On February 1, 2003 the nation suffered yet another tragedy. The space shuttle Columbia, flight STS-107 was lost over the skies during re-entry after a 16-day science mission. The seven lives lost have become heroes in our eyes and will live in our hearts forever.

The space shuttle Columbia was 22 years old and was on its 28th mission. Columbia was the oldest shuttle and was the first shuttle to achieve Earth orbit in 1981.

Flight STS-107 launched on January 16, 2003 with seven members. The crewmembers consisted of 48 year old Commander Rick Husband, 41 year old Pilot William McCool, 43 year old Payload Commander Michael Anderson, 41 year old Mission Specialist Kalpana Chawla (KC), 46 year old Mission Specialist David Brown, 41 year old Mission Specialist Laurel Clark, and 48 year old Israeli Payload Specialist Ilan Ramon. The 16 day mission featured more than 80 experiments form around the world. This flight initially was to go up in 2001, however it was repeatedly delayed.

After a successful scientific mission, the crew was coming home. Saturday, February 1, 2003 was the day the tragedy struck the nation in the final minutes of reentry. At 7:52 a.m. CST, three-left main gear line temperature sensors showed an unusual rise in the left wheel well area. Next at 7:53, a fourth left brake line strut actuator temperature showed a 30-40 degree rise in temperature over a five minute period. At 7:55, a fifth left brake line main gear sensor showed a sharp rise in temperature. At 7:57 a.m., the left wing temperature sensors failed “off-scale low;” no more data was being received on the ground. Finally at 7:57, before the communication was lost with Columbia, there was evidence of drag on the aero surface of the left wing, causing two out of four yaw steering jets in that area of the Shuttle to fire for 1.5 seconds to counteract the increased drag (http://www.nasa.gov). “There was nothing the flight control team could or should have done differently,” Leroy Cain said (www.galvnews.com). The reason for failure has not yet been defined. There are many possibilities, yet the problem has yet to be solved.

After the shuttle and crew was determined lost, search parties and investigations began right away. The shuttle disintegrated 39 miles over Texas in a meteoric streak that poured debris over hundreds of miles of countryside. All seven astronauts were lost.

Immediately after the breakup, debris was sighted over the 39 mile radius the FBI warned citizens not to pick up any of the shuttle debris, in part because it is tampering with federal property and also it was slowing down the investigation of the crash. Once the government learned of the looting they issued an amnesty period where citizens could turn in any pieces of the shuttle without facing fines or jail time. Once this period of time ended it would be a federal offense to keep any of the debris that was found.

During this time, there were many memorials to commemorate the seven astronauts who have become heroes. They have ranged from memorials at high schools where the astronauts attended all the way to George W. Bush addressing the nation at Johnson Space Center. Outside Johnson Space Center is a growing shrine and memorial to the heroes. Here there are many flowers, drawings, poems, stuffed animals, flags, and much more to show gratitude from the public to those who were lost. New items are added daily as mourners continue to visit.



On February 14, 2003 NASA officials said that the remains of the seven astronauts were positively identified. It brought comfort to many knowing that the astronauts were brought home. The identifications were made at the military mortuary at Dover Air Force Base. The death certificates were then signed in Angelina County, Texas (www.expressindia.com).

Many people are worried that the NASA program may now be in jeopardy of future missions. However, we must keep exploring and learning through these expeditions for the astronauts involved in the space program have achieved so much and gone so far to further our knowledge of space.

The seven astronauts will forever be remembered and are revered as heroes in our hearts. Our greatest sympathies go out to the families of the astronauts. To find out day-to-day information you can visit www.nasa.gov. and click on Columbia tragedy.

This email was received from Kathy Eldon on February 5. Kathy and her daughter Amy produce the new series Global Tribe on PBS and are dear friends of the Hilife Staff:

“I had no idea you were so close to the center- our heart goes out to each person connected in any way to those brave astronauts-who reflected the very best of the global trie. It’s all so sad- I only hope that people recall their amazement at the beauty and peace of the world from their perspective- and how perfectly they worked together, though representing so many different cultures and religions.”