Divers filming a documentary in Florida waters. USA accidentally found on the seabed a half-buried part of the American Space Shuttle Challenger that exploded and shattered into pieces shortly after launch in 1986.

Divers explored the seafloor as part of the History Channel documentary “Bermuda Triangle: Into Cursed Waters” about the mysterious disappearance of planes and ships in the area (premiered November 22).

And while they were looking for a World War II American military rescue plane that disappeared on 05/12/1945, they stumbled upon a much more modern find, measuring approximately 4.5 by 4.5 meters, which bore the distinctive NASA badge.

For the first time in 25 years, a part of the destroyed spacecraft that led to the death of seven astronauts, and then shocked American and international public opinion, will be discovered.

NASA chief Bill Nelson said it was considering whether to try to extract the find to honor the memory of the dead astronauts.

Challenger Tragedy

The Challenger burst into flames during the ascent phase, just 73 seconds after the 25th launch from the Kennedy Space Center on January 28, 1986.

Subsequent investigations attributed the disaster to deteriorating materials combined with very cold environmental conditions. The fatal incident remains one of the worst disasters in the history of the US space program.

The US then searched for seven months at the bottom of 167 parts of the Space Shuttle, weighing 118 tons, almost half of the Challenger.

The cut found by divers is one of the largest ever identified. All parts of the Challenger remain the property of the US government.

According to APE-MPE, Reuters, Space.com