Space Agency Director: There are no survivors from the shuttle crew; A quarter of an hour before landing, the Columbia disintegrated in the air; Bush in a speech to the nation: our journey into space will continue; In a conversation with Sharon, he expressed his condolences on Ramon's death
Saturday, February 1, 2003, 20:25 p.m
The mission of the space shuttle "Columbia" and its seven crew members ended in disaster today when a quarter of an hour before landing (16:00 p.m. Israel time) the spacecraft burst into flames and disintegrated. In the evening, the American space agency NASA announced that all the crew members, including the first Israeli astronaut, Ilan Ramon, had perished. US President George Bush gave a special speech to the nation this evening following the event and said: "Today we received terrible news and great sadness in our country. Colombia is lost and there are no survivors."
Bush addressed the families and added, "Our entire nation mourns with you and we express to you the love of the entire nation. Because they died we live. The Creator of the world knows their names, and he will bless their souls, the families and America." He also promised: "Our journey in space will continue".
Earlier this evening, Bush spoke with the Prime Minister, Ariel Sharon, and conveyed his condolences on the death of Ilan Ramon in the explosion of the space shuttle "Columbia". Bush told Sharon that this is a tragic day for the astronauts' families and for science. Sharon also conveyed his condolences on the death of the ferry crew. "We hold hands together and pray," said Sharon. The IDF spokesman officially announced this evening the death of Air Force pilot, Col. Ilan Ramon.
NASA Director Sean O'Keefe said at a special press conference this evening that the agency has begun efforts to locate the remains of the Columbia space shuttle crew. According to him, it does not appear that there are any survivors from the explosion. O'Keefe announced at the press conference that two investigative committees will be established to examine the circumstances of the case: internal and external. He said that NASA will conduct a comprehensive internal review. An external committee will also be established, headed by a person who is detached from the federal government. The external committee staff will include people from the US Air Force, Navy and Department of Transportation.
"We heard a loud noise and the dogs started barking"
In television footage, smoke trails were seen in the sky of the area of the city of Palestine in Texas, above which the explosion occurred. NASA rescue teams went to the area where fragments of the shuttle fell. Residents in the area were warned not to touch the fragments, fearing they are dangerous to touch. The shuttle crew will practice abandoning in the event of an emergency, but the initial assessment was that their chances of survival were extremely slim.
A resident of Texas who was an eyewitness to the ferry explosion told CNN: "We heard a loud noise, the dogs started barking and the horses in the stable went wild. We later heard that debris fell in all the districts in the region." Liat and Avi Turkey, Israelis living in Texas witnessed the explosion of the space shuttle "Columbia". Liat told Walla! News that friends who live next door woke them up this morning and told them they heard the explosion. They went outside and noticed the smoke trails. According to them, the pieces of the ferry fell in the Richardson area, not far from where they live. "Just last week we were in Israel and we were looking for a quiet place and then all of a sudden this happens," said Liat.
The American flag at half-mast at the launch site (Photo: Reuters)
"Until the last moment, we hoped it would go smoothly"
Ramon and his six crew members of the American space shuttle "Columbia" were expected to land at 16:16 (Israel time). After it became clear that contact with the ferry was lost, the families waiting to land left the special stand in Cape Canberal.
Gadi, Ilan Ramon's brother, told Channel 10 News that the family is in shock and still doesn't know what to do. According to him, there was always a concern about a malfunction in the mission, but "because the whole mission went perfectly, then there was great hope that the landing would also be like everything else." The Air Force will fly Ilan Ramon's family members to the USA.
The office of the Prime Minister, Ariel Sharon, issued a statement following the ferry explosion. The language of the message: "The State of Israel and its citizens hope at this difficult time and stand by the families of the pilots, the Ramon family in Israel, the American people and its government, praying to the Creator of the world that the astronauts will return home safely." Sharon spoke this evening with the father of the Israeli astronaut, Ilan Ramon, and told him that he shares his grief. The father, Eliezer Wolferman, told the Prime Minister that "we didn't expect this, until the last moment we hoped it would go smoothly, and that's it, now we don't have Ilan, a big disaster happened to us." The President of the State, Moshe Katsav, and the Commander of the Air Force, Dan Halutz, also spoke with Ramon's father this evening.
This is the first time in NASA history that a space shuttle exploded upon landing. The only previous shuttle explosion, of the Challenger, occurred shortly after launch in 1986. Sources in the space agency rejected the estimates in the media, as if the disintegration was caused by a sabotage operation.
Iraq: The explosion of the "Columbia" - God's revenge
Saturday, February 1, 2003, 21:49 p.m
In Baghdad today they reacted with joy to Eid about the explosion of the American space shuttle "Columbia" and said that this is God's revenge on America. "We are happy that it happened," said Abdul Jaber al-Kharizi, an Iraqi government official. "God takes revenge for us" he added.
People in the Iraqi street were particularly happy that among the dead astronauts was the Israeli Ilan Ramon, who in 1981 participated in the attack on the Iraqi reactor, being a fighter pilot in the Air Force. "Israel attacked us in 1981 and destroyed our nuclear reactor for no reason, now the wheel has turned and God is repaying them," said Muhammad Jaber al-Tamini, a car mechanic from Baghdad.
