1985 -- Featuring a slew of world renowned singers and entertainers, USA for Africa (United Supporters of Artists for Africa) recorded "We Are the World" to raise funds for Ethiopian famine relief. Debuting several weeks later on March 7, the song topped the charts in nine countries and sold more than four million copies, ultimately raising over $44 million for its humanitarian fund.
1986 -- Space Shuttle Challenger disintegrated over the Atlantic Ocean at 11:39 AM (EST), just 73 seconds after liftoff from Launch Complex 39-B of the Kennedy Space Center in Merritt Island, Florida. It was the twenty-fifth shuttle mission for NASA, and the tenth for Challenger itself. The catastrophe grounded the space program for nearly three years.
Although it is commonly thought the crew died the moment the disaster occurred, some believe the astronauts might have been alive within the detached cabin up to the point they hit the ocean surface at more than 200 mph, far beyond any impact that could have been survived.
"[Commander Dick Scobee] fought for any and every edge to survive. He flew that ship without wings all the way down ... they were alive."
-- Robert Overmyer, NASA lead investigator
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