Science Channel's THE CHALLENGER DISASTER Scores 1.9 Million Viewers

THE CHALLENGER DISASTER, Science Channel's critically-acclaimed original scripted feature starring William Hurt, attracted more than 1.9 million total viewers P2+ to a simulcast audience on Science Channel and Discovery Channel on Saturday, Nov. 16 at 9 PM ET. For Science Channel it was the most watched program of 2013.

The Challenger Disaster averaged 730,000 total viewers P2+ on Science Channel, which co-produced the feature with the BBC. This performance made The Challenger Disaster the network's most-watched broadcast for 2013 based on P2+ delivery and the third most-watched program in Science Channel history (tied with FIREFLY: BROWNCOATS UNITE).

On Discovery Channel at 9PM, The Challenger Disaster earned a 0.89HH/0.54P25-54/0.64M25- rating and delivered 1.2 million total viewers P2+. This telecast ranked in the Top Ten ad-supported original cable programs on Saturday evening (#6) among Men 25-54 delivery, excludes sports/movies.

More than five million total unique viewers watched The Challenger Disaster during its debut weekend across both networks*.

On the morning of January 28, 1986, the Space Shuttle Challenger tragically exploded in the sky over Cape Canaveral, Fla. In the months following, a special Presidential Commission worked to determine the explosion's cause in the hopes of making future spaceflight missions safer. The Challenger Disaster follows the riveting story of Nobel Prize-winning scientist Dr. Richard Feynman's role on the Presidential Commission. Based upon Feynman's book "What Do You Care What Other People Think?", the drama chronicles Feynman's efforts to uncover the cause of the Challenger explosion by deftly navigating the many vested interests represented on the commission, and his ability to quickly learn everything about the vast complexity of the space shuttle.

The Challenger Disaster features powerful performances from an all-star cast that is headlined by Academy Award-winning actor William as the brilliant physicist Dr. Richard Feynman. Joining Hurt is actor Bruce Greenwood who plays fellow commissioner U.S. Air Force General Donald Kutyna in the second lead role. He is joined by Brian Dennehy as William Rogers, Chairman of the Presidential Commission, actress Joanne Whalley who plays Feynman's wife Gweneth, and Eve Best as astronaut Sally Ride.

Source: Nielsen. NHI Calendar. 11/16/13. Live+SD AA% and AA (000).

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