Vic Ratner

When he first started reporting from the Kennedy Space Center, Vic Ratner admits he knew little about the space program.

Neither an engineer or a pilot, the young radio reporter credits “a lot of terrific people” who helped him learn, from the men and women who built and launched the rockets, to orbital engineers who plotted the critical guidance, to geologists and planetary scientists who found safe places to land on the Moon for the astronauts who risked their lives to get there.

Ratner covered the U.S. manned space program from the early days of Gemini through the Apollo Moon landings to the final “wheel stop” of the last space shuttle mission, often taking questions on the air and explaining to Americans across the country via ABC NewsRadio details from what food astronauts ate to what happened to the Moon rocks and how the Apollo spacecraft got safely to the Moon and back with less computing power than the phones we now carry in our pockets.

He was the only network radio correspondent on the air live during the Challenger disaster. He remained on the air that day for over five hours, providing on-the-scene information and background on the tragedy for ABC News audiences.

Beginning in small-town radio, Ratner covered seven U.S. presidents and their campaigns, and reported the news for ABC from 54 countries and 49 states. In addition to ABC News Radio, his reports were also seen on ABC TV “World News Tonight” and “Good Morning America.”

Previously, he served as correspondent, news director and anchor for radio and television stations in several major cities, including New York and Philadelphia.

He is the recipient of a number of major awards for his work, including a National Headliner Award, a prestigious Ohio State Award, and a Lifetime Achievement Award from the TV-Radio Correspondents Association on Capitol Hill.

A native of New York City, Ratner holds a master’s degree in mass communications and a Bachelor of Arts in business from the University of Pennsylvania.