the time the birds had made 26 flights, the enthusiasm had become ennui. The postponements of attempts to launch the Challenger before January 28 drew journalistic jibes. On the eve of NASA's disastrous decision to fire the Challenger into space despite very cold weather at Cape Kennedy, Dan Rather opened the "CBS Eve- ning News" with a remark about "yet another costly, red-faces-all-around space shuttle launch delay."
Although specialized magazines (e.g., Science, Aviation...