CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (AP) — NASA is marking the 20th anniversary of the space shuttle Columbia tragedy with somber ceremonies during its annual tribute to fallen astronauts. More than 100 people gathered under a gray sky at Florida’s Kennedy Space Center on Thursday (Jan. 26, 2023) to remember not only Columbia’s crew of seven, but the 18 other astronauts killed in the line of duty. NASA’s two shuttle accidents account for more than half of the names carved into the black granite of the Space Mirror Memorial. Columbia was destroyed during reentry in 2003 after a piece of fuel-tank foam came off and punctured the left wing during liftoff.
FILE – This undated photo released in June 2003 provided by NASA shows STS-107 crew members aboard the Space Shuttle Columbia. On Feb. 1, 2003, the seven crew members were lost as the Columbia fell apart over East Texas. This picture was on a roll of unprocessed film later recovered by searchers from the debris. From the left (bottom row), wearing red shirts to signify their shift’s color, are mission specialist Kalpana Chawla, commander, Rick D. Husband, mission commander Laurel B. Clark and Ilan Ramon, payload specialist. From the left (top row), wearing blue shirts, are mission specialist David M. Brown, pilot William C. McCool, pilot; and payload commander Michael P. Anderson. (NASA via AP, File)
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