How long did the Challenger crew survive?

The question of how long the Challenger crew survived after the explosion on January 28, 1986, is a sensitive topic that has been investigated by NASA. The Space Shuttle Challenger broke apart 73 seconds after liftoff due to failure of an O-ring in the right solid rocket booster, and the crew compartment separated from the rest of the orbiter and continued on a ballistic trajectory. According to NASA's investigation and the Rogers Commission report, the crew compartment remained intact after the initial breakup and continued upward to an altitude of about 65,000 feet before falling and impacting the ocean at about 200 miles per hour approximately 2 minutes and 45 seconds after breakup. NASA found evidence that at least some of the crew were conscious after breakup because emergency air packs called PEAPs were activated, with three of the four packs recovered showing activation, indicating crew members attempted to use them. The exact duration of consciousness is unknown, but it is believed that the crew may have been conscious for the approximately 2 minute 45 second fall until ocean impact, though they likely lost consciousness due to depressurization. NASA has not officially stated that the crew survived the initial explosion for a specific time, but evidence suggests the crew compartment survived breakup and the crew was alive at least briefly after.