Space Shuttle Columbia

This Web site joins other voices in support of the astronauts' families, and of the world that watched their flight.

the final moment - the flower burning in the Day - and what comes after, looking back on the mind itself that saw an American city a flash away.

-- Allen Ginsberg, Kaddish

This cause of exploration and discovery is not an option we choose; it is a desire written in the human heart. We are that part of creation which seeks to understand all creation. -- George W. Bush, memorial service speech

The Challenger disaster brought us one of the most cogent summaries of our relationship with technology. The late RichardFeynman was commissioned to investigate the cause, and in his final report on the subject said:

: For a successful technology, reality must take precedence over public relations, for nature cannot be fooled.

I used to have this as my screensaver marquee, to remind me that getting the technology right is at least as important as any of the other things that people do in a business that creates and sells software. -- DominicCronin

Someone across the 'net from here just wrote:

This morning, I woke to hear news at an odd hour playing in the living room. I flicked on the TV to find out what happened and was greeted by a graphic that said "Palestine" in the center of the screen. A moment later, I realized they meant Palestine, Texas. A shuttle had blown up again. The first thing that I wondered was whether there were any Israelis on board. There were.

Once again... there are no coincidences?

Holy moly, talk about coincidences.

There have been three disasters in the history of the US space program:

Jan 27, 1967 - Fire breaks out on launch pad of an Apollo mission. Three were killed.
Jan 28, 1986 - The Shuttle Challenger exploded soon after lift-off. Seven were killed.
Feb 1, 2003 - The Shuttle Columbia breaks apart on re-entry. Seven were killed.

Obviously, this is not the time of year to be engaging in space travel!?! Grim humor is that at least we get farther along in each mission before disaster strikes. We're getting better. :-/

With regard to the weather, 2&3 might be related.

Both shuttle disasters had a "first" in space. Challenger had the first teacher in space. Columbia had the first Israeli in space. It also had the first person of Indian descent in space, though this wasn't her first mission.

Another coincidence. The only two shuttle launches my wife has ever watched were the Challenger disaster and this Columbia launch. She says she'll never watch another.

This was interesting, but let's stop talking about coincidences. Always remember that a universe constructed entirely of coincidences will always closely resemble one that never ever has them. -- PhlIp

Also note that many shuttle missions have "firsts," so for any three missions, it would be likely that all were some sort of "first." There were also no monkeys aboard on any of the missions. Coincidence? -- BrentNewhall