Soviet cosmonauts are honoring American teacher-astronaut Christa McAuliffe, who died in the 1986 Challenger tragedy, by fulfilling her dream of broadcasting lessons from space.
"This lesson is like passing the torch from the American schoolteacher to the Soviet cosmonauts," Vladimir Solovev, Mir mission control director, said Monday.McAuliffe, a New Hampshire teacher turned astronaut, died with six other Americans in the Challenger explosion Jan. 28, 1986.
Sunday, the fourth anniversary of her death, Soviet teachers and children, who were selected from around the country in a nationwide competition, gathered at the mission control center near Moscow, whose name "Mir" means peace.
"These lessons should become a regular thing throughout the academic year," said Anatoly Poprovsky, a space correspondent for Pravda newspaper. "The children were overwhelmed by what they saw."
All five of the Soviet space lessons sent so far have been recorded on video cassette and will be sent to Soviet and U.S. schools later this year.