Where were you five years ago? February 1, 2008—Ask your grandparents where they were when JFK was assassinated, they can probably tell you. The Columbia disaster, along with 9/11, rank high among the "JFK" events of our generation. What was I doing five years ago on February 1st? I was sitting at a cold windswept grandstand at Kennedy Space Center on a telephone handset speaking with Scott Simon on Weekend Edition Saturday for three hours throughout the morning, and with Steve Inskeep during the next six hours in the afternoon, as the events unfolded surrounding the break-up of Space Shuttle Columbia and the deaths of the seven astronauts on board.
One sign of the difference between Columbia and Challenger is how the wreckage was interred. Challenger’s remains were sealed with a cap of concrete inside an old Minuteman missile silo. I was there as the pieces were unceremoniously lowered by a crane. Columbia, on the other hand, is part of a "living" exhibit at the Vehicle Assembly Building. University researchers are invited to check out various parts for study, and later return. I spoke about the day Columbia was lost during a talk that was taped by C-SPAN. The network plans additional airings in February. You can tune in, or set your DVR, to Saturday February 9th at 8 am. Click here for the C-SPAN BookTV schedule… http://www.booktv.org/program.aspx?ProgramId=8985&SectionName=&PlayMedia=No Also, if you haven’t picked up a copy of "Final Countdown", it’s part of "Scientific American’s" Book Club. Here’s another link to that, and they have a discount offer going for new members. More to come-- |
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In 2006, I was talking with a KSC avionics engineer who studied the telemetry of Columbia’s final moments. His description of how the breach to the Shuttle’s left hand wing created additional aerodynamic drag, flipped the vehicle over onto its roof, and how Columbia disintegrated during re-entry still hits home, even years after the event took place. Another poignant moment was the day, back in early 2003, when I took this picture. The shot is of Columbia’s windshield, which was part of the wreckage assembled at KSC for analysis. It’s one of several photos featured in "Final Countdown". The hangar visit came about an hour after KSC engineers decided it was foam falling from the external fuel tank that hit Columbia and caused the fatal damage.