Space Shuttle Columbia disaster didn’t begin during re-entry. It began 16 days earlier, with something NASA believed was harmless. In 2003, Columbia launched on what appeared to be a routine mission.

The two solid rocket boosters flew in different directions as the external fuel tank became a fireball.(AP: Bruce Weaver / File) Forty years ago, the Challenger space shuttle disintegrated just after ...

Forty years ago, the NASA space shuttle Challenger exploded 73 seconds after liftoff, killing all seven crew members. Among the seven crew members were five NASA astronauts, as well as a payload ...

Editor's note: This story contains discussion of astronaut fatalities and dangerous moments in human spaceflight. It was 40 years ago today (Jan. 28) that the space shuttle Challenger blasted off on ...