William McCool, born September 23, 1961 in San Diego, California, was the pilot of Space Shuttle Columbia (STS-107) in January-February 2003. It was his first mission, but Columbia disintegrated upon re-entry February 1, 2003, killing everyone on board.
Florida Institute of Technology has named an apartment complex after him. The Navy Bachelors Enlisted Quarters at Tinker AFB in Oklahoma City is named after him.
Kalpana Chawla, born March 19, 1962 in India, was the first female Indian astronaut. Her official birth date was changed to July 1, 1961 so she could become eligible for the "matriculation exam", which is why I have a blog post also celebrating her "new" birth date. After obtaining her Bachelor's, she moved to the US and completed her Master's Degree in Aerospace Engineering at the University of Texas at Arlington.
Her first trip into space was aboard Columbia (STS-87) as mission specialist in November-December 1997. The mission continued experiments with the Microgravity Laboratory program.
Her second trip into space was aboard Columbia (STS-107) as mission specialist in January-February 2003. Unfortunately, the shuttle disintegrated upon re-entry and broke up over north Texas, killing all crew members.
Chawla is remembered in a number of ways. An asteroid has been named after her, as one of seven named after the Columbia's crew. A studen apartment complex at Florida Institute of Technology here in Melbourne is named for her. UTA opened a dorm named in her honor in 2004.
Back (L-R): Stephen Robinson, Andrew Thomas, Charles Camarda, Soichi Noguchi
Front (L–R): James Kelly, Wendy Lawrence, Eileen Collins
STS-114 mission patch
Discovery (STS-114), launched July 26, 2005 to the International Space Station, was the "Return to Flight", the first space shuttle mission following the Columbia disaster in 2003. During Discovery's liftoff, video footage showed a piece of debris separating from the external tank, which was caused the Columbia disaster. As a result, NASA decided to postpone future flights until they could modify the design. Shuttle flights resumed a year later in July 2006.
STS-114's crew consisted of Commander Eileen Collins, Pilot James Kelly, Soichi Noguchi (JAXA), Stephen Robinson, Andrew Thomas, Wendy Lawrence, and Charles Camarda. It was the second mission to be commanded by a woman, Eileen Collins, who also commanded STS-93.
Three EVAs were performed by Robinson and Noguchi.
David M. Brown, born April 16, 1956 in just down the road here Arlington County, Virginia, was a crew of the space shuttle Columbia when it disintegrated over north Texas when it re-entered the atmosphere February 1, 2003.
He was a Navy captain and the Columbia mission (STS-107) was his only trip into space.
Laurel Clark, born March 10, 1961 in Ames, Iowa, was a medical doctor and a space shuttle astronaut. She perished on her first mission STS-107 when Columbia disintegrated upon re-entry killing all on board.
Rear (L-R): David Brown, Laurel Clark, Michael Anderson, Ilan Ramon;
Front (L-R): Rick Husband, Kalpana Chawla, William McCool
Mission patch
As with the Challenger disaster in 1986, I'm sure we all remember where we were when we heard the news about the Columbia disaster in February 2003. It was Columbia's 28th mission (STS-107), launched January 16, 2003, when a piece of foam broke off during the launch and damaged part of the thermal protective system on the leading edge of the left wing.
During re-entry, overheated gases were allowed into the wing, which ultimately led to the shuttle breaking apart and the loss of everyone on board. The people lost were Commander Rick Husband, Pilot William McCool, Mission Specialist David Brown, Mission Specialist Kalpana Chawla, Mission Specialist Michael Anderson, Mission Specialist Laurel Clark and Payload Specialist Ilan Ramon (first Israeli astronaut). This was the first flight for McCool, Brown, Clark and Ramon.
The Columbia Accident Investigation Board uncovered some interesting facts during their investigation. Apparently, NASA knew the crew was at risk but decided nothing could be done about it. They realized that they could have expedited the Atlantis lift-off scheduled March 1, to February 10. Columbia's crew had enough supplies and resources to last until February 15. Atlantis would have had a five day overlap to rescue the crew and return them to Earth. Columbia would be brought down into the ocean.
Michael Phillip Anderson, born December 25, 1959 in Plattsburg, NY, was a veteran of two Space Shuttle missions. After graduating from the University of Washington in Seattle he became a second lieutenant in the U.S. Air Force. In 1986, he was selected to attend undergraduate pilot training at Vance Air Force Base in Enid, Oklahoma.
Anderson reported to NASA in March 1995 and qualified to become a mission specialist. His first Space Shuttle flight was on Endeavour (STS-89) in January 1998 to the space station Mir.
His second and final flight was aboard the ill-fated mission of Columbia (STS-107) which disintegrated over north Texas upon its return in February 2003.
