Astronauts honored at emotional ceremony in Florida
By MARK CARREAU
Copyright 2008 Houston Chronicle
Family and friends of the Columbia astronauts gathered at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida today to pay tribute to the seven fliers who perished five years ago when their space ship broke apart as it descended to Earth.
The Feb. 1, 2003 breakup of Columbia, which was 16 minutes from reaching the runway at the Florida shuttleport, rained debris across East Texas.
Under a sunlit sky early today, some of those closest to the Columbia astronauts gathered at the Space Mirror Memorial, a massive stone structure at Kennedy created as a tribute to all of the astronauts who have perished in the line of duty, to comemmorate the mission.
"I still grieve the loss of my precious husband," Evelyn Husband-Thompson, the widow of Columbia commander Rick Husband told the gathering. Since remarried, she offered an emotional recollection of the shuttle's ancipated return.
She and the couple's young son and daughter awoke early at their Florida hotel that morning to listen to the last in a series of recorded daily devotionals prepared by the shuttle's commander before his flight. They left for the runway at Kennedy, eager for a re-union.
"The reconciliation was not to be, but it will be some day," said Husband, who credited her family's deep religious faith for the inner strength to weather the tragedy. "What a relief to know there is healing even in the midst of searing pain."
Columbia's crew included Willie McCool, Mike Anderson, Kalpana Chawla, Dave Brown, Laurel Clark and Ilan Ramon of Israel.
President Bush was among those who offered their respects to the Columbia families.
"Space exploration is a dream deeply rooted in humanity, and the seven brave astronauts of Columbia sacrificed their lives so the rest of mankind could realize that dream," Bush said in message delivered by NASA administrator Michael Griffin. "They assumed great risk so they could understand what lies beyond the heavens. We are greatful for their service and they will be always be cherished.
Columbia's loss was traced to damage in the fragile heat shielding of the left wing caused by an impact from a breakaway chunk of fuel tank insulating foam. The damage went undetected, largely because NASA managers assumed the foam was not massive enough to cause damage.
Shuttle flights resumed in mid-2005 with safety modifications to the fuel tank foam. At least two heat shield inspections are part of every mission. Engineers have developed tools and patches to repair severe heat shield damage.
As a result of the Columbia tragedy, the Bush administration has called for an end to shuttle missions in 2010, as the construction of the international space station draws to a close. The loss became a catalyst for a new direction at NASA, future missions to the moon to establish a human base as a stepping stone to Mars and other deep space destinations.
This week, NASA also honored the seven astronauts of the shuttle Challenger and the three Apollo 1 astronauts. Challenger's crew perished 22 years ago Monday, when the spacecraft exploded soon after liftoff. The Apollo 1 astronauts died 41 years ago Sunday in a launch pad fire.
.
Columbia's final ascent
NASA has held a memorial ceremony to mark the fifth anniversary of the Space Shuttle ''Columbia'' disaster. All seven astronauts were killed when their spacecraft broke up on re-entry over Texas on February 1, 2003, 16 minutes prior to scheduled landing time at Florida. ''Columbia'' had been damaged by a chunk of loose foam during takeoff 16 days earlier.

NASA officials, astronauts, schoolchildren and family members attended the ceremony, which was held just miles from ''Columbia'''s intended landing site. Approximately 200 people attended the event, held at the Kennedy Space Center's Space Mirror Memorial to all 24 astronauts killed in space disasters. Each was presented with a rose, which was placed in front of a granite memorial bearing the names of the 24.

Evelyn Husband-Thompson, widow of commander Rick, who has remarried just three weeks ago, said "This morning, I couldn't stop thinking about Rick and Willie and Kalpana and Dave and Mike and Laurel and Ilan. All of our families went through so much that day. We so miss them, and we will never forget them."

44 teenagers from Israel were amongst those present, there in respect to astronaut Ilan Ramon. Some came from the same school Ramon had attended. 15-year-old Roman Rashchupkin said "He's Israeli, so it's important. He learned in our school."

G. Madhavan Nair represented India at the memorial, remembering Indian astronaut Kalpana Chawla. Nair is chairman of the Indian Space Research Organisation.

Former shuttle commander Bill Readdy commented that, despite a large number of memorials, including one on Mars, "... much more importantly than any physical monument, they're memorialized right here in our hearts," Going on to name them individually, then saying "We'll always miss your easy laughter and your smiling faces. God willing, five years from now, they'll have even more to be proud of us about as we take even longer strides ... back to the moon and onward toward Mars. May God bless the crew of Columbia."

NASA boss Michael Griffin was amongst several people who commented on the dangerous nature of spaceflight. He proceeded to read a letter from United States President George W. Bush praising the astronauts, which was then presented to Husband-Thompson. "Space exploration is a dream deeply rooted in humanity, and the seven brave astronauts of Columbia sacrificed their lives so the rest of mankind could realize that dream," said Bush's letter. "They assumed great risk so they could understand what lies beyond the heavens. We are grateful for their service and they will be always be cherished."

Griffin also noted the importance of learning from mistakes, adding "Americans don't quit and we won't quit. We'll never quit," and that "not quitting has high costs."

It wasn't the only such anniversary around this time. The 41st anniversary of the Apollo 1 fire was on Sunday, and Monday saw the 22nd anniversary of the ''Challenger'' disaster.