The World Mourns - Your Thoughts on the Space Shuttle Columbia Tragedy

Back to Columbia Special

Your comments so far:

I stand even more proud having attended the JSC Memorial service. These heroes were humans, and some of the best you could know. Their commitment to family, faith, excellence and enjoying life was evident in all of the rematks.

We must go on, or their deaths are somehow made meaningless by our lack of courage and comitment.

We are a OneNasa family, and have been long before the saying meant new badges and websites. We will get through this together, and we need to concetrate on lending support to the families and supporting Mr. Ron Dittemore in his comprehensive investigation.

There is one who has all power, Let Him bless us on and use the testimonies of this crew, strong in their faith, to call others to a closeness with Him.

Question? Are there any opportunities for investments in space? After the Columbia was destroy, I feel I need to get involved.

I believe in our quest of space and want to get involved.

I have e-mailed NASA with this thought. It seems to me that the average American feels isolated from the opportunities of space. I know that our taxes pay for NASA and most of the missions but for myself paying taxes is a necessary evil, I take no delight in it. Where NASA in concerned, why not open up space to the average American. Get them involved. Enable them to invest, donate, buy bonds, certificate, what ever. Let them pick the project or mission to do this. I for one would feel like, I am taking part, I would have a personal steak in the mission. I am not looking for a return on the monies I give, just a since that I am part of it. This has to be a vast resource that has not been tap into yet.

After losing so many friends from my fire-fighting family in the WTC. I need to get involved.

My thoughts and prayers are with the NASA family.

Just a thought, for an average fire fighter.

I still cant believe it happened.for me shuttle missions have been a exciting event for the past 17yrs.always having nasa tv on and watching every mission.i remember friday evening taping the last flight day highlights wich was the crew choice video.watching sat morning,when the pao said they were searcing for a signal i could not watch no more.what an awful horrible ending for the columbia 7.may they rest in peace.

Space race towards....safety

I admit I'd like to see people setting foot on Mars ASAP, but we today have the proof that we cannot go on like that. RLV should become the priority, even with very modest performance, even partially reusable (suborbital, using expendable upper-stages ?), we need to take each step again, one by one, and make sure no future manned flight is a maiden test flight.

Every shuttle commander or pilot has been a test pilot so far. They all now that flight testing is a tough discipline where you validate things in turn, and ensure you can find a way to escape a situation for yourself and your crew. How can you pretend thouroughly flight-testing an expendable vehicle or a vehicle that needs so many changes between each flight ? As long as the OSP is viewed as a payload for an expendable rocket, we won't get the level of safety required to kick-start a real space expansion throughout the solar system. Let's face it, 20th century rocketry (intercontinental artillery) has reached its asymptote, and even significant investment can only bring marginal performance improvement, and no safety improvement at all.

Every one needs safety : comsat industry, their insurance partners, science agencies who seldom have a spare science satellite, and of course scientists who need to go up there. I hope the shuttle is back on duty as soon as possible not to leave the ISS in its interim-state, but it cannot fly for 20 more years. Crew and people at NASA have no doubt faith in science and technology. The shuttle is old, 60-70's technology. To honour the memory of the crew of Columbia, every one needs to re-state his/her faith in innovation and come up with new solutions.

Bring back new technologies on the menu.

It's sad that we've lost another shuttle and another crew, but we must attempt to go on. Our fallen astronauts believed in what they were doing, so much so that they risked their lives to fly.

I'm often critical of the shuttle program, but it's currently the only game in town. It's flawed, but it works, and we need it to finish ISS. I hope that the cause is determined and a fix is found.

My earlier comments on the tragic loss of the space shuttle Columbia were too rash and hastily put together to be of any real benefit to readers of SpaceRef, or NASAWatch. As a result I would humbly like to re-submit my thoughts on this current situation.

First, let me share where my ideas are coming from. I am a former USAF munitions technician with 10 years experience in handling solid rocket motors among other pieces of ordinance. I have been responsible for overseeing the implementation of computer systems, (including one I urged my future CO's to unplug!). I have also been responsible to ensure the safe launch of 24 fighter aircraft with minimum staffing and resources. I understand what the pressure on human beings to perform can accomplish both good and bad. I have become painfully acquainted with accidents whose cause was not so much a matter of mechanical error, as one of 'corporate culture', if I may use that term. It is that concern over NASA.s corporate culture and how that may or may not have played a role in the loss of Columbia that I would like to address now.

My concern is over blind spots in how things are seen and looked at in NASA. I am not saying that people were disregarding safety this time. They did not do that last time. During the Challenger loss, NASA was simply unable to see clearly to stop itself from launching into disaster. What I sense and fear is that, a similar sort of blindness has again crept into the agency. My first concern is one of over-reliance on computer models. During Challenger, that model did not work below 50+ degrees F, however, corporate culture intervened during the launch decision process to invalidate the limits imposed by the theory. The theory and the launch decision process clear show what I call 'engineering bias'. By this I mean that like a biologist looking a forest by examining each single tree, he concludes that it is healthy when it may be dying due to climate change, the entire systems can be missed by too many details. In Challengers. case, the prevailing industry view of solid rocket reliability, 'if it doesn't blow at ignition, it works', was the dominant theme during the pre-launch discussion. In essence, they were treating the SRB.s like any other solid rocket motor. Problem is, they aren.t, they are the largest SRMs ever, and because of that scale up in size, the envelope for problems is consequently scaled up to include the full flight envelope! This was never examined until the post-accident investigation.

What are we going to find now with Columbia, we have a different NASA, one more open and certainly more 'user-friendly', but did we really learn anything from our last lost shuttle? Consider this: The Columbia lifted off into orbit where there also was in orbit a space station with a crew who could easily have done a visual on her to see what the actual damage was. NASA relies perhaps too much on computer models, and perhaps too little on hard data, such as visual inspections. It seems hard to believe that Spacelab weighs so much more than ISS pieces that a flyby could not have been managed if needed. Also, computer models for the shuttle seem to be based on past experience, but again, as with Challenger, past experience can be misleading. The sealing properties of Aluminum Oxide, (SRM exhaust,) as well as the effects on high altitude winds, were literal matters of life and death for STS-51L, yet neither appeared in the computer models used to determine shuttle safety. What hidden bias are we going to find in Columbia's case?

I do not wish to sound negative on NASA, but I am disappointed to still see the same mistakes being made, even from fresher, more open, faces. My real concern, is not that NASA blew it with a piece of foam, (even if ice covered), but that Columbia's loss may be the indication of a potentially greater problem for the US space program. I concerned about fatigue. If foam induced tile damage did not cause the loss of Columbia, then some form of structural fatigue is indicated. The load factors inherent in re-entry would also indicate that a single structural impact, even at 500mph, from a 2lb object, should not be so severe as to cause a loss of vehicle. Something is not adding up. I suggest that all the safety simulations that NASA uses be given a going over by independent experts, from perhaps the FAA, who can determine if there are in fatal logic bombs in the assumptions NASA uses to determine flight safety. The public may be assured this time about NASA's openness and honesty, and that is a great achievement from what many had come to expect in the past. But the public may not be so forgiving if, they here, again, oops, we didn.t catch that one, especially, if all they had to do was ask the right questions.

I lost a another old friend on the weekend. Her name was Columbia. Please keep the dream alive not only for the US but for all of mankind.

I, my family and the office of mine sympathize with you in your grief. Looking at the pictures of Columbia team we see people in their best age to achieve live goals. Russian papers say a lot about the tragedy, everybody feels something irretrievable and terrible happened.

We wish you to hold on and carry on your hard work of space pioneering.

When I first heard of the loss of Columbia and its crew on the news I was in shock. It's one of those events you never expect to happen, like the World Trade Center attacks. As an aerospace engineer and follower of the US space program, I saw this disaster as a setback to manned space flight. As I learned more about the disaster, I thought about the peril the 7 crewmembers of Columbia must have experienced and the risks they all accepted. They are among the best that humanity can offer, giving their lives for such a noble cause. The Columbia tragedy should result in more support and goals for the space program, not a retreat from it or abandonment of manned spaceflight.

I would like to offer my condolencies to the families, and to all those involved.

There is one thing that although contreversial, I think needs to be said.

I would expect, that if the shuttle program was not of such high visibility, then people would forget, that more people ine the US die from murder every day than those who died tragically on the shuttle.

I think this has to be put into prospective.

The sooner NASA and your government get the remaining 3 orbiters back up into service, the better.

On February 1, 2003 seven heroes died from an explosion on the Columbia space shuttle. I feel sad and also happy. I feel sad for the families that lost their loved ones. I also feel sad that they didn't get to continue on with their lives. They were so close from coming back to earth. I feel happy that they lived their dreams.

My opinon is that we should keep on going to space. If we don't the astronauts on the Challenger and on the Columbia die for no reason. There are tons of people that will not live their dreams if we can not continue going to space. If this program stops I will never be able to see my dreams of going into space. Let's never forget the explosion of the Columbia and the seven hero's that died.

Myself and my family would like to send our deepest sympathies to the families and friends of the 7 courgeous astronaunts that lost their lives on sat.feb 01/03. i hope the families can take comfort in knowing that their loved ones died doing what they loved. they had all dreamed since early childhood about space and maybe one day becoming an astronaunt. they dreams did come true. i know it is hard for the children to understand what has happened, all they know is that mommy or daddy are not coming home. some day they will be able to understand and say that my mom or dad died doing what they loved and that they are true hereos. it is too bad that there is such a high risk in doing this job and they all knew what that risk was. i know that it does not make it any easier to accept what has happened knowing that. i hope the families will take one day at a time and have faith in god. i pray for them everyday and i know they will all have the strength and courage to carry on. god bless all the families and i know he is there to help you through this terrible time of sorrow. your loved ones are never really gone. they will live on through your children and your memories everyday. hang in there and be strong. our thoughts and prayers are with everyday.

C'est avec une grande tristesse, que nous avons appris l.accident de la navette Columbia, le 1er fivrier 2003, lors de son retour vers le Kennedy Space Center en Floride. Toute l'iquipe de la NSS France et tous ses sympathisants se joignent pour prisenter leurs condoliances aux parents et aux proches de ces 7 astronautes.

Dans l'immidiat, il est impiratif d'attendre les conclusions des experts et des commissions d'nqujtes avant de prononcer quelques opinions. Cependant, immanquablement, comme pour l'accident d'Apollo 1 en 1967 ou de Challenger en 1986, le programme de vol habiti sera considirablement ralenti. La station toujours en construction, est loin d'etre opirationnelle pour l'ensemble des activitis scientifiques privues mais le ravitaillement arrivera et les 3 occupants sont assuris d'un vihicule de sauvetage. Pour les mises en orbite et retours habitis, les seuls vaisseaux restants, capables de transporter des jtres humains sont les Soyouz russes, avec les problhmes qui leur sont liis.

Mais l'enjeu le plus difficile `gagner sera celui de la poursuite du vol spatial habiti, de l'Homme dans l'Espace pour y vivre et y travailler. Cette hypothhse pour le futur va etre attaquies de toutes parts. Les spicialistes, les conseillers, ou les devins vont produire leurs analyses, toutes plus destructrices, les unes que les autres. Pourtant l'Histoire de l'humaniti est jonchis de ces douloureuses tragidies et jusqu.` ricemment, cette dernihre n'a jamais renonci ` aller de l'avant dans l'espoir de s'ouvrir un avenir ainsi qu'un formidable potentiel d'activiti.

Ces 7 astronautes perdirent leur vie pour cet idial de l'espace humain auquel elles croyaient tres fort. L'accident qui leur co{ta si cher doit etre ilucidi afin de continuer ` relever ce difi porteur de grands espoirs.

Ici, en Europe, la poursuite de cette aventure humaine est loin d'etre acquise, nous devons renforcer notre ditermination et nous activer dans cette grande entreprise qui en vaut vraiment le prix.

May you keep exploring in Heaven! God Bless you and your Family! Your work will go on!!!

They died, living their dream... My condolences to the immediate families left behind, as well as to the extended NASA family. Now it is up to us to keep the dream alive and to make sure that all the young children inspired by the 7 astronauts' lives will not give up! God's speed to you, crew of STS-107!