Challenger explosion

This is the last known photo of the Space Shuttle Challenger  crew boarding the space shuttle on January 28, 1986. Tragedy would strike 73 s...

explosion cloud pattern

Somethings amiss..as Seconds Continued To Pass, Unusual Changes In The Smoke Plume & Pitch Of The Shuttle ...Clearly Something Is Wrong

Dear God, I was terribly lost When the galaxies crossed And the sun went dark. But dear God, You're the only North Star I would follow this far.

Michael Hindes of West Springfield, MA, was sorting through boxes of his grandparents' old photographs when he happened upon 26 harrowing photos of the Space Shuttle Challenger Disaster of 1986. To his knowledge, these photos have never been publicly released.

(8 Jan. 1981) --- Astronaut Michael J. Smith, pilot. Photo credit: NASA (NOTE: Astronaut Smith died in the STS-51L space shuttle Challenger accident, Jan. 28, 1986.)

Many people watched the Challenger Space Shuttle take off on January 28, 1986 and tragically combust less than two minutes into its flight. Now, nearly 28

Read TIME's original cover story about the NASA tragedy

These amazing photos offer us a different historical perspective for moments frozen in time.

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