What if Big Bird Exploded in the Challenger Disaster?

[@AlternateHistoryHub]

This was the April Fool's 2023 video. It got out of hand

[@realAlexChoi]

I can tell

[@solid244]

No no, it's right where it should be. Unlike big bird.

[@Marngel]

You're 22 days late. But in a way, that just makes this video even more funny lol

[@henrywilson2136]

Really delayed it too.

[@gamebawesome]

So out of hand it jumped 22 days after April 1

[@James11111]

Really fucked up part is that the crew didn't even die in the explosion. The part they were actually in got launched away from it, and they flew for almost 3 minutes before impacting the ocean at over 200 MPH. Their bodies were found over a month later. But now imagine the recovery team pulling that debris out of the ocean, and finding 6 decomposed astronauts and a severely fucked up *Big Bird.*

[@jandm4ever716]

Hopefully they were knocked unconscious before they hit the water. What a terrible way to go

[@oddgarrysmodfunnies1337]

@@jandm4ever716i read in the NASA report they have in their website that the most likely thing was that only some of them were unconscious or dead before hitting water.

[@RipOffProductionsLLC]

A fucked up big bird with a corpse inside, as I'd assume they wouldn't be shipping an empty costume into space...

[@oddgarrysmodfunnies1337]

@@SneakyVito you laughed at 7 people being fucking launched at the ocean at speeds on where their bodies would be crushed on impact?

[@0008loser]

​@Odd Garry's Mod Funnies I think he is laughing at the fact seeing a big ass big bird along 7 other people.

[@Webb_Studios]

Imagine if, instead of killing Big Bird off, they began the next Sesame Street episode with Big Bird, blackened by ash, falling from the sky, and getting back up while dusting himself off.

[@youdontknowsponge6218]

Or he gets stuck in Oscar's trash can when he lands.

[@logandunlap9156]

that would be so tasteless, i love it

[@Plaincheerio755]

but could you imagine explaining how big bird lived through that but the rest of the crew in fact...didn't

[@Sarahbryson321]

Or, he’s injured and helped off by…. I don’t know..Kermit? They train someone up to do the job hurriedly, and he explains that recovering from it changed him a bit, and the show continues as normal

[@enotsnavdier6867]

​@Plaincheerio755 Big Bird was just built different

[@radopon]

As a certain youtuber once said; "There is a timeline not too far from this one where Big Bird is a casualty in the single worst astronautical disaster in history."

[@tuongtang8974]

Sam O nella Academy

[@MicrowaveOvenVideo]

underrated comment

[@hydrix6419]

Truly a legend

[@shampoo.international4504]

A small part of me wishes that happend"

[@mantisnt1335]

They also said the n word

[@JunkyardDigs]

Came here for big bird, stayed for the history lesson

[@Avi727]

Random JunkyardDigs sighting. Hello, Kevin.

[@atombombapocolypse1984]

HEY KEVIN THIS IS RANDOM BUT I LOVE YALLS STUFF KEEP GOING STRONG

[@noahhamilton9028]

Didn’t think I’d see you here man hope you’re having a good morning friend :) not much point in saying but cool videos by the way, you’ve built a pretty cool life for yourself and others with your channel.

[@SueBobChicVid]

I was tricked into learning something.

[@justanormalpokemon4014]

me fr

[@technetium9653]

You know what, Cody's right if big bird was chosen, the days, weeks or months to rig the shuttle to be able to fit him would've delayed it enough to not have exploded

[@ThwipThwipBoom]

tru

[@sevencubed_]

fat bird butt saves six

[@RealBillyFanword]

Nice

[@pizzasharkguy3807]

Good Ending: Big Bird Saves The Challenger

[@notjebbutstillakerbal]

So if big bird was put aboard Challenger, it would have took enough time to stop the explosion as the temperature would have risen enough.

[@blackshard641]

I was one of the children watching the whole thing unfold live. Barely six years old. I was initially confused at the idea that people had been on the shuttle when this happened. It was my first major realization that adults didn't, in fact, have everything under control.

[@MoonCobalt]

💀

[@JoducusKwak]

thats a shitty way to find out Adults are as helpless as you

[@ZealousWins]

That's a rather huge plot twist for being so young.

[@WolfXGamerful]

You must've been a menace growing up, Tim.

[@entropyfan5714]

I remember watching this in 6th grade; we had all pulled up really close to the TV. I was a bigtime space/scifi enthusiast so was really into it; my teacher was also, and she had the additional emotional investment of another lady teacher being on board. We had talked about this shuttle launch enthusiastically a few times in class. I distinctly remember shouting "FvCK!", really felt like I got punched in the gut. Most of the other kids weren't really paying attention & didn't even notice until I yelled out. My teacher sure did though; burst into tears....which set me off. When the other kids figured out what was up, quite a few of them did too. Certainly one of my worst childhood memories.

[@Butter_Warrior99]

I honestly love how deprarious the idea that Sesame Street would have to canonize the death of Big Bird in the show.

[@gennybaratta2460]

I mean they did (very tastefully) canonize Mr. Hopper’s death so I could 10000% see them very delicately talk about Big Bird’s death

[@waitithoughtihadtousemyrea5976]

It certainly would have made the show's lore more interesting.

[@loneneotank.5687]

No no, he escaped the explosion and safely flew down.

[@Copperkaiju]

"Deprarious"? That's a new word for me.

[@GeneralJarrett1997]

@@Copperkaiju It's a good one for sure

[@canadadelendaest8687]

I was in the first grade when this happened. My teacher knew Mcauliffe, she said they were college room mates or something. We were tuned in live for the launch. My teacher was so proud and excited for her friend. I remember her absolutely balling when it blew up. She was devastated. We had a substitute for about a week after that

[@ellislyons6348]

I think that for a comment this serious, I should absolutely let you know that it’s spelled “bawling” because otherwise it just sounds like your teacher took to basketball as a coping mechanism or something.

[@stupididiot4034]

​@@ellislyons6348Bawling while balling.

[@spimbles]

​@@ellislyons6348LOL

[@akisa7865]

​@@ellislyons6348 "Hello class, i will be your substitute teacher for a few days. Your teacher is currently hitting 3 pointers at the basketball court, we hope you understand."

[@Suz1]

@@ellislyons6348 There's a sexual meaning too so yeah this clarification is important.

[@sgauden02]

To be honest, if they actually went with Big Bird, modifying the shuttle to fit him would've resulted in delays that probably would've prevented the disaster.

[@Markos581973]

How the F do you modify the Shuttle?

[@sgauden02]

@@Markos581973 As Alternate History Hub himself said in this video, "they sent men to the Moon with technology less advanced than a key fob. I'm sure those engineers could find a way to squeeze that fat bird into a seat."

[@lucass5980]

I know this is SUPPOSED to be an april fools video, but really think how much darker a lot of peoples childhoods would have been had this happened. Id even dare say due to the many communities here on youtube dedicated to talking about older/obscure/nostalgic content the Challenger Disaster would be a much more fresh event in the minds of many people.

[@Oliviagarry69420]

Like if it did happen a whole fucking generation of kids wouldn’t know who big bird was!!

[@38tales]

I was one of those many children who were watching this live. It was a shocking thing as it was, if Big Bird had died in giant fireball I can't imagine a single kid there wouldn't have lost their minds.

[@bananawitchcraft]

So I guess we're saying kids care less about human lives, if the human in question isn't dressed as a familiar fictional character. Yeah that checks out.

[@itsh7311]

​@@bananawitchcraft *COULDN'T care less

[@waitithoughtihadtousemyrea5976]

@@Oliviagarry69420 On the contrary, every child would know about the muppet who exploded on TV.

[@michaelfutch2598]

Horribly dating myself. I remember Mr Hooper's store being run by Mr Hooper and his death. Looking back on it, this was handled excellently. It acknowledged both the actor and character's death. It validated the sorrow the other characters and the children watching felt. Henson brilliantly dealt with the subject of death in a way that his audience, who mostly were experiencing their first awareness of death, in a healthy age appropriate way. Had Big Bird died on the Challenger, I have no doubt Henson would have addressed this in the show similarly.

[@LizLuvsCupcakes]

if anyone could have handled this tastefully and helped kids understand what happened, it would’ve been Jim Henson.

[@JoeApplebrook]

I think they sorta retooled that scene’s script for the scene where Elmo’s dad told him his uncle died

[@intellectually_lazy]

@@LizLuvsCupcakes we got a very special ep of punky brewster, lmao

[@onerustydatsun951]

My brain pictured yellow feathers comically falling to earth after challenger exploded… and now I know I’m going to hell for laughing at the thought of it

[@patricklaird264]

My image exactly

[@judet2992]

Bruh same😅

[@jtrocker9976]

Bro I thought I was the only one!!!! 😂

[@toatakanuva4846]

I’ll be seeing you there 😅

[@godlikefish1193]

Don't worry, we're all going to hell together 🤣

[@Lee-hq6tf]

Well, given that putting "big bird" on the shuttle, would have required logistical considerations. Which might have caused yet another delay. It's possible that a decision in favor of big bird on the challenger, might have saved everyone's lives.

[@snaketooth0943]

What a strange world we live in where putting a man dressed as a bird being flown into space would've saved actual human lives.

[@stevenroshni1228]

They planned in advance the logistics

[@tvre0]

@@stevenroshni1228 but you’d have to spend more time figuring it out. They may have just sat him on a later flight and that specific flight of challenger would be delayed

[@bentonrp]

Oh so u think it's all peachy keen huh? Well, I come from the alternate timeline where big bird was scheduled to go, and there were so many delays that the Soviets launched their pop character, Cheburashka, first. This led to a Soviet resurgence and jealousy that spurred a few pre-eminent attacks that caused a major war (not WW3, but it might as well have been). Not so confident now are you, sir?? 👽🧐

[@dr.archaeopteryx5512]

@@bentonrp That's kinda funny considering the various 'firsts' the soviets made in space travel that basically nobody gave a shit about

[@NamelessGamer29]

I can only imagine if Big Bird died on the challenger what Elmo’s speech would’ve been like at the funeral.

[@Tomneom]

😂

[@stevemc01]

Some BS about not giving him back the stick

[@robertwillsea3338]

"Elmo would like to say that Big Bird was a good friend and loved his nest so much." Then Elmo reads Big Bird's favorite book. 2001: a Space Odyssey

[@ATMAnubis]

Imagine if it had been Bert instead.

[@paulhickie6974]

@@ATMAnubis Thats why Ernie as butt plugs.

[@itzamia]

I worked at a casino in Connecticut, and Caroll Spinney was a guest at a place in the casino called story time. He did his book signings throughout the day. When I walked by he was sitting on a bench right outside of the place and was having a casual conversation with a lady. When he talked to her, you can hear Big Birds voice. I wasn't allowed to talk to celebrities, but threw up the ole 🤘and he gave me the salute. I grew up watching that show. He was a great guy.

[@justinmoe3171]

Truly one of the alternate histories of all time

[@Mardoxx7]

One of the videos ever

[@whyussr7628]

certainly is one of them

[@waffle6376]

The Best one of all time

[@haveawonderfulday5846]

So true

[@HuffinStufff]

Yes

[@LadyTylerBioRodriguez]

I must add that John Denver was almost on Challenger at one point. Imagine the horrors of Big Bird and John Denver blowing up. The world would never recover.

[@funnelvortex7722]

John Denver never really did have any luck with flying machines now did he?

[@LadyTylerBioRodriguez]

@@funnelvortex7722 Its like Final Destination. He lucked out one day but the Reaper didn't forget...

[@JacobHillSBD]

Given how integral John Denver was to the history of The Muppets either one would’ve been a very dark day at the Jim Henson Company.

[@mollof7893]

Lmao who

[@Zarvanis]

@@mollof7893 According to the internet, the guy who sang "Take Me Home, Country Roads". I was a toddler in 1997 when he died, and he clearly didn't leave enough of an impact that his name remained in the cultural zeitgeist like Elvis or Freddie Mercury, so I had also never heard of him until today.

[@gohanr1271]

for some reason in 2013 when i was in 4th grade, my homeroom teacher started talking about this. granted, this disaster happened WAY before any of us were born and as 10 year olds we had never heard of this explosion that took 7 lives. but for some reason, the dude SHOWED IT TO US. like he was so shocked we hadn't seen it, he brought us all to the neighbouring classroom with the interactive projector screens, and showed it us. nobody really knew what they were looking at, I don't think my classmates got the gravity of what they had saw (thank god honestly), I had seen some shit in my life up to that point so *I* knew what I was looking at. at the moment I was honestly a bit disgusted and appalled at my classmates making jokes and going "that looks like a bunny rabbit'' -"no that looks like a race car" etc. when the video ended my teacher who, genuinely was a pretty chill guy, who was honestly one of my favourite teachers of all time and was my absolute favourite at that point kind of went off at the kids for not having the reaction he wanted them to have. talking about how disrespectful we were. i was still kind of brooding at the point and when he calmed down he noticed I was the only kid who looked somewhat serious at that point and when we locked eyes i kind of saw his face sadden for a bit, like the reality of what I was feeling had set into him -and he sort of realised what he did. went on about our day after that. granted this was in Australia, but from what I've observed I've seen a lot of Americans be like this about 9/11 -another national tragedy that was widely traumatic for those who witnessed it. and I can't help but make the comparison of my teacher, who was so upset at us making jokes about it, an event we couldn't possibly understand the scope of (most of us, I was not normal), because it happened decades before we were born. and because we didn't have the same reaction, because we weren't traumatised by it, we're met with indignation and outrage. at certain point, you can't expect us to feel 100% the same way. if you do, then the only course of action is to traumatise the newest generation so they can feel the same as the previous generation -that is intentionally causing intergenerational trauma at the expense of kids. at some point, let us laugh, and be insensitive, it's a sign things are getting better. idk why this video brought up this memory, i think going on about the preamble to the disaster awoke the slumbering memory in me lol.

[@smileyface81mc77]

Hey, just wanted to say, I’m glad you made this comment, and can sort of empathize with your situation of adults expecting a stronger reaction to a horrible event. I was born a few months before 9/11, so I obviously don’t remember and couldn’t comprehend what was happening or what it meant for the country. In 2013, my sixth grade teacher did something similar: she showed us the footage of the planes hitting the towers, and while I knew I was watching a tragedy, I didn’t really have any sort of connection to it. It was just a weird, sad video. I feel like the teacher expected us to have some kind of super strong reaction, most adults here in the states expect it too, but how can we? In our minds, those buildings held no significance to us, we had always been at war in the Middle East in some way, shape or form, and TSA had always been super strict. Watching the footage wasn’t as traumatic as maybe the teacher expected, and she too got a little miffed at the underwhelming response, but I wasn’t watching the end of the world as I knew it like she was. I was just watching a video of a couple of skyscrapers exploding. It’s like someone who was born blind vs. someone who can see slowly going blind. The sighted person may feel angry because to them, it’s a harsh, unfair situation that greatly alters the way they live their life. To the person who’s always been blind, they don’t know anything else, so it’s just life to them. We’re not broken. We’re not sociopathic. We’re just younger and maybe traumatized in different ways.

[@evantallant1437]

Doing a deeper dive into the Challenger disaster is really troubling for me because, as Cody said, you lose a lot of respect for NASA when you learn how they (and the government) truly operated when it came to huge events like this. It also hurts because I was also a kid who used to idolize astronauts and the shuttle program, but once you examine it without nostalgia and the rose-colored glasses, it feels like a huge part of your childhood and who you used to be as a kid is kinda torn apart.

[@WasatchWind]

If it helps, NASA and the spaceflight world as a whole has become far more safe (not Russia though). NASA kept a keen eye on everything when they were developing the commercial crew program, and when you watch Crew Dragon launch people to space today, it is a well oiled machine, where everything looks a lot simpler and more reliable. Crew Dragon can get people away from an explosion, on the pad or in flight very easily, while such a capability was never really developed for the shuttle. Other spacecraft coming in the future, like the Boeing Starliner, Dreamchaser spaceplane, and others, are similarly a lot more safe. I am, unfortunately with the statistics of reality, sure that we will have more people die in pursuit of space, but it will be much smaller, especially as we get way more people into space than ever before, and the reliability of that will help safety. A very optimistic, successful mission flew in 2021, called Inspiration4, where SpaceX flew it completely on their own without NASA involvement, making it the first all civilian spaceflight. I feel like it carried the spirit of what the teacher in space program original aspired to, making the mission a fundraising event for St Jude children's hospital. One of the people on the flight, Hayley Arceneaux, had been a cancer patient at the hospital as a child, who recovered, returned to work there as an adult, and became the first person to go into space with a prosthetic (an artificial bone), which would have been an instant no if she'd applied as a NASA astronaut. It was a very inspiring mission, where three regular people got to go to space. I highly recommend looking up footage of the mission, or its netflix documentary "Countdown: Inspiration4 mission to space."

[@vrrooooommmm123]

Can you please explain?

[@niffirg1113]

soyuz is considered one of the safest human space vehicles in the world, NASA didnt design the falcon 9 or crew dragon, LES has existed since the earliest human space vehicles its nothing new.

[@WasatchWind]

@@niffirg1113 I never said that NASA designed crew dragon, they were very involved in helping SpaceX's work on the capsule, however. And in regards to Soyuz... Yes, Soyuz has a reliable record, but all the recent coolant leaks are very concerning.

[@biggestfan.]

Problem is that the power a career politician wields is only sought by those that wish to manipulate said power. No one in their right mind seeks a lifetime of bureaucracy, only a person not sane of mind.

[@BigBoiiLeem]

Some good news to add to this really sad and kinda sh*t story: the teacher who was the backup for Christa McAuliffe *did* end up going into space in the end. She went on the ISS in the mid-2000s, and finally realised Christa's dream of teaching live from space.

[@NateYet]

I live out near where Christa McAuliffe is buried and actually visited just yesterday coincidentally. Having family that had her as a teacher, the challenger disaster has an interesting place in my life.

[@IgniKing]

At least Big Bird is still with us

[@therealspeedwagon1451]

Isn’t she buried in Arlington? The most hallowed ground in America where honored soldiers are buried? I know for certain the crew of Columbia are buried there, but is she there too?

[@Alfonso162008]

​@свевский if I had to guess, I'd say just an empty coffin, or maybe something belonging to her, more symbolic than anything else. Unless some part of her somehow survived intact enough and identifiable enough to be buried, so in that case probably that.

[@NateYet]

@@therealspeedwagon1451 no, she was buried in concord NH. Though if I'm not mistaken, I think I heard there is an honorary gravesite/monument out near or in Arlington

[@Copperkaiju]

​@@lazarusglue Wikipedia is great for comic books and stuff but it gets things wrong sometimes. Like with musician bios for example. Take it with a grain of salt.

[@OfficialCyaned]

Oh God, I actually learned this fact from a Sam'O Nella video. Imagine a timeline where this actually happened, how scarring.

[@waffle6376]

It would of been more traumatize to every child

[@androzani]

@@waffle6376 Unless it didn't happen.

[@MalcolmIIofCaledonia]

Trying to imagine Sam reading the script of this video (out loud)

[@androzani]

@@MalcolmIIofCaledonia "Woah wait, you're a historian in Alternative actions and this the dribble you give me? ... I like it, you do you."

[@Catfishuwu]

We must get this done

[@Driver-qt9jh]

My dad remembered seeing the challanger live. Afterward he went home and talk to my uncle about it. He said "you know what NASA stands for right?" "Need Another Seven Astronauts"

[@MMV_Productions]

thats cold

[@concept5631]

That's _diabolical_

[@victordarkreapewr444]

foul, but also something a uncle would say

[@arandomexplosion]

Chad Dad

[@LabRat8899]

My mom’s middle school science teacher actually almost made it on the Challenger. He was a finalist, but he and his wife just had a baby so he didn’t go. But I completely forgot about the plan to let big bird on the challenger.

[@tonyyoung8477]

Truly, the alternate history episode I have waited my entire life for.

[@waffle6376]

fr

[@concept5631]

We've all been waiting for.

[@HuffinStufff]

I didn’t know I needed it but it turns out I’ve been missing this my entire life.

[@jaredhansen5364]

Right? 10/10

[@JavaScrapper]

I’ve been waiting for years

[@santividal9387]

'If Big Bird were on it, the Challenger wouldn't have exploded' is a statement I wasn't prepared for actually

[@amas7636]

My grandfather was one of the group of engineers that tried to warn Mission Control not to launch because the O-Rings were not stable. He had an experiment focusing on microgravity that was on the shuttle. Really sad what happened and that they never listened.

[@shonenjumpmagneto]

Lol, nerd.

[@harveywallbanger3123]

The whole shuttle program was a lame donkey that was being flogged up a hill by a team of Senators because Jimmy Carter needed a jobs program to keep NASA from experiencing fatal brain drain in the 70s when the country was deep in malaise. It was too flashy, too ambitious, and designed 110% by Congressional committee. They promised this reusable vehicle that would enable 10x the orbital missions at only 2x the cost relative to Apollo capsules, and could be rehabbed and turned around for a new launch in a matter of weeks. Problem is it wasn't reliable. It had constant problems. The contractors weren't properly supervised. Nobody had the stones to crack down on anything. "Failure is not an option" as an emergency management ethos became a PR ethos instead - "We must launch on time, or the journalists and the Senators will be angry." This is toxic and deadly in any kind of air operations. It was allowed to persist because NASA culture had been structured to allow for dingbats with "vision" that lived in government contracts and not in reality. Now Elon Musk, a private individual, has built a Buck Rogers rocket that is more capable than anything NASA has conceived since Apollo. They ought to just abolish NASA these days, it's a waste of money.

[@snakewithapen5489]

@Quincy Arbalest Hell let's just not do space travel at all anymore, because that secondary option doesn't seem any safer or more trustworthy

[@gwendolynstata3775]

​@@harveywallbanger3123Elon Musk didn't build shit, he just threw money at people who could.

[@Bessux]

Yeah, my uncle worked at NASA and told them big ship go boom, too. Sadly, they didn't listen to my uncle and big ship did go boom.

[@SkylightCiel]

Would love to see the alternate timeline where Big Bird did blow up and they had to make a Sesame Street episode canonically acknowledging he died.

[@Attmay]

Sesame Street has been brought to you today by the letters RIP.

[@bellyfries6891]

I don’t think they would kill off such a beloved character, like another comment I saw, he would probably fall out of the sky and would be cleaning the dust off his body

[@TheUplinkExperiment]

@@bellyfries6891 The thing is you'd have to take into account the family and friends of everyone at actually died on the Challenger. Having big bird just survive, with the comedic explanation or not. Is going to come off as pretty rude to those people since they had to witness their friends or family die in a rocket accident and now some kids show with puppets is making light of it pretty much.

[@modernmajorgeneral4669]

I mean, Sesame Street has been known to deal with very serious and weighty topics, and I think it would be really hard not only to explain how Big Bird survived, but it would also be hard on the cast and writers to not feel like jerks as they were doing so.

[@aprinnyonbreak1290]

They would almost assuredly have him die canonically. They might have replaced him with his brother, Large Toucan going forwards or something, but Sesame Street has usually done good about acknowledging sad things and pain, modeling appropriate responses, and usually avoiding show status quo type cynicism. At most, he'd survive the fall, but be seriously injured and spend a while getting better.

[@Deadsphere]

"Elmo, these temperatures are the lowest we've ever had for a launch! Did you manage to run a quality check on the O-Rings around the right SRB?" "No."

[@RAAM855]

Fun Fact: 2 years after Challenger. Atlantis had the exact same type of incident that killed the Columbia crew in 2003. In fact the Astronauts even saw this on the camera while in orbit. However the entire Mission was a classified mission to send a Spy Satellite for the CIA. When mission control was confronted with the danger, they straight up ignored them and told the Astronauts to proceed. The Astronauts legit though 100% they were going to die and the captain even planned to cus out mission control if something went wrong in reentry. Miraculous unlike Columbia, the piece of foam that took a larger chunk from the shuttle than that of the 2003 mission Hit a spot that wasn't as vital and they survived and the crew even noted that they saw the material on their plane disintegrate. What did NASA do after the mission? Nothing. They just brushed it off and that's why 15 years later Columbia happened. Imagine the absolute PR nightmare for NASA and the Raegan administration if only 2 years right after Challenger. Another Shuttle disaster happened.

[@Melonist]

Dear god

[@andrasbiro3007]

Same thing with the Challenger. Another similar incident with the O-rings happened earlier and only dumb luck saved that shuttle. The easy solution was to not launch in cold weather. Later they found out why it was the Challenger that blew up and not the other one. Turns out the burning fuel creates a lot of soot that plugs the hole that the too rigid O-ring creates, so there's no leak and no explosion. But the Challenger met very strong cross wind that shook it just enough to dislodge the soot plug. That's why the trail of the shuttle seems to turn 90 degrees just before the explosion.

[@stevenroshni1228]

There's a saying that aviation regulations are written in blood. Very many we came very close to tragedy, we should probably fix it, have been ignored.

[@tvre0]

One reason is because they had to send low quality photos back to ground since it was encrypted. Engineers thought they were shadows.

[@kirkkerman]

The Challenger Accident was kind of a fluke, that specific failure may have only been possible on STS-51L. The Columbia Accident, on the other hand, was *going* to happen ever since the moment the space shutt'e's design configuration had been approved...

[@darthroden]

Lets face it, if Big Bird had died on the Challenger, there's no way Sesame Street would have recovered from that. The series would have been killed as dead as the seven crewpeople.

[@kushclarkkent6669]

No doubt. How do you explain to a young kid Big Bird's dead😂

[@sugarhoneyicetea3040]

@@kushclarkkent6669tbf they do go into some dark topics from time to time

[@celldh0825]

@@kushclarkkent6669if they explained Mr Hoopers death, they could do Big Bird

[@kushclarkkent6669]

@@celldh0825 Didn't Mr. Hooper die of natural causes though? Big Bird blowing up in a space shuttle would hit a little different I think lol.

[@aaronball4700]

I don’t know they’ve always handled dark topics with grace and explained them in a way that shows empathy to those involved, it’s entirely possible Sesame Street bringing Americans together young and old in mourning of the challenger disaster could’ve made it one of the most beloved franchises to ever exist.

[@chikennugetandfri8192]

The scariest part, is that when the ship explodes there is 2 large pecies of debris trailing white smoke. One of these is the capsule with the crew, and all of them where still alive. At least 2 crew members survived the explosion as the wreckage showed that the safety harnesses where frantically being pulled at, as the astronauts tried to undo the straps holding them to the seats. They died on impact with the water.

[@ryanhodin5014]

The two large pieces of debris trailing smoke are the two SRBs (Solid Rocket Boosters), which kept running after the breakup because they weren't destroyed and didn't rely on the shuttle to keep going (Actually, they couldn't be shut off once turned on except by destroying them, which would also have destroyed the Shuttle, which is why Shuttle had so many "If there's a problem here everyone dies" moments in flight). They just kinda kept firing (one deployed its recovery parachute and started spinning) until the Range Safety Officer responsible for making sure the vehicle didn't fall on anyone came to his senses and sent them the order to self-destruct. Otherwise, yeah - The crew capsule was actually visible, just not trailing smoke, and the crew members did survive - They were toggling buttons trying to get power back online, and they activated emergency oxygen supplies, before being killed by impacting the ocean surface.

[@WobblesandBean]

​@@ryanhodin5014 They were experiencing such high G force in the fall that they would have lost consciousness within seconds. They were not awake when they hit the water.

[@ryanhodin5014]

@@WobblesandBean At least some of them were conscious for some time during the fall. I'm not sure if it's known at all when during the fall or for exactly how long, but some of the crew had tried some debugging measures and donned emergency breathing equipment.

[@olliegoria]

Morbid curiosity of mine is wondering what they looked like after they hit the water. Obviously the funerals were gonna be closed casket, but did it smear them? Rip them apart? I know it's dark but the potential visuals fascinate me.

[@violetmensa8604]

@@olliegoria you’re genuinely weird

[@LaceNWhisky]

If they had actually gone through with sending Big Bird into space instead of a teacher, I could see an argument for dressing up one of their trained astronauts as Big Bird instead of sending up the actual actor, then having his lines either prerecorded or voiced-over. And when the Challenger blew up, they could have announced Big Bird survived somehow. Would have maybe been less traumatic for the kids, although the publicity would still be a nightmare.

[@user-kw7mr6xt9n]

The idea of a NASA astronaut having to go through training to perform a muppet up to the expected standards to make the lipsync and movements look passable is very funny to me

[@iprobablysuck9107]

It’s very “Armageddon” in a way. Is it easier to train a muppeteer to be an astronaut, or the other way around?

[@ez_company9325]

@@iprobablysuck9107 thats a good point.... the whole premise of that movie is wack really.... you gotta imagine our best and brightest astronauts would find it easier to train to drill than it would be vice versa.

[@mariotheundying]

For some reason this scenario is f'd up, guy in costume dies, "dw guys big Bird is alive, idk where this dead body came from tho, that's weird"

[@homestuckfan8844]

Somehow Big bird returned…

[@alfalafelstine1536]

"Where we're going, we don't need roads." *Cuts infrastructure spending.*

[@matthewmoser1284]

"Big Bird could have saved the Challenger" is a hot take I was NOT prepared for.... 😅

[@jugginator2.068]

My mom's science teacher from HS had the opportunity to go, but thankfully his wife begged him not to go. How chilling that day must've been especially for he and his wife

[@thetoughunicorn1679]

Wow

[@Patodeagua213]

Wow

[@boomboom-wn9jm]

🧢

[@somerobloxdude3699]

Wow

[@jessereuss0716]

​@@boomboom-wn9jm no

[@AndrewPonti]

I agree - this is tragic in so many ways. As a kid in the 90s who idolized astronauts, NASA, the shuttle and all that "optimistic" glow that the space program was moving into the future, this is horrendous to find out all that actually happened. I was born January 29, 1988, almost exactly 2 years after Challenger, and then I was in high school when Columbia was lost.

[@lesigh3410]

I think that may have been the day the space program died - or maybe it was before then, when the shuttle program was even made.

[@adanalyst6925]

@@lesigh3410the shuttle program was the remnant of NASA’s grand plans they had back in the 60s that included a shuttle, space stations, moon bases, and a mission to Mars. However after Apollo 11 really the politicians lost any desire to fund anything that pushed the envelope as far as manned exploration went

[@citrusmixer1313]

@@adanalyst6925 I think in the 60s people thought we would be LIVING on the moon by now. Like, there should be hotels and stuff up there by now.

[@Reddigdug]

My grandfather was one of the main engineers working on the rockets, as well as one of many who spoke out about the o rings

[@aNerdNamedJames]

Did he ever tell you about his subjective PoV of any other high-ups besides Graham?

[@leviticus2001]

Did he know?

[@Daniel-yy3ty]

@@leviticus2001 "as well as one of many who spoke out about the o rings" if I read that right he did

[@robbie131]

An O-Ring is a rubber gasket that's there to create a seal between two parts. In this case, most likely to prevent air from getting to the fuel booster.

[@stevencooper4422]

To assume Reagan has anything to do with the O-ring on a NASA spacecraft is giving Reagan way too much credit.

[@thekidfromcleveland3944]

More to keep the hot gases from exhausting out the side and into the external fuel tank........which is what happened when they failed

[@jesusramirezromo2037]

​@@stevencooper4422 No he's responsible by pressuring his lackey's, who had no qualifications to even have such a position

[@Jst.a.Normal.Bottle.of.Mustard]

People dont understand how accurate everything needs to be for something like a rocket O-Ring, the tolerances for something like that are at most +/- .002, a single human hair is .005 Edit: also temperature plays a huge role in shrinking or expanding different materials some metal expanses something like .003 per inch per 10 degrees

[@tvre0]

@@Jst.a.Normal.Bottle.of.Mustard yup temperature was the issue not because they froze but because the o rings expanded at a different rate

[@fasillimerick7394]

Also, I was an older child when Mr. Hooper died, and the CTW handled that rather well. Losing Big Bird could have been a "We choose to go to Mars..." moment that saw the country rally in support for NASA. Or, there would have been millions of children in the streets with torches and pitchforks.

[@RyanSellman1]

Probably the latter. Definitely the latter.

[@dukefang1001]

Thank you for putting that image in my mind. Almost helps distract me from Big Berd’s potential death aboard one of the worst space disasters in history.

[@patrickfrost9405]

@@RyanSellman1 I'm imaging them marching with sand-castle equipment, because their parents didn't let them take the real pitchforks and shovels.

[@thedarkduchess7556]

Thank you so much for making this video. I've never cried laughing so hard in my entire life. The idea that hundreds of millions, if not over a billion given how famous the muppets are, could've watched big bird reduced to cinders via massive rocket explosion is one of the funniest things I've ever heard in my life. Elmo would've delivered a eulogy along with all the other sesame street characters at Big Bird's funeral. Life would carry on with every human knowing that the United States Government blew up one of the most iconic characters of all time. A character known for how sweet, kind, and friendly they were; a friend to all gone out in a blaze of glory. It's unimaginable how much that would influence the mindsets of everyone around the world. The ripples of every child in the western world watch big bird get blown up would change life as we know it. It would mark the beginning of a new era of humanity due to the US government murdering a muppet. Thank you so much AlternateHistoryHub for making this amazing video, you've truly done the world a great service

[@N3therWolf]

So much words for telling us you are autistic

[@icat0753]

I could see about being written in this timeline called: BIG BIRD: BLAZE OF GLORY what actually happened during the infamous challenger incident?

[@josepsamarrafarre]

@@icat0753 I think another title from that timeline would be FRIED CHICKEN: A MUPPET TRAGEDY

[@doctorecho3007]

I’m so awful for this, but this just has dying of laughter just picturing it all in my head.

[@oliversherman2414]

Crazy to think that such a random, insane alternate history idea could've been such a drastically different timeline

[@DrZomboss01]

I missread the title and thought it was actually "What if Big Bird blew up the challenger?" 💀

[@ValueNetwork]

You forgot to mention that not only was Carol spinney Big bird, He was Oscar the grouch as well. So in this event the 2 main characters who interacted with the humans in the street segment are gone, the show might have to get restructured at that point to go away from the actual street set and more towards the Muppet segments Also this happens in 1984, and Mr. Snuffleupagus is revealed as real to the humans and not Big birds imaginary friend in 1985. So we have 2 options here. One is that Snuffys reveal is the last thing Carol ever performed as Big bird before he passed, and we get a really awkward situation where Snuffy is now only interacting with the humans and not big bird. Or option 2 is that they don’t film the episode before Carol goes to space, so Snuffy is never revealed to the adults and is probably retired as a character alongside big bird.

[@DIEGhostfish]

Option 3 they meet him at the funeral.

[@bryandraughn9830]

So, have you ever been in a rocket before? Ehh...does a trash can count?

[@lemuel1976]

For here Am I sitting in a tin can Far above the world Planet Earth is blue And there's nothing I can do

[@thehammurabichode7994]

How on Earth do you know so much about both _Sesame Street_ lore and The Challenger Disaster

[@LiliOfTheValleyIZkewl]

​​@@thehammurabichode7994 I'm autistic and currently hyper fixated on Muppets and the Challenger. that's how I am so knowledgeable on both. Personally speaking.

[@GeorgeCowsert]

Imagine the Sesame Street episode where Kermit is giving a lesson to all the other grieving muppets, telling them how "the world is cruel. That is why we need to be kind." A genuine heartfelt lesson could be taught to millions of children who grew up in the peace and luxury of America at its peak. Maybe then, we would be wiser about our current political landscape.

[@Chic_Ken]

I remember watching the explosion as a kid and was shocked by the suddenness. The hype leading up to it was so big and happy and hopeful. I'm honestly still kinda shocked

[@fakezombeyy]

I genuinely can't tell if it would be worse if after, they left Big Bird in the muppets. Like neither option seems good. Either you leave him in, and then you're faced with the decision of either finding a way to explain it or just never address it. Or you can drop big bird from the show making it canon that he died in the mission.

[@bob1986]

It depends on if they broadcast the launch live on the show or not. If it was pre filmed they could just scrap the whole thing get a new suit and Muppeteer and just say on show he never went and never mention that whole plot line again. If it was live and Big Bird died on live tv in front of all the kids of America while in the middle of filming an episode....well that would be a major problem.

[@Attmay]

Either way, he chickened out.

[@Ambibsopmop]

0:53 props to that guy calmly listing off the coordinates of the crashing airline

[@comradepetri5085]

I never thought I would hear the sentence “What if big bird had died during the challenger disaster?”

[@UCannotDefeatMyShmeat]

12:20 fun fact: during the Apollo mission where the astronauts burned to death in their capsule prior to launch, emergency responders well...responded and quickly found out that the respirators on site were completely faulty, hindering their rescue attempts even further than they already were.

[@squirtleawesome1064]

"fun fact"

[@thetoughunicorn1679]

That’s not fun

[@UCannotDefeatMyShmeat]

@@thetoughunicorn1679 no, but it certainly got your attention 😬

[@ItsMzPhoenix]

My mom was in her early-mid 20s working for one of those before/after school programs, and I can only imagine that feeling of shock and "what do we do" that she and other adults had while watching this unfold alongside young children.

[@sergiowinter5383]

"Children, you can die today, or tomorrow, so pray and confess or you will burn in hell" pretty easy

[@LizLuvsCupcakes]

no no, sweetheart, they meant without being an evangelical monster.

[@Leo-ok3uj]

@@sergiowinter5383 That sounds traumatazing, and very out of touch tbh

[@sergiowinter5383]

@@Leo-ok3uj Good!

[@TeeBar420]

@sergiowinter never let a good tragedy go to waste, nothing better for indoctrination than trauma lmao. You disgust me

[@ehsbe1056]

The fact that big bird was initially supposed to be on the shuttle is my single favourite trivia fact of all time

[@EPICROBOT1247]

Video idea: If Big Bird saves the Challenger from exploding how far does the space shuttle program go and if we would have advanced more or less vs now.

[@WasatchWind]

The space shuttle still had serious problems. When it was planned out, it was envisioned as being a sustainable, cheaper way to get into space. It would allow us to reuse much more of the rocket, and be able to fly at a much faster pace. We would use this capability to enable building of giant space stations, space tourism, all manner of wondrous things. But by the time it was off the drawing board and into reality, it had already been scaled back. And when the first flights happened, the shuttle revealed itself to be far less robust than at first it seemed. Still, they tried their best to fly it often, and this mindset, of making space routine, is one factor that led to challenger. They got too comfortable without anything to justify that, and it led to tragedy. And why did it lead to tragedy? Because the shuttle was _VERY_ dangerous. Every other crewed spacecraft has had a launch escape system - if you think of the Saturn V rocket that took us to the Moon, that little tower on the top of the rocket stack is the LES. If an anomaly occurred, that system would immediately ignite, solid rockets detaching the capsule away from the spacecraft, where it would then open parachutes and bring the crew down safely. Shuttle however, had none of that. Yes, it had abort scenarios, but because of the shuttle's design, there was no real way to get the crew out quickly. There were ideas to use ejection seats, but those never really surfaced as a useful option. The Columbia disaster in 2003 is what finalized the shuttle's fate. Political pressure forced it to continue flying until 2011, when many in NASA had to put the brakes on that, that it just was too dangerous to fly. It really shouldn't have flown for that long. Even had it never failed, it was an ancient piece of hardware that didn't live up to its expectations. It was way too overcomplicated, with its heat shield tiles, millions of them all being unique. It was way too expensive, costing hundreds of millions per launch when they'd hoped for it to be much less than that. No, an optimistic scenario would not have the shuttle keep flying. The shuttle, after all I've said, accomplished some great things, giving us the International Space Station, the Hubble Space Telescope, and other things, but in my view, those things could have been accomplished by far more capable rockets. In my opinion, the best bet would have been in the 70s for them to develop a much more simple orbital rocket, not as crazy advanced in its design as the shuttle, just cheaper, simplifying complex processes, trying to mass produce stuff, etc. It wouldn't have been as flashy, but in my opinion, would have been much more reliable. Working to foster spaceflight in the private sector also would have been much better. To those versed in spaceflight, it is rather obvious where my opinions lie. Though many have very irate views towards it, SpaceX disrupted the world of spaceflight in the early 2000s, strove for reliability through proven technology, and then used lessons the shuttle learned in reusability to launch much faster, and save a lot of money. Governments alone exploring space will not move it forward, when it is so shackled to politics. We have not gone back to the Moon because any human spaceflight programs are more about congressmen asking "will this bring jobs to my state?" than trying to innovate technology. All this being said, though it is much slower than many of us would have liked, space is going in a great direction today. Governments and countries across the world are pushing to innovate in spaceflight, the cost is going down, and there is finally the political momentum to go back to the Moon. So yes, the shuttle did some good, it tested out a lot of ideas, but ultimately, what needed to happen for space to finally become affordable was to hand it off to the private sector.

[@Croz89]

I think there were still a number of flaws with the design of the shuttle, it was a compromised design, trying to have the payload capability of a big rocket with the flexibility of a spaceplane. I think the shuttle program may have had a lot more success had it been designed more as it was originally envisioned, a small spaceplane mainly for passenger use. Keep the big satellites on the rockets. We might have ended up with something closer to the Dream Chaser concept, or even an aircraft launched system.

[@Croz89]

​@@WasatchWindI somewhat agree, but I do think we need to be cautious of the private sector. They absolutely have a place in space launch systems, but ultimately they have to follow the money, and where the money is often not what NASA needs. Musk can talk about his plans for the moon and mars, but in the end he is beholden to investors, and they are probably more interested in satellites than NASA contracts in the long term.

[@Sephiroth144]

@@Croz89 Dream Chaser, aka the Farscape program.

[@WasatchWind]

@@Croz89 ... SpaceX makes a _ton_ of revenue from NASA - like they got paid 2.9 B for the human landing system contract. Yes, starlink makes a lot of money, but it doesn't make _all_ of the money. And there are far more people than just NASA. Generally what NASA needs to move to, and it's looking like they are, is a fixed price contract model, where they need some capability, they pay someone to make said capability, and then that company can use that tech to do whatever they want, including serve NASA. It will save NASA a lot of money, and indeed, already is. NASA was going to fly the Europa Clipper on the Space Launch System, and when they moved it to the Falcon Heavy, it saved them $800 million. This frees up NASA to foster burgeoning areas of development, like commercial space stations, and to fund scientific ventures that aren't going to make much money. Much of the expense for NASA can be trimmed down with help from the private sector. Yes, it may not be profitable most of the time for companies to send a science probe to Mars, but science probes need things like reaction wheels - which Rocket Lab has been striving to mass produce for use on satellites. It's all like how scientist on Earth need cars, and right now the cars are really expensive. We need to get the industry to focus on building cheaper and better cars. So yeah, commercial has its place, NASA and other organizations have theirs, it's working together that awesome things will happen.

[@ClockworkOuroborous]

I was in high school at the time, and the football coach/social studies came into the cafeteria and told us that the shuttle blew up. I remember saying "That's not a funny joke", and he said, "No, I'm serious. It just blew up." We were all just sort of shocked and the rest of day was so quiet.

[@MirHrv]

Ian Hecox loves this video

[@javanknox8360]

I remember Challenger blowing up. I was home that day from school due to snow. I was in Kindergarten and was watching it when it blew up. I stood there and knew enough that the adults weren't acting right and yelled at my Mom in the kitchen to come in there. She tried to explain to me that something bad happened but she didn't know what to say either. That evening I also remember Reagan giving a speech on what happened. It stuck in my mind because my Dad was watching it when Mom was in the room. He never watched the news on his own.

[@trashyhobo4957]

Christa McAuliffe actually taught in my middle school. She was friends with some of the teachers there when I was there. The school makes it a point to talk about her and the shuttle program.

[@MCKevin289]

When I was in middle school, we did a whole unit on Challenger and space flight. We went to a simulation of the mission run by our community college where we would complete their mission.

[@fleaguss]

“Space!” At 1:29, hahaha, im so glad I know exactly where that came from.

[@mayuri4184]

I love Tim Curry.

[@emilcioran7444]

I feel like the sad part about this is an o-ring is just a rubber gasket for sealing. Something that could of been prevented with nothing more than finger workout.

[@sharp_ant4651]

Fun fact: unlike the shuttle, the soyuz rocket could not only launch in very cold temperatures, but also through very strong snowstorms, and has on multiple occasions

[@jesusramirezromo2037]

And you know; has an abort system The shuttle had no way to abort while the SRBs where attached, and even when separated, the abort manouver was so complicated that many think it would be imposible in an emergency scenario

[@monkofdarktimes]

I wish NASA took the Soviet shuttle

[@SapphicAshley]

Yeah that tracks. Very russian.

[@runningcommentary2125]

Probably because it had to.

[@sharp_ant4651]

​@@runningcommentary2125true

[@MichaelJenkins910]

This was a sobering, disheartening, and well-researched video. Thanks for doing such a conscientious job dealing with difficult subject matter.

[@Cthulhuforabettertomorrow]

Yup, I completely remember watching this in grade 2 and the PTSD. The whole school was in the gym, small country school. The science teacher was so proud of getting the school to watch this. And then it happened. It was just silence and then one of the teachers quickly turned off the tv and we were sent on break for the rest of the day. Good times, a few of us got it, and a couple kids cried. But those teachers were shook, and the teachers lounge smelled like a bar for a month afterwards. But damn had Big Bird bought it too that would have been an actual continent spanning freak out. Wow, dark. Well done.

[@marcmarc4776]

I remember not wanting to watch it in class because some stupid kid went to space camp in our class and made so much of a big deal about it. So I said, "I hope it blows up!" Then it blew up and everyone thought I was the devil after that!

[@mtoni93]

Oof😬😬

[@pj9615]

You don’t come back from shit like that

[@mtoni93]

@@pj9615 nope. That was bad.

[@_saltyvinegar]

This coming up in my suggested after Ian from smosh’s comment is peak algorithm

[@gacattack1234]

It would have been interesting to see bird flight in zero g. Apparently the astronauts survived the blast so it is not a huge stretch to say Big Bird could have flown his way out of that one.

[@timothymclean]

I'm pretty sure Big Bird is flightless, like an emu or rhea. Or human.

[@gacattack1234]

@@timothymclean he's no Dodo!

[@littlemeow124]

I'd never thought big bird's big bonedness would literally save him from a space disaster, but here we are

[@TheCoon1975]

I remember watching this launch live on the TV in my 3rd grade classroom. My teacher realized what had happened before any of us kids and she just walked up and turned off the television before she stepped out of the room quickly. It was awkward and I remember it seemed like forever until she came back in and asked us if we realized what just happened to the Challenger.

[@aerospacematt9147]

I think SRB stacking was also a limiting factor. There had been launch attempts in late 1985 as well. SRBs have an “expiration date” and I seem to recall hearing somewhere else that that was a decision factor too. I’m surprised that Big Bird would’ve been chosen for STS-51-L, but I agree with your assessment that they would’ve been more cautious and maybe have even found the O-ring seal crack, which would’ve meant another delay for the mission while the SRBs were replaced.

[@sweetsweetalib4857]

in class one time, our teacher showed us a documentary about challenger (this was only 2ish years ago mind you) and I had no idea it would explode and I got really excited and hopeful about the teachers in space and was devastated when it exploded. I guess I got a taste of what the kids in the 80s felt

[@VegasMilgauss]

Shut up.

[@WalnutAnimations]

that's just cruel 💀

[@kiplingwasafurry1108]

I remember watching a short video about it in class and idk if she knew about it or not, but the girl next to me began crying. I feel bad because all I could think about was Big Bird.

[@NoFlu]

Loved it when Cody said "Its alternatin' time" and alternated all over history....

[@Limubi1]

I'd love to hear more about the lack within the shuttle program. Could we have a video on what it would have meant to for space travel if a more viable alternative had been selected earlier?

[@WasatchWind]

I'm not sure I exactly understand what you're asking, but in the early 2000s they tried to get a replacement for the shuttle made, called the X-33, or the "venturestar". Imagine it like space shuttle, but take away the solid rocket boosters and the orange external tank, and make the orbiter very wide - it basically looked like a flying triangle. The concept however, never found the political support it needed to get funding (and I'm sure would have run into some technical issues as well). Spaceplanes, for all the public's fascination with them, are just not as reliable, at least in the present time, as traditional rockets. Traditional rockets may not look as futuristic, as sci fi, but they are comparatively simpler, and a lot safer. On a traditional rocket, the capsule with the humans in it can detach and parachute to safety. On the shuttle, that wasn't a possibility, and concepts like ejection seats were very dangerous.

[@Noman1000]

Basically the shuttle was too expensive and too useless for actually bringing things to orbit. It's way more efficient to just have a disposable tube go up which can be seen with how relatively cheap SpaceX has been getting things up there. Government contracts "cost plus style", and constituencies (like with ULA in alabama) inflate prices which is why SLS is so expensive but if nasa worked to commission a Saturn V: 2 electric Boogaloo with updated tech and lower costs it would have likely been more successful than the shuttle at getting things up to orbit and beyond which the shuttle can't even get past LEO.

[@tvre0]

@@WasatchWind ejection seats weren’t just a concept, but on many of the early shuttle test flights (sts1 to sts5 iirc) they were installed. There was only two crew and it wouldn’t have saved them, but they were there. There was also ejection seats on enterprise

[@lliamjurdom9505]

If Big Bird was killed in the Challenger Explosion ... it would have been Sesame Fried Chicken ...

[@gunu5555]

Seasoned street

[@warman1944]

I think there's a chance they would have tried to feature Big Bird in a special Sesame Street episode (or something). They probably would have wanted it to broadcast on a Saturday or maybe Sunday, so similar hesitancy towards delays might have happened. Then again, if they had gone with Big Bird, they wouldn't have had to spend time on a nationwide selection process, so Big Bird would have gone up months earlier, probably not even on the Challenger.

[@that1badyoutuber117]

9:43 oh my god i watched the back to the future trilogy before watching this and while i was watching this i thought of docs quote of "reagen THE ACTOR!" and what do you know he mentions it... in a conference about the challenger explosion

[@1brianm7]

Came for the alternate history, staying for the Reagan conspiracy.

[@ramr7051]

This is one of your best videos

[@maul6840]

This would surely affect the Sesame Street economy somehow

[@MGE-Gibs]

Okay but what if in some weird timeline the logistics of sending Big Bird off created a butterfly effect that actually saved the entire mission

[@BrianHartman]

I was about 15. I was home from school, sick. I'll always remember that just as it was launching, I was looking into the blue flames and thinking something didn't look right. I was horrified when I saw the explosion. It was absolutely surreal.

[@BrianHartman]

@JakeStateFarm4206 9/11, no question. The Challenger disaster was traumatic, but it was one moment in time, and I didn't feel personally unsafe. 9/11 lasted all day, and it quite literally felt like World War III was starting.

[@CarlosAM1]

​@@BrianHartmanhuh. Interesting to see the perspectives here, given I literally didn't exist when both of those happened. Only thing I saw even remotely close to that was the 2011 japan earthquake

[@amackert.1960]

@@BrianHartman Yeah. These things weren't supposed to happen in America, only in Hollywood movies and third-world countries.

[@fasillimerick7394]

More seriously, I learned that the icicles that had built up around the launch platform weren't because of anything atmospheric. They knew temperatures were going to drop below freezing, so they did what everyone should in these cases: they let all the faucets drip to prevent burst pipes. I always thought the entire Shuttle stack and launch platform had been encased in 3 inches of ice. Turns out the ice itself played absolutely no role in the accident.

[@bipolartorecovery1485]

This was literally the first memory I ever had. I was barely old enough to understand what the word teacher meant and it was because my older sister was in preschool/kindergarden so i must have heard those words before . I was still probably in diapers. My mom gathered us around the TV with her on the floor and the amazing thing is i didn't know about death yet but i distinctly remember thinking "that's not supposed to happen " when it blew up. I have no idea how i could have comprended it that well before the age of 2 but i did. I always had assumed i was at least 3 years old when it happened but nope. Not even 2

[@hithedragon7842]

That's definitely a notable first memory... when did you actually find out what happened?

[@ThioJoe]

Saw the tweet and had to know

[@youkofoxy]

This This is why I like this channel, the cynical and depress delivery that keeps it real, even when is totally ridiculous. And in the end makes us think how we got here, and where we are going.

[@thehalfnegativeoptimist4578]

Never thought a video about Big Bird dying in the Challenger explosion would make me say “Goddammit Regan not again!” But here we are

[@own4801]

Big Bird is such a great candidate for a space expedition though. You wouldn't get tired holding your hand up above your head.

[@AidanPatko]

The fact that this was supposed to be an April Fools joke and I just accepted it as a good idea for a video probably says something about me as a person

[@Invalid-user13k]

Wow that was quite the explosive project

[@shubashuba9209]

Imagine if you were in the Challenger shuttle and the only way to survive was to get into the Big Bird costume which was actually a bomb suit.

[@drpibisback7680]

Grim consideration - the widely accepted conclusion is that the blast didn't actually kill everyone on board, it was the shuttle's disconnected crew compartment crashing into the ocean and pretty much crumpling on impact. So you'd still be dead, but your tomb would yellow and feathery.

[@lukwisnie]

Regarding the scenario in which Big Bird would have been on the Challenger, I can imagine the CTW having reason to continue the character. Perhaps they may think he is too important to the show, or maybe his death would be harder to explain to children than that of Mr. Hooper. Of course, we would still lose Carroll Spinney, meaning the roles of Big Bird, as well as Oscar the Grouch, would have to be recast. Likely not by Matt Vogel and Eric Jacobson, though, as that was before either joined Sesame Street. Another problem would be to explain how Big Bird survived the disaster. Inspired by another comment here, the best solution I could come up with is to say it was really an astronaut dressed as Big Bird on the ship. Not perfect, but better than another idea I had of saying Big Bird missed the take off, which could come across as making fun of the disaster. Edit: I came up with another way to explain how Big Bird survived, a way I think is better than the other two ideas. They could say he found he was too scared to go onboard (in a serious, non-humorous way), the adults around him told him he did not have to board if he did not want to, so he chose not to board.

[@andybyrd4107]

Or maybe he simply flew back down to the ground, escaping the explosion 😂😂😂😂

[@mikeyRavens52]

Seeing this in my recommended was like a fever dream

[@conserva-chan2735]

A vid on if the Sino-Soviet split never happened or was patched up in the 70s would be incredibly great

[@sergioventura2595]

Sup my man

[@Angelrags5588]

This is on Ian’s (from Smosh) rewatch playlist for sure 😂

[@meprivate6923]

My 4th grade teacher applied to be in that program back when he was a new teacher. It would've been a whole different world if my 4th grade teacher had been on the Challenger.

[@werewolflover8636]

Yep, I remember this say very clearly to this day. I walked into my house and my parents were watching the news about this event.

[@cynicalstubs360]

This is the thought provoking content I come to this channel for

[@L33Reacts]

This was a watershed moment for NASA… it was never the same after this tragedy.

[@WasatchWind]

I think I would say however, that NASA finally seems to be in a transition period towards going back to the Moon, and while they remain risk averse, and have a better safety culture than they did in the 80s, they seem to have a lot more momentum, a lot more desire to push for new horizons.

[@nuance9000]

The watershed moment for NASA was Apollo 1

[@hhappyduck]

12:01 I lost it with that rocket lmao

[@justhere4637]

That's from a ksp video on youtube. EDIT: 38,000 ton Mountain King.

[@TheWagonroast]

welcome to ksp

[@dominicanemperor28]

This feels like a Pointless Hub vid

[@strathruncie]

An April Fool video that could have actually happened? That's amazing. Sesame Street wrote an episode when Will Lee (who played Mr Hooper) passed away, I dread to think how they would have coped with this. This has also reminded me that John Denver could have been on that flight. He was said to be so mad keen on flying on the Shuttle he all-but volunteered for the program. And he also wrote 'Flying for Me' as his tribute to the crew.

[@skyknight2003]

Probably it would have been a similar episode, but talking about accidents like car accidents and similar stuff related to death.