OR

source:wikipedia.org
21 Oct, 1950
28 Jan, 1986
He died during the launch of the Space Shuttle Challenger on mission STS-51-L
American
Physicist
35
Ronald Erwin McNair aka Ronald McNair was an American physicist and NASA astronaut, tragically lost his life in the Space Shuttle Challenger disaster. He made history as the second African American to venture into space, following in the footsteps of Guy Bluford.
McNair was born on October 21, 1950, in Lake City, South Carolina, to Carl C. McNair, an auto repairman, and his wife, a high school teacher named Pearl.
McNair and his siblings grew up in a low-income household, where they lacked basic things like electricity and running water. After the death of his grandfather, McNair’s family moved into a better, though still poor-quality household.
McNair experienced the harsh realities of racial discrimination and segregation during his childhood. He once recalled not being allowed to borrow books from the segregated Lake City Public Library, but he refused to leave the library without the books. He eventually got the books he wanted.
Despite these challenges, he excelled in both academics and athletics, eventually earning the distinction of valedictorian in his high school class. McNair went on to obtain a bachelor’s degree in physics from North Carolina A&T State University in 1971 and later pursued a Ph.D. in physics at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, which he completed in 1976.
In 1978, McNair’s exceptional talents and qualifications led to his selection as one of the thirty-five candidates for NASA’s prestigious astronaut program. He made history once again when he served as a mission specialist on STS-41-B in 1984.
Tragically, McNair’s promising career came to a devastating end in 1986 when he was assigned to fly on STS-51-L, the ill-fated tenth mission of the Space Shuttle Challenger. Just 73 seconds after liftoff, the shuttle exploded, claiming the lives of all seven crew members on board. The subsequent investigation revealed that the cause of the accident was a failure of an O-ring seal in one of the solid rocket boosters.
McNair was posthumously awarded the Congressional Space Medal of Honor in 2004. He was also honored with several schools, streets, parks, and buildings named after him.
McNair was married to Cheryl McNair, and they had two children. He died at the age of 35.
Ronald McNair
Ronald McNair
Male
He died during the launch of the Space Shuttle Challenger on mission STS-51-L
Lake City, South Carolina, U.S.
North Atlantic Ocean
Architect: Imaginative and strategic thinkers, with a plan for everything. Ronald McNair was determined right from his childhood to rise above all the racial discrimination he had faced and make a name for himself and in doing so, he created a lasting legacy.
Ronald McNair spent his childhood picking cotton and tobacco on farms bordering Salt Lake City.
He excelled in basketball and football.
He had a black belt in karate.
He was the second African-American in space.
He was one of 35 successful applicants to NASA from a pool of 10,000
His shuttle exploded 73 seconds after take-off.
Ronald McNair received the Congressional Space Medal of Honor
Numerous K-12 schools have been named after him.
One of the moon’s craters is named in his honor