Kaili | Saturday, February 01, 2003 - 06:48 am     I know there will be a thread for this eventually, so we might as well art it now rather than discuss in the Headlines Only Thread. Those poor people- this is awful! Terrorism would never have crossed my mind...I'm glad they are saying unlikely. |
Faerygdds | Saturday, February 01, 2003 - 06:53 am     Kaili... I tend to agree.. beacuase o the Israeli presence on board security had been beefed up to levels never seen before. All officials from the US and Isreal were shocked to see so MUCH security. IF (and that's a big IF) it was terrorism, then we need to start looking within because if it was terrorism, it was one of our guys in a very trusted position... More likely... something happened on re-entry and it blew. Re-Entry is always the most difficult and risky part of the mission. If there declination angle was off by just a few degrees, they would have burned up on re-entry. What puzzles me is that if it was a malfunction or crew error, why had Nasa not said anything??? It was a VERY loud boom!!! There is debris reported as far North as Mid Oklahoma... and I know East Tx heard the boom... WOW |
Kaili | Saturday, February 01, 2003 - 06:54 am     The weird thing is that space trips have become so routine that people don't pay attention to them anymore. nobody cared to watch Apollo 13 because they were routine- until there was a problem. Shuttle missions were ifnored by most people- they only reason so many people saw the Challenger was because of schools- then we watched again for awhile to make sure. That was a pretty screwed up situation if you read about the launch conditions though. Now this... Why hasn't bush made a statement yet? This was an hour ago already right? |
Kaili | Saturday, February 01, 2003 - 06:57 am     I imagine it was a random accident. It is a weird coincidence sure- but they are hardly even mentioning terrorism- just reentry stuff. Why is ground debris dangerous? |
Schoolmarm | Saturday, February 01, 2003 - 06:58 am     I don't think that they know much FOR SURE right now. Any statement by our President at this time would be premature until NASA gets more information. This is a horrible tragedy. My heart goes out to the friends and family of the Columbia crew. <marm is having flashbacks of teaching on the day of the Challenger accident. I can see the classroom and hear the kids...17 years later, now this> |
Faerygdds | Saturday, February 01, 2003 - 06:59 am     I'm in chat right now if anone is interested |
Cyn | Saturday, February 01, 2003 - 07:03 am     I was in class also the day of the Challenger explosion - burned into memory. Our professor cried as did many of us. This is tragic! OMG I hope that it isn't some type of conspiracy. |
Kaili | Saturday, February 01, 2003 - 07:04 am     The crew is so young too- They all look like they're in their 30s- and I can't stop thinking about their families all excited waiting for them to land and to see their dads, moms, husbands, wives, kids landing. |
Kaili | Saturday, February 01, 2003 - 07:05 am     NASA is going to keep trying to contact the shuttle...why? That's just...I don't know. There's nothing left to contact. |
Webkitty | Saturday, February 01, 2003 - 07:05 am     I agree Marm. Krista MaCaullof(sp) was originally from the same neighborhood as I was in Mass., it was a shock and I remember it well. Geesh, this thing is in pieces, not much hope here... Kaili, I would imagine that the ground debris would be very hot. |
Cyn | Saturday, February 01, 2003 - 07:07 am     and toxic |
Webkitty | Saturday, February 01, 2003 - 07:09 am     Right Cyn. I hope there were no injuries, casulties, or property damage on the ground either. |
Kaili | Saturday, February 01, 2003 - 07:11 am     Well, I hope it happened fast and that they didn't have any indication ahead of time so they didn't have to sit and think about what was happening. I hope they felt nothing and it was over quickly. I can't imagine having to know it was going to happen (like people on hijacked planes knowing their fate and having to sit in a plane thinking about it). |
Webkitty | Saturday, February 01, 2003 - 07:13 am     Well, now there is a guy on CNN that says he saw a plane nearby when it happened. This guy doesn't seem to know what he talking about though..... The reporter is cautioning people not to jump to conclusions............ |
Webkitty | Saturday, February 01, 2003 - 07:15 am     I agree Kaili. |
Ddr1135 | Saturday, February 01, 2003 - 07:26 am     Webkitty, I heard that guy too. He probably saw a piece of the shuttle that had broken off.... |
Webkitty | Saturday, February 01, 2003 - 07:31 am     Right, they are saying now that a plane could only get to 60 thousand , the shuttle was at 200 thousand. |
Schoolmarm | Saturday, February 01, 2003 - 07:33 am     What was very eerie for me, personally, was that our fire sirens were going off RIGHT when the "Special Report" logo was going across the screen. That was a very LONG ten seconds to wait! I actually thought mementarily that we were under attack from Iraq. I was wondering if my old coal room in the basement would serve as a bomb shelter. I am really hoping that this was a mechanical malfuntion (the foam insulation hitting and damaging the wing) rather than some form of terroristic attack. This accident will take a while to sort out. My heart goes out to all the family and friends of the crew, the people working at NASA and the people on the ground who will be finding debris, and doing the search and rescue. |
Juju2bigdog | Saturday, February 01, 2003 - 07:45 am     I was just in chat. Faerrygdds heard and felt the explosion. We did not hear or feel anything in far south Texas. My heart goes out to the families. ABC reporting now that debris has been spotted in North Central Texas. |
Webkitty | Saturday, February 01, 2003 - 07:50 am     Marm, I know what you mean about sirens going off and thinking about a bomb shelter. That happened here when Air Force One was taking off from Sarasota on 9/11, very scary. I am thinking about the foam insulation too, it seems a likely source of the trouble. My heart goes out to all the families too. They were just saying that the Isriel pilot's parents were holocost survivors, how very sad that this had to happen for them. Juju, glad to see you checked in with us and you are ok. That must have been so unsettling for Faery. |
Sadiesmom | Saturday, February 01, 2003 - 07:50 am     Have the pieces reached the ground yet? I would think it was dangerous for the people under the flight path. A lot will probably burn up, but it was low enough that there should be remnants. I hope they get enough pieces to learn what has happened. People are already advancing weird theories and that is so bad for everyone emotionally. I wish news people just reported the news instead of guessing and opining. I miss real news at times like this. Sometimes there is nothing to report. Lovett was on and said he had to leave to get on an airplane 12 years younger than the shuttle. My vote is for the space elevator, I always thought that was safer than the shuttle. The shuttle is so vulnerable with those tiles, each tile a unique shape so you can't carry spares and they weigh so much, you can't put on two layers. |
Braveheart61901 | Saturday, February 01, 2003 - 08:01 am     Kaili They're saying that the debris would still be very toxic and if anyone got close enough to breathe it in, they would suffocate to death within 48 hours. They said it would cause blisters on the lungs. This was pretty much the exact description from an official spokesman...didn't get his name, but I heard him several times. Braveheart |
Webkitty | Saturday, February 01, 2003 - 08:05 am     CNN just showed a piece of debris in an apartment parking lot, it was small. |
Hippyt | Saturday, February 01, 2003 - 08:09 am     This is so awful. Nasa is now telling us in Houston that there is debris here too. That means the shuttle is scattered all across the state of Texas! |
Sadiesmom | Saturday, February 01, 2003 - 08:12 am     Braveheart, I think that this may be true for somoe of the debris, but they are probably saying this as much to keep away souvenier collectors |