BY ANGELA DAIDONE

NEWJERSEYNEWSROOM.COM

Television viewers rated the Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist attacks as the most memorable moment of the past 50 years, a research study concluded.

The survey, conducted by Sony Electronics and the Nielsen television research company, ranked TV moments for their impact, including if viewers remembered where they were, who they were with and whether they discussed the events, Newsday reports.

The coverage of Hurricane Katrina in 2005 was the second-ranked moment. By contrast, the assassination of President John F. Kennedy in 1963, which ranked high for people over the age of 55, came in at No. 15 among all groups.

The other biggest TV events, in order, were the 1995 verdict in O.J. Simpson’ murder trial, the explosion of the Challenger space shuttle in 1986 and the death of Osama bin Laden in 2011.

Sony executives said they anticipated entertainment events like the appearance of the Beatles on “The Ed Sullivan Show” and the “Who shot J.R.?” episode of “Dallas” to be among top vote getters. But the survey showed that coverage of news events made the biggest impact for viewers.

The survey also showed that men and women agreed on the top three TV events – Sept. 11, Katrina and the Simpson trial – but their interests varied dramatically after that. Here is a list of the survey’s findings:

TV'S MOST MEMORABLE MOMENTS

1. Sept. 11 terrorist attacks (2001)

2. Hurricane Katrina (2005)

3. The O.J. Simpson verdict (1995)

4. The Challenger space shuttle explodes (1986)

5. Death of Osama bin Laden (2011)

6. The O.J. Simpson White Bronco chase (1994)

7. The Japanese earthquake and tsunami (2011)

8. Columbine school shooting (1999)

9. BP oil spill in Gulf of Mexico (2010)

10. Princess Diana's funeral (1997)

11. Death of Whitney Houston (2012)

12. Capture and execution of Saddam Hussein (2006)

13. Barack Obama Election Night speech (2008)

14. Wedding of Prince William and Kate Middleton (2011)

15. John F. Kennedy assassination (1963)

16. Oklahoma City bombing (1995)

17. Bush/Gore disputed election (2000)

18. Los Angeles riots, Rodney King beating (1992)

19. Casey Anthony murder trial verdict (2011)

20. John F. Kennedy funeral (1963)