New Hampshire's Democratic congressional delegation is welcoming Senate passage of a bill creating a commemorative coin to honor Christa McAuliffe, the Concord High School teacher who died in the NASA space shuttle Challenger disaster 33 years ago.
Sens. Jeanne Shaheen and Maggie Hassan introduced legislation in January to create a $1 coin to raise money for the FIRST Robotics program, while Reps. Annie Kuster and Chris Pappas introduced a House version of the bill. They said the coin would both honor McAuliffe and reaffirm Congress commitment to science education.
The Senate bill passed Tuesday and the House will now take up the bill.
McAuliffe would have been NASA's first designated teacher in space. She and six crewmates were killed when the Challenger exploded shortly after takeoff on Jan. 28, 1986.
