January 28, 1986 - Live coverage immediately after the space shuttle Challenger explosion. The shuttle exploded during ascension about a minute after launch. Program presents various reports and sounds upon aftermath of disaster. This was the 25th shuttle mission, and first loss in space shuttle program.
April 26, 1986 - On this Weekend program, MPR’s Bob Potter interviews Dale Archibald, author and computer expert, who discusses home computing and his book. Topics include tech companies, new products, telecommunications, terms, and computer troubleshooting. Archibald also answers listener questions.
April 29, 1986 - Jim Gasperini, the base camp manager for the Steger expedition. Gasperini shares with MPR’s Gary Eichten how they are tracking group and concerns of open water near North Pole.
May 27, 1986 - MPR’s Kate Moos talks with St. Paul’s Ann Bancroft about her expedition to the South Pole. Bancroft recounts the challenges of being in the Arctic.
October 1, 1986 - Jeff Greenfield, the political analyst, media critic and ABC television Nightline correspondent, speaking to the World Press Institute at Macalester College. Greenfield’s address was on the topic “The Information Age.” He talks about the press and changes in the news because of new forms of technology. After speech, Greenfield answered audience questions. The World Press Institute at Macalester College in St. Paul is observed its 25th anniversary. About a dozen foreign journalists come to the institute each year for six months of study and travel in the United States. The goal is to give them a broader understanding of the American culture and government. About 300 journalists have been a part of the program over the years.
November 21, 1986 - Dr. Gerold Yonas, former chief scientist at the Strategic Defense Initiative Organization, speaking at Minnesota Meeting. Yona’s address was on the topic "SDI: Prospects and Challenges." Minnesota Meeting is a non-profit corporation which hosts a wide range of public speakers. It is managed by the Hubert H. Humphrey Institute of Public Affairs at the University of Minnesota.
December 2, 1986 - Richard Lawrence Garwin, the American physicist who authored the actual design used in the first hydrogen bomb (code-named Mike) in 1952, speaking at Minnesota Meeting. Garwin’s address was titled “Space Defense: The Impossible Dream,” and focuses on the SDI program. Garwin received his bachelor's degree from the Case Institute of Technology in 1947 and obtained his Doctor of Philosophy from the University of Chicago in 1949, where he worked in the lab of Enrico Fermi. He was assigned the hydrogen bomb job by Edward Teller, with the instructions that he was to make it as conservative a design as possible in order to prove the concept was feasible (as such, the Mike device was not intended to be a usable weapon design, with tons of cryogenic equipment required for its use). Later on, while at IBM, he was the "catalyst" for the discovery and publication of the Cooley–Tukey FFT algorithm, and did research on inkjet printing.
February 21, 1987 - On this Weekend program, Dr. Susan Erbaugh, director of Mental Health Services at Minneapolis Children's Medical Center, discusses infant through adolescent mental health. Topics include teenage suicide, two-home family dynamics, discipline, sibling relationships, and support systems.
May 9, 1987 - On this Weekend program, Joe Alexander, commissioner of the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources (DNR), discusses a wide range of activities under his purview: fish and wildlife management, forestry, parks, state-owned mineral rights and more. The dangerous fire conditions in northern Minnesota is also mentioned. Alexander also answers listener questions.
May 12, 1987 - Michael Osterholm, state epidemiologist for the State of Minnesota, answers questions about AIDS. Osterholm discusses the impact of disease in Minnesota and the view of AIDS as an epidemic.