NASA Shuttle Breaks Apart
Over Texas Before Landing
A WALL STREET JOURNAL ONLINE News Roundup
CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. -- Space shuttle Columbia broke apart in flames over Texas on Saturday, killing all seven astronauts just 16 minutes before they were supposed to glide to ground in Florida. Six Americans and the first Israeli astronaut were on board.
"It's gone," said a senior U.S. official who spoke on condition of anonymity. The official said debris from the shuttle, spread across Texas and apparently some other states, had been positively identified. Though there was no official word from NASA, this official said there was no hope for either the shuttle or its crew.
NASA officials said President Bush would be making an announcement. The U.S. flag next to NASA's countdown clock was lowered to half-staff.
Officials in Washington said that there was no immediate indication of terrorism, and that President Bush was informed and awaiting more information from NASA.
Space agency officials had feared the presence of the first Israeli astronaut might make the shuttle more of a terrorist target, but Bush administration officials said there was no initial sign terrorism was involved in the accident.
NASA canceled an emergency press conference that had been scheduled for 11:30 a.m. EST.
"There is no information that this was a terrorist incident," said Gordon Johndroe, spokesman for the Homeland Security Department. "Obviously the investigation is just beginning but that is the information we have now."
Video of the shuttle recorded as it passed over Texas showed multiple trails, a possible indication of more than one piece flying through the air. NASA warned residents to avoid any debris.
Communication was lost at about 9 a.m. EST as the shuttle crossed over northeast Texas on its way to a landing in Florida. In north Texas, people reported hearing "a big bang" at about that time.
There were reports of debris seen falling in the Dallas-Fort Worth area. Local law-enforcement officials and search and rescue teams had been mobilized. NASA, while not saying the shuttle had exploded, broken up or crashed, warned that any debris found in the area should be avoided and could be hazardous.
Gary Hunziker, a resident of Plano, said he saw the shuttle flying overhead. "I could see two bright objects flying off each side of it," he told The Associated Press. "I just assumed they were chase jets."
Columbia's crew had successfully completed all of their more than 80 experiments in the 16-day science mission. Commander of the mission was Rick Husband, and other crew members included pilot William McCool and astronauts Michael Anderson, David Brown, Kalpana Chawla, Laurel Clark and the first Israeli astronaut, Ilan Ramon. Only three of the seven astronauts had flown in space before, Mr. Husband, Mr. Anderson and Ms. Chawla.
Fearing the worst, NASA ordered flight controllers to pull out emergency procedures and ordered them to retain all their records. Flight controllers hovered in front of their computers, staring at the screens. The families of the astronauts, who had been waiting at the landing strip, were gathered together by NASA and taken to a separate place.
Columbia was aiming for a touchdown at 9:16 a.m. The shuttle was at an altitude of 200,700 feet over north-central Texas at 9 a.m., traveling at 12,500 mph when mission control lost contact. Reporters at the landing strip were ordered to leave seven minutes after the scheduled touchdown.
Former astronaut John Glenn and his wife were watching on television at their home in Maryland.
"Anytime you lose contact like that, there's some big problem. Of course, once you went for several minutes without any contact, you knew something was terribly wrong," Mr. Glenn said.
A senior U.S. official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said there was no threat made against the flight and that the shuttle was out of range of a surface-to-air missile.
On a normally slow day, White House officials were scrambling to get into the office. President Bush, who was at Camp David in Maryland, is returning to the White House after being informed about the situation.
"We're all watching TV and devastated and concerned," said John Marburger, head of the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy.
In 42 years of human space flight, NASA has never lost a space crew during landing or the ride back to orbit.
Seventeen years ago this past week, on Jan. 28, 1986, the space shuttle Challenger exploded shortly after takeoff from Cape Canaveral. All seven crew members, including teacher Christa McAuliffe, perished. The accident was later attributed to cracks in an insulating seal, known as an O-ring, in one of the booster rockets.
On Jan. 27, 1967, the Apollo spacecraft fire upon liftoff killed three astronauts.
Security had been tight for the 16-day scientific research mission, which included the first Israeli astronaut.
Mr. Ramon, a colonel in Israel's air force and former fighter pilot, became the first man from his country to fly in space, and his presence resulted in an increase in security, not only for Columbia's Jan. 16 launch, but also for its landing. Space agency officials feared his presence might make the shuttle more of a terrorist target.
The government of Israel and the people of Israel are praying together with the entire world for the safety of the astronauts on the shuttle Columbia," Prime Minister Ariel Sharon's office said in a statement. "The state of Israel and its citizens are as one at this difficult time."
On launch day, a piece of insulating foam on the external fuel tank came off during liftoff and was believed to have struck the left wing of the shuttle. NASA said as recently as Friday that the damage to the thermal tiles was believed to be minor and posed no safety concern during the fiery decent through the atmosphere.
Updated February 1, 2003 12:13 p.m. EST
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