Space Shuttle Columbia: Missing

RE: Space Shuttle Columbia: Missing

Here Here mate !

RE: Space Shuttle Columbia: Missing

a real shame for people who had spend most of their life dedicating their life to working towards a goal of learning for us all – i’m not trying o glorify the situation but their families should be proud of how they died – working on behalf of all mankind

RE: Space Shuttle Columbia: Missing

I’ve got vivid boyhood memories of the first Space Shuttle Columbia mission in 1981 aged 10, also the Challenger explosion aged 15, This one seems worse for some reason, probably because they should have been home and dry when it happened.

If nothing else, it certainly shows the dangers of space travel and the power of the earth’s atmosphere. It’s a real shame for all those close to the astronauts as they most probably witnessed the whole thing live on TV.

RE: Space Shuttle Columbia: Missing

anyone else really shocked? im not old enough to remember the challenger disaster but this is totally unexpected, really sad.

LGKR

RE: Space Shuttle Columbia: Missing

Lastest is they are all dead. National day of mourning declared in Israel.

RE: Space Shuttle Columbia: Missing

Another very very sad day. My thoughts are once again with the familys of the crew.

RE: Space Shuttle Columbia: Missing

I note from the news that some debris is being found in the Dallas/Fort Worth area. Does anyone know how far exactly this stuff could travel ?

It would seem to have disentegrated at around 200,000 ft approx and doing around 14,000 mph heading east over Texas. Could it get as far as the Atlantic Ocean and could debris even be washed up on European shores after a while ?

RE: Space Shuttle Columbia: Missing

Very, Very sad!

I’ve been to Kennedy Space Centre about 4 times and saw a launch once (amazing), very, very sad and shocking that this has happened!

RE: Space Shuttle Columbia: Missing

An awful day………..Sincere condolances to all involved.

IF62M

RE: Space Shuttle Columbia: Missing

[updated:LAST EDITED ON 01-02-03 AT 04:38 PM (GMT)]Very sad….black day for NASA. 🙁 … a salute to all astronauts, specialy Kalpana Chawla….who made India proud!

RE: NASA Loses Touch With Shuttle Columbia

Very sad news, I remember watching the first ever shuttle launch in the 80’s live on tv, also Columbia.

Looking at the TV footage of the breakup and listening to the reports of possible damage to the heat retardant tiles on a wing during take off, I wonder if the orbiter has suffered a serious burn up upon re-entry causing a catastrophic failure of the structure as it flew over earth ? It certainly seems to look that way.

Another sad day for flight.

RE: NASA Loses Touch With Shuttle Columbia

Very sad indeed! End to the Space Shuttle Program!

RE: NASA Loses Touch With Shuttle Columbia

[updated:LAST EDITED ON 01-02-03 AT 02:57 PM (GMT)]Sad news.:(

Regards, Dazza.

NASA Loses Touch With Shuttle Columbia

[updated:LAST EDITED ON 01-02-03 AT 02:52 PM (GMT)]7 minutes ago Add Science – AP to My Yahoo!

By MARCIA DUNN, AP Aerospace Writer

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. – NASA (news – web sites) declared an emergency after losing communication with space shuttle Columbia as the ship soared over Texas several minutes before its expected landing time Saturday morning.

The shuttle was carrying the first Israeli astronaut and six Americans, and authorities had feared it would be a terrorist target.

Fifteen minutes after the expected landing time, and with no word from the shuttle, NASA announced that search and rescue teams were being mobilized in Dallas and Fort Worth areas.

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

Columbia was at an altitude of 200,700 feet over north-central Texas at a 9 a.m., traveling at 12,500 mph when mission control lost contact and tracking data.

NASA, while not saying the shuttle had exploded, broken up or crashed, warned that any debris found in the area should be avoided and could be hazardous.

There were reports of debris seen falling.

In 42 years of human space flight, NASA has never lost a space crew during landing or the ride back to orbit. In 1986, space shuttle Challenger exploded shortly after liftoff.

Security had been tight for the 16-day scientific research mission that included the first Israeli astronaut.

Ilan Ramon, a colonel in Israel’s air force and former fighter pilot, 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 Jan. 16 launch, but also for its landing. Space agency officials feared his presence might make the shuttle more of a terrorist target.

On launch day, a piece of insulating foam on the external fuel tank came off during liftoff and was believed to have struck the left wing of the shuttle.

Leroy Cain, the lead flight director in Mission Control, had assured reporters Friday that engineers had concluded that any damage to the wing was considered minor and posed no safety hazard.

http://news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story2&cid=624&e=1&u=/ap/20030201/ap_on…