Tragedy struck the United States early Saturday morning
as the space shuttle Columbia exploded over Texas upon its re-entry into
Earth's atmosphere. At approximately 9 a.m., NASA lost communications with the
flight, and at the expected landing time of 9:16 a.m., President Bush was
informed and an investigation that could take months or years began.
However, after the events of this week, the investigation may go faster than
expected. Speed seems to be the thing in this business, though. It certianly
did not take long for America to respond on the morning of the tragic shuttle
explosion, much like the morning of Sept 11, 2001, which also happened at
approximately 9 a.m.
How fast did we respond?
As soon as NASA knew something was wrong, President Bush was called and he
immediately left Camp David to begin the trip back to Washington where he knew
he would have to once again console, comfort, and calm the American people.
The media worked fast as well. All the major TV stations, as well as a number
of radio stations, interrupted their regular programming for around the clock,
commercial-free coverage of the events.
Even the profiteers came out, that lovely bunch who find it necessary to profit
from tragedy. On Saturday morning, as the media, law enforcement, and
government officials warned America of the dangers of shuttle debris, someone
already had put a fallen piece of shuttle on E-bay for auction. E-bay reacted
quickly as well, putting a stop to the federal offense which both tampered with
a NASA and Government investigation and put civilians in danger.
Sean O'Keefe, NASA administrator, said in a press statement at roughly 1 p.m.
that all federal and local agencies have been included in the investigation.
He discussed how important it is for anyone who took videos or still images of
the event to contact NASA, and these media will be used to help find possible
causes of this dreadful tragedy.
From the Cabinet Room at 2 p.m. Saturday, President Bush spoke to the nation
about the disaster. He quoted from scripture and raised the publicäs spirits
about the tragic loss of these seven heroic astronauts.
The entire day was filled with press conferences, investigation updates, and
media overflow working for one cause: to keep America informed.
What about the next space mission?
Despite the events of Saturday, NASAäs next flight will incorporate other brave
astronauts who will not second-guess the safety of their mission despite the
events of Columbia's unfortunate demise. While everything is done to prevent
disastrous events, astronauts know the dangers that come with space travel, and
Americaäs heart is outstretched to each one of them for the hurdles they must
overcome. RU joins the American public in their prayers for the families and
friends of these seven lost lives.
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