Commemorating 20 Years Since the Space Shuttle Columbia Accident

[Link]

On January 16, 2003, the Space Shuttle Columbia lifted off from the Kennedy Space Center, carrying 7 astronauts on board: Rick Husband, William McCool, Michael Anderson, David Brown, Kalpana Chawla, Laurel Clark, and Ilan Ramon. It was the Shuttle's 28th flight, designated STS-107, since its first mission in 1981. While orbiting the Earth for over 2 weeks, the crew aboard the Columbia conducted scientific experiments on research topics such as life sciences and microgravity. However, as the Columbia began reentry into Earth's atmosphere on February 1, 2003, complications from liftoff 16 days prior led to the Shuttle's disintegration and the loss of all 7 crew members (NASA's CAIB).

"All Americans today are thinking as well of the families of these men and women who have been given this sudden shock and grief. You're not alone. Our entire Nation grieves with you. And those you loved will always have the respect and gratitude of this country.... Mankind is led into the darkness beyond our world by the inspiration of discovery and the longing to understand. Our journey into space will go on."
President George W. Bush, February 1, 2003, Address to the Nation on the Loss of Space Shuttle Columbia (2003 Public Papers 119)

Recovery and Accident Report

After the tragedy, 270 organizations coordinated in recovery efforts, including government agencies such as NASA, FEMA, and the FBI. More than 25,000 professionals and volunteers searched for debris over 2.3 million acres of land in Louisiana and Texas (FBI). Congressional committees, including the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation, and the House of Representatives Committee on Science, convened for hearings on the Space Shuttle Columbia accident:

• February 12, 2003, Space Shuttle Columbia (Joint Hearing, 108th Congress, Serial No. 108-2)
• May 14, 2003, Space Shuttle Columbia Investigation (S. Hrg. 108-838)

Following procedures established by NASA after the Space Shuttle Challenger accident 17 years prior, the Space Shuttle Columbia accident was investigated over the next 7 months by the Columbia Accident Investigation Board. The Board published its report in August of 2003, concluding there were both physical and organizational causes behind the Shuttle's accident (CAIB Report). After the report's publication, Congress held numerous hearings to address the Columbia Accident Investigation Board's findings:

• September 3, 2003, Columbia Accident Investigation Board's Report on the Space Shuttle Columbia Accident (S. Hrg. 108-985)
• September 4, 2003, The Columbia Accident Investigation Board Report (House Hearing, 108th Congress, Serial No. 108-27)
• September 10, 2003, NASA's Response to the Columbia Report (House Hearing, 108th Congress, Serial No. 108-28)
• October 29, 2003, The Future of NASA (S. Hrg. 108-1012)
• October 29, 2003, NASA's Organizational and Management Challenges in the Wake of the Columbia Disaster (House Hearing, 108th Congress, Serial No. 108-30)
• September 8, 2004, NASA's Space Shuttle Program (S. Hrg. 108-917)

President George W. Bush also released a Statement on the Report of the Columbia Accident Investigation Board (2003 Public Papers 1065).

In Memoriam

February 1, 2023 marks the 20-year anniversary of the Space Shuttle Columbia loss. In memory of the mission and the 7 crew members lost, the 108th Congress passed and President George W. Bush signed into law the Columbia Orbiter Memorial Act (38 U.S.C. 2409) on April 16, 2003. The Act approved the construction of a memorial to the Columbia crew members in Arlington National Cemetery which still stands today. At the memorial's unveiling, then-NASA Administrator Sean O'Keefe stated, "This memorial will remind us of the dedication and sacrifice made by those brave individuals willing to risk their own lives to further humanity's knowledge about space exploration" (NASA).

NASA also commemorated the loss with a memorial plaque aboard the Mars Exploration Rover Spirit which landed on Mars on January 3, 2004 (NASA). The plaque carried the names of all 7 crew members and the STS-107 mission patch.

NASA's Space Shuttle program returned to flight over 2 years following the Columbia tragedy with the Space Shuttle Discovery mission on July 26, 2005. The Space Shuttle program completed after 30 years of work on July 21, 2011 with the Space Shuttle Atlantis landing at the Kennedy Space Center.

Additional GPO Resources

• Browse GovInfo's collection of Selected Congressional Hearings and Reports on the 1986 Challenger Space Shuttle Accident.
• Discover publications related to Aerospace, Astronomy & Space Exploration on GPO's Online Bookstore.

Related Resources

• Read more about the Columbia accident and its flight mission at NASA's Remembering Columbia STS-107 Mission.
• Find out more from NASA about the Space Shuttle Columbia's previous missions, achievements, and history including how the Orbiter got its name.
• Learn about how the USDA Forest Service aided in the search and recovery of the Columbia.

Sidebar image: Space Shuttle Columbia STS-107 Flight Patch. Source: NASA.

Public link

Please use the above public link if you want to share this noodl on another website.