Space shuttle, crew lost?

PN Prasad · February 1, 2003

USA

Posted February 01, 2003

Associated Press

Space shuttle Columbia apparently broke apart in flames as it streaked over Texas toward its scheduled landing Saturday, killing all seven astronauts, six Americans and an Israeli. NASA didn't immediately declare the crew dead; however, the US flag next to its countdown clock was lowered to half-staff.

Officials in Washington said that there was no immediate indication of terrorism, and that President George W. Bush was informed and awaiting more information from NASA.

In north Texas, several residents reported hearing "a big bang" at about 9 a.m. (1400 GMT), the same time all radio and data communication with the shuttle and its crew of seven was lost.

Officials in Washington said that there was no immediate indication of terrorism, and that President George W. Bush was informed and awaiting more information from NASA.

A senior US official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said there was no threat made against the flight and that the shuttle, at an altitude of 207,000 feet (62,100 meters) when it lost contact, was out of range of a surface-to-air missile.

Just over an hour after the shuttle had been expected to land, officials at Florida's Kennedy Space Center announced over loud speakers that a statement on the fate of the shuttle would be issued shortly. NASA warned people on the ground in Texas to stay away from any fallen debris.

Inside Mission Control, flight controllers hovered in front of their computers, staring at the screens after contact was lost. The wives, husbands and children of the astronauts who had been waiting at the landing strip were gathered together by NASA and taken to a secluded place.

"A contingency for the space shuttle has been declared," Mission Control somberly repeated over and over as no word or any data came from Columbia.

In 42 years of US human space flight, there had never been an accident during the descent to Earth or landing. On Jan. 28, 1986, space shuttle Challenger exploded shortly after liftoff.

It was the 113th flight in the shuttle program's 22 years and the 28th flight for Columbia, NASA oldest shuttle.

Shortly after Columbia lifted off Jan. 16, a piece of insulating foam on its external fuel tank came off and was believed to have hit the left wing of the shuttle. Leroy Cain, the lead flight director in Mission Control, assured reporters Friday that engineers had concluded that any damage to the wing was considered minor and posed no safety hazard.

Columbia had been aiming for a landing at 9:16 a.m. (1416 GMT) Saturday.

It was at an altitude of 207,000 feet (62,100 meters) over north-central Texas at a 9 a.m. (1400 GMT), traveling at 12,500 mph (20,112 kph), when Mission Control lost all contact and tracking data.

Gary Hunziker in Plano, Texas, said he saw the shuttle flying overhead. "I could see two bright objects flying off each side of it," he told The Associated Press. "I just assumed they were chase jets."

"The barn started shaking and we ran out and started looking around," said Benjamin Laster of Kemp, Texas. "I saw a puff of vapor and smoke and saw big chunk of material fall."

Television footage showed a bright light followed by smoke plumes streaking diagonally through the sky. Debris appeared to break off into separate balls of light as it continued downward.

Security had been extraordinarily tight for Columbia's 16-day scientific research mission because of the presence of Ilan Ramon, the first Israeli astronaut.

Ramon, a colonel in Israel's air force and former fighter pilot, had survived two wars. He became the first man from his country to fly in space, and his presence resulted in an increase in security, not only for Columbia's launch, but also for its planned landing. Space agency officials feared his presence might make the shuttle more of a terrorist target.

"The government of Israel and the people of Israel are praying together with the entire world for the safety of the astronauts on the shuttle Columbia," Prime Minister Ariel Sharon's office said in a statement.

Also on board was Indian-born Kalpana Chawla, who became an astronaut in 1994. It was her second trip in space.

Residents in the town of her birth, Karnal, about 135 kilometers (80 miles) north of New Delhi, had planned a celebration, but were in shock and mourning on Saturday night.

Some 300 children at the Tagore Bal Niketan school that Chawla attended had gathered for an evening of song and dance, said Principal Rajan Lamba.

"A happy occasion turned into an atmosphere of disbelief shock and condolence," Lamba said.

The only other crew member to have flown in space before was the shuttle's commander, Rick Husband. The other five were rookies: pilot William McCool and Michael Anderson, David Brown, Laurel Clark and Ramon.

Columbia's crew had completed 80-plus scientific research experiments during their time in orbit.

Just in the past week, NASA observed the anniversary of its only two other space tragedies, the Challenger explosion, which killed all seven astronauts on board, and the Apollo spacecraft fire that killed three on Jan. 27, 1967.

http://www.csmonitor.com/earlyed/earlyUS0201a.html

PN Prasad · February 1, 2003

Sat February 1, 2003 02:56 PM ET

By Jon Herskovitz

RICE, Texas (Reuters) - Debris from space shuttle Columbia rained down onto fields and highways in Texas on Saturday, with witnesses coming across smoldering metal wreckage, including what appeared to be a door from the orbiter, local officials and eyewitnesses said.

A 100-mile-long debris cloud of ash and metal fragments also spread over the state's wide open rural spaces and into neighboring Louisiana, local weather officials said.

One piece of wreckage about three feet by five feet was smoldering in a field near Rice, Texas, just off Interstate 45 about 45 miles south of Dallas.

Police were urging vehicles that slowed to look at the site to keep moving away from the toxic debris along the highway that links Houston and Dallas.

On one Texan field, wisps of gray smoke rose from a huge patch of blackened grass where debris had scorched the earth.

The seven astronauts aboard the shuttle were killed after U.S. space agency NASA lost contact with them about 9 a.m.

Residents across eastern Texas heard three loud explosions and saw streams of vapor before watching debris rain from the spacecraft, Larry Mars a police detective in Palestine, Texas, said.

Television images showed Columbia, which was completing a 16-day mission, appeared to explode above Texas, immediately leaving several white trails across brilliant blue skies.

It was traveling 12,500 miles per hour at 207,000 feet above Earth -- only 16 minutes from its scheduled landing at Kennedy Space Center in Florida.

There were no reports of injuries or damage on the ground from the debris that appeared to be scattered over a vast area of 120 square miles.

Local weather officials estimated the lighter material in the debris cloud would take up to 10 hours to finish falling, while all big pieces had likely already hit the ground.

DEBRIS COVERS COLLEGE CITY

Officials in Nacogdoches, Texas, said residents reported spotting many pieces of the debris dispersed throughout the college city of about 30,000 people, located about 145 miles northeast of Houston.

The ruins ranged in size and the city had received one report of a door from the shuttle being found, she added.

"We do have a debris field. It is scattered all throughout Nacogdoches," city manager Victoria Lafollett said.

"The number of pieces being reported is just impossible to keep up with, she said. "Some are very small, some are larger," she said.

NASA scrambled rescue units to search for wreckage and recover the remains of the crew, which included the first Israeli to fly on the shuttle, former combat pilot Col. Ilan Ramon. The rest of the crew consisted of six Americans, four men and two women.

Bush administration officials said there was no indication the breakup was due to terrorism.

But a White House spokesman said Homeland Security Secretary Tom Ridge spoke to Texas Gov. Rick Perry and homeland security officials in Louisiana and Oklahoma because wreckage was also believed to have rained down into those states.

NASA warned people to stay clear of the smoldering debris.

"Any debris that is located in the Dallas-Fort Worth vicinity should be avoided and may be hazardous due to the toxic nature of propellants used on board the shuttle and should be reported to local law enforcement authorities," NASA mission control in Houston said.

http://reuters.com/newsArticle.jhtml;jsessionid=1ZZ33X3AOZFOUCRBAEOCFEY?type=topNews&storyID=2152878

atma · February 2, 2003

On TV were saying that already some pieces were up for auction on E-bay. Kind of macabre.

livingentity · February 2, 2003

That does not surprise me! Ebay probably eliminated them already. Besides, they are toxic. I do not understand the mentality of those who try to profit off tragedy and someone else's pain.