Mission Summary and Crew Info.
Crew
9 a.m. Eastern time, the space shuttle orbiter Columbia broke apart during re-entry, February 1, 2003. the crew aboard was:
Willie McCool-------------Commander
Micheal Anderson-------------Pilot
Kalpana Chawla-------------Payload Commander
David Brown------------Mission Specialist
Laurel Clark--------------Mission Specialist
Ilan Ramon-------------Mission Specialist
Rick Husband---------------Crew Commander
Willie McCool
| Missions | Dates | Roles |
| STS-107 Columbia | Jan. 16th, 2003- Feb. 1st, 2003 | Commander |
Michael Anderson
| Missions | Dates | Roles |
| STS-89 Endeavour | Jan. 22nd-31st, 1998 | Mission Specialist |
| STS-107 Columbia | Jan. 16th, 2003- Feb. 1st, 2003 | Pilot |
Kalpana Chawla
| Missions | Dates | Roles |
| STS-87 Columbia | Nov. 19th, 1997- Dec. 5th, 1997 | Mission Specialist, Prime Robotic Arm Operator |
| STS-107 Columbia | Jan. 16th, 2003- Feb. 1st, 2003 | Payload Commander |
David Brown
| Missions | Dates | Roles |
| STS-107 Columbia | Jan. 16th, 2003- Feb. 1st, 2003 | Mission Specialist |
Laurel Clark
| Missions | Dates | Roles |
| STS-107 Columbia | Jan. 16th, 2003- Feb. 1st, 2003 | Mission Specialist |
Ilan Ramon
| Missions | Dates | Roles |
| STS-107 Columbia | Jan. 16th, 2003- Feb. 1st, 2003 | Mission Specialist |
Rick Husband
| Missions | Dates | Roles |
| STS-96 | May 27th, 1999-June 6th, 1999 | Pilot |
| STS- 107 Columbia | Jan. 16th, 2003-Feb. 1st, 2003 | Crew Commander |
Mission Summary
The Columbia was launched on Thursday, January 16, 2003, 10: 39 a.m. Eastern time. All systems were go until February 1, 9:00 a.m., when NASA lost contact with the Columbia and its crew. After losing contact, the Columbia soon blew up. A missing thermal protection tile in the wing of the shuttle was the cause of an accident. Very hot air entered the wing structure, causing the wing to fail. The Columbia went out of control because it had lost the use of half a wing. The crew saw a white piece floating away, and that is believed to have been the missing tile. The tile came loose when a piece of foam that insulated the external tank became loose during lift-off. The foam hit the wing with much force, causing that tile to become damaged, causing the tile to work itself loose.
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