I was a senior in high school in 1986. I found out in study hall. I can still remember to this day the exact spot where I was in the cafeteria and my exact reaction: total shock and disbelief. I just couldn’t accept that such an accident could happen.
I don’t feel that sense of shock this time. Although there have been the attempts to make us believe that space travel is now “routine”, I don’t think it can ever become so, and I don’t think anyone involved thinks it is routine.
Instead I feel simple grief. I listen to “Lightning Crashes” and Mahler’s “Resurrection” symphony, and I pray for the families left behind.
As Slainte said, I never thought I’d be experiencing this twice in a lifetime. I think, however, after hearing Brian Williams talk about finding body parts, it may be time to turn off the TV.
Hodge, I was reminded of that poem too, as well as President Reagan’s words following the Challenger disaster. A little sidebar: John Gillespie Magee was an American who enlisted in the Royal Canadian Air Force to fight in the Battle of Britain. He penned that poem following a high-altitude test flight in a Spitfire V. Three months later, he was killed in a mid-air collision. He tried to bail out, but was too low for his parachute to open. He was only 19 years old when he died.
Now back to your regularly scheduled news updates from the Teemings…
I don’t think the media is suggesting that (or ever were), and if anything, they’re saying is that terrorism is very unlikely and nearly impossible. The fact that the media has brought up the word ‘terrorism’ in their coverage of this event does not make them irresponsible, but just the opposite. Obviously from the early posts in this thread, people were thinking about the possiblity of terrorists, and so the media is just trying to put that thought out of people’s minds.
I hope this rambling was coherent, as I’m a little sad right now. My heart goes out to the astronauts family and friends, and to everyone else touched by this.
This is so terrible. I’ve been following this since 9:30 this morning. Ilan Ramon was a great hero to Israelis and Jews like myself, and it’s devastating to hear about this. They did a great thing to science, and unfortunatly they did it with the risk of accident present.
I’m glad this wasn’t an act of terror.
God bless the Columbus crew members and their family.
My prayers go out to the family of the Columbus crew. I have been getting weepy over this. I hate this.
I still remember when Challenger blew up. Like others here, I remember where I was and how I found out. (I was in my sister’s driveway—was giving her a ride to pottery class, she came out to the driveway and announced the news.)
My whole school was watching when Challenger exploded. I was about 10 or 11 at the time. Today, I heard about Columbia on the radio while I was on my way to a doctor’s appointment. I’m sad but, as others have already said, space travel is extremely risky, so accidents are going to happen from time to time.
One think I’m wondering is: 4 of the 7 crewmen had never been in space before, and 2 of the other 3 had only flown once before. Could this be relevant?
I better add that I’m not accusing anyone of incompetence or anything like that. I’m just wondering if the experience level of the crew was normal for a shuttle flight…
Anyways, I wanted to say that it is gratifying to see that the American people still support the space program despite the tragedy of today. God be with all of the families of those brave astronauts.
I saw the STS-4 launch while visiting cousins in Florida when I was 13 years old. I found it really inspiring, and went on to become, as they say, a rocket scientist. Two weeks ago I was in Florida attending meetings at a rocket engine manufacturer and the last morning, we suspended the meeting to go out to the parking lot to watch STS-107 take off.
Events like the loss of Columbia serve to remind us all that flight is still a dangerous business - and more importantly, to recall that the astronauts are more aware than anyone of the risks. It’s easy to appreciate their courage because their purpose is peaceful and noble. The example they set is so valuable to humanity.
Now that the risks of spaceflight are in everyone’s mind, we ought to consider whether the risks are worth it. After all, the shuttle only goes into low earth orbit, and the scientific gain has never lived up to the claims that were used to sell the shuttle to Congress. My own opinion is that it is worth it, because of the heroic example the astronauts set for everyone, and I would go further and say that more, not less, risk should be taken. (Risky missions and programs, not technical risk like what led to the Challenger disaster.) We should set our sights higher, and send humans back to the moon, to Mars, to any place people are curious about. There is no shortage of people willing to make it happen, just a shortage of vision and will in Washington.
That’s my rational response. My irrational response is first, sadness for the families of those lost, and second, sadness at the loss of Columbia itself. That ship should have ended up resting in its own special wing of the Air and Space Museum, not in shards strewn across Texas. Goddamned unfair universe.
I’m disappointed and saddened, but no more than I would be after hearing about a plane crash or a train wreck. I wish it had not happened, but accidents like this will happen again if we continue to fly people into outer space and that’s no reason to quit trying. Ol’ Grissom was right: the potential rewards are worth the risk.
At least two other posters here have quoted material by Robert A. Heinlein, and one poster quoted an alternate verse for the Navy Hymn.
Heinlein, in his short story “Ordeal in Space” had a verse for that hymn, and I find it is my favorite of the three or four I have readin other places,
Almighty Ruler of the All
Whose Power extends to great and small
Who guides the stars with steadfast law,
Whose least creation fills with awe;
Oh, grant Thy mercy and Thy grace
To those who venture into space.
Eternal rest grant them, O Lord
Let light perpetual shine upon them.
Johnny L.A. - You are correct. My point in posting it was, these things are 20 years old. Things are starting to go wrong on them. Columbia, the oldest in the fleet, had significant problems the last time it flew. And the quote by the guy at the end is chilling.
NASA has indicated that the debris on liftoff impacted the left wing. If so, then statements from NASA in their live press conference are pretty damning as to what happened. According to NASA, there were “off-scale low” temperature sensor failures in the hydraulics of the left wing at 7:53am. At 7:56am, there were “off-scale low” sensor failures in the structure of the wing. At 7:58am, there were sensor readings indicating high temperature and pressure in both the inboard and outboard left-side landing gear wheels, immediately before going “off-scale low,” which is NASA terminology for “no reading from the sensor.” The landing-gear sensor lit an indicator on the control panel, which prompted the crew to contact NASA. This was the last communication from the crew. Officially, the craft broke apart at 208,325 feet, traveling at mach 18.3.
If this is indeed the series of events, then the crew really had no chance. IF the tile damage that was incurred at liftoff was to the left wing, it would appear it was the culprit, just from the data NASA is already releasing. Naturally, we will have to wait for the final investigation, but it looks to me that the crew was basically dead at liftoff, due to ceramic tile damage, which could not be repaired in orbit.
