Speaker 2 (10:22):
Yeah, So star hop dot Com is our main page,
and if you go to star hop dot com slash
Actually it's a little bit longer. I'm gonna stay it
all together, Star hop dot Com, Slash Discover, slash Reach
for the Stars, all one where we'll take you to
all the details about the Krista. But if you just
go to star hop dot Com you'll find it too.
It's very much on the front page, so you can
(10:43):
see all the details about it there.
Speaker 1 (10:45):
Yep, I'm on the page right now. It's right here.
You can get tickets, you can learn about getting a membership,
how you can keep supporting the Discovery Center and all
the great work you're doing. And I just can't wait
to see how this all comes out. You must be
super excited.
Speaker 2 (10:58):
Oh I am super excited, and I just can't wait
to connect with people. I've been getting emails from folks
who've connected with the Center in the past. We're looking
forward to coming back, and I just feel it's going
to be a great community event me too.
Speaker 1 (11:08):
All Right, Well, Melissa, thank you so much for the
time on the show, and I wish you all the
best as we go into this next year of education.
Speaker 2 (11:16):
Thank you so much, and thank you so much for
taking the time to find out more about us.
Speaker 1 (11:20):
Hope you have a safe and healthy and warm weekend.
Please come back and join us again next week for
another edition of the show. I'm Nicole Davis from WBZ
News Radio on iHeartRadio.
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