Marsha Cooper and Belinda Gay invited us to Hemphill and set up interviews with dozens of the people you have read about in this story. Their passion for keeping the memory of Columbia alive knows no bounds.
Jan Amen, Mark Stanford, Pam “Pambo” Melroy, Dom Gorie, Robert Hanley, Robert Pearlman, Michael Key, and Patrick Adkins provided us with detailed notes and with photographs that greatly enriched our understanding of the recovery and reconstruction efforts. Pambo, Jim Wetherbee, Steve Altemus, Mike Ciannilli, Dave Whittle, and Sean O’Keefe reviewed sections of the book for technical and historical accuracy. Astronauts Jerry Ross, Eileen Collins, John Herrington, and Bob Crippen also went far beyond the call of duty in assisting us during the research and writing process. Jeff Williams from Stephen F. Austin State University, who generated maps for searchers in February 2003, graciously produced several maps for this book using data from the search database.
To everyone we interviewed for the book (who we’ve listed in the “Interviewees” section), we thank you for sharing your memories, your pains and sorrows, and your moments of personal triumph. Your contributions made this book a story rather than a recitation of facts.
We thank our agent, the renowned military historian Jim Hornfischer, for his sage advice and for helping get our book in front of the Right Person. Maxim Brown, our editor at Skyhorse Publishing, was that Right Person. He made the publication process as painless as authors could ever wish it to be. We’re grateful to him for giving us the latitude to write the book we wanted to write.
Scott Mack helped us structure the story, and he reviewed our drafts. How can you possibly go astray when you have a multi-time Teacher of the Year from the Fairfax County (Virginia) School System looking over your shoulder? Coralee Leon reviewed our draft manuscript with the keen eye of a highly successful editor and author. She made sure we were telling a coherent story. Thanks also to Penny Ward for transcribing many of the interviews and for reviewing the manuscript.
Susan Roy and Holly Williams acted as excellent coaches, spending countless hours talking Jonathan down off the ledge and lending their ears and encouragement when the going got tough. Jonathan’s wife Jane gave him love, support, and space when he needed it most.
And to Charlotte, affected as much by the tragedy and its aftermath as Mike, you were and continue to be his perfect partner in all things.
INTERVIEWEES
The following people graciously offered their time and thoughts during the research for this book. Most initial interviews were conducted between April 15, 2015, and September 30, 2016. Follow-up interviews were conducted as necessary to clarify and confirm information as the book developed.
Adkins, Patrick
KSC quality assurance; identified and processed debris at the collection center in Hemphill
Alexander, Mike
Volunteer searcher, Sabine County
Allen, Mark
Logistics chief for the Sabine County Incident Command Center during the initial search; now is county judge of Jasper County.
Altemus, Steve
Columbia reconstruction director
Amen, Jan
Texas state fire chief’s office; photographed much of the recovery activity in East Texas for the Texas Forest Service and NASA, escorted astronauts and crew families
Angermeier, Jeff
NASA debris recovery coordination from Lufkin
Arriëns, René
United Space Alliance closeout crew member in KSC’s “White Room”; debris recovery operations in Hemphill
Awtonomow, Debbie
NASA manager of the debris collection and processing center at Hemphill beginning in late February
Bean, Olen
Branch fire coordinator, Texas Forest Service
Biegert, John
Crew module reconstruction lead engineer
Borsi, Mark
Head of security at KSC, ran security NASA security operations for Mishap Investigation Team out of Barksdale
Bridges, Roy
Astronaut; Kennedy Space Center director at the time of the accident
Cabana, Robert
Astronaut; director of Flight Crew Operations during the accident
Ciannilli, Mike
NASA test project engineer, air searcher during recovery operations; current curator of Columbia Preservation Office; director of NASA’s Apollo 1/Challenger/Columbia Lessons Learned Program
Cohrs, Greg
US Forest Service timber sale forester in Sabine County National Forest; planned and directed crew recovery search operations in Sabine County; branch director for the remainder of the search in Sabine and San Augustine Counties
Collins, Eileen
Astronaut; commander of STS-114 “Return to Flight,” the first mission after Columbia accident
Comer, Jim
Reconstruction lead engineer for United Space Alliance
Cooper, Marsha
US Forest Service staff in Sabine County; searcher, media relations during recovery; one of the driving forces behind the Columbia memorials in Sabine County
Cowart, Jon
Reconstruction lead engineer; JSC Orbiter Project Office
Crippen, Robert “Bob”
Astronaut; first pilot of Columbia; delivered eulogy for the ship and crew at the KSC runway after the accident
Eddings, Don
Texas Forest Service air search operations
Furr, Jim
Space Flight Awareness representative for NASA/United Space Alliance; coordinated morale events for searchers and community relations in Nacogdoches
Garan, Ron
Astronaut; first person to see the recovered video recorded by Columbia’s crew at the start of reentry
Gay, Belinda
Ran the volunteer feeding operation at Hemphill’s VFW; one of the driving forces behind Columbia memorials in Sabine County
Gay, Roger
Commander, Hemphill VFW
Gehman, Admiral
Chairman, Columbia Accident Investigation
Harold “Hal,” USN (ret)
Board (interviewed by email)
Gibson, Robert “Hoot”
Astronaut; commander of Atlantis STS-27 mission that returned from space heavily damaged by launch debris
Gorie, Dom
Astronaut; member of STS-107 Mishap Investigation Team; one of the “air bosses” for aerial debris searches
Gray, Mary Beth
Hemphill florist
Hamilton, Doug
US Forest Service law enforcement officer in Sabine County; one of the first responders on site after the accident
Hanley, Robert
JSC Flight Crew Operations, Melroy’s deputy in crew module reconstruction
Herrington, John
Astronaut; one of the “air bosses” for aerial search for Columbia debris; first Native American astronaut
Holmes, Felix “Bubba”
US Forest Service heavy equipment operator, assisted with recovery of Columbia’s “nose cone” and the US Forest Service helicopter after the fatal accident
Iles, Don
City Manager, Hemphill
Ippolito, Gay
Public Affairs Officer for US Forest Service at Lufkin during the recovery
Jett, Brent
Astronaut; forward coordinator for crew recovery operations in Hemphill
Keifenheim, Jack
Lead for payload reconstruction
Kelly, Mark
Astronaut; first NASA person on site for a Columbia crew recovery on the day of the accident
Kelly, Scott
Astronaut; assisted with crew search starting Day 2
King, Dave
Deputy director of Marshall Space Flight Center, headed overall NASA efforts for the crew and debris recovery from the Lufkin command center
Kovacs, Greg
Stanford professor of engineering and medical doctor; CAIB support researcher at the reconstruction hangar
Lane
, Terry
FBI special field agent in East Texas; led FBI teams in crew recoveries in Sabine County
Leath, Beverly
Widow of Sabine County Judge Jack Leath
Leinbach, Charlotte
Mike’s wife
Leinbach, Mike
KSC launch director; leader of Rapid Response Team to Barksdale on day of accident; leader of reconstruction effort
Maddox, Tom
Sabine County Sheriff; co-incident commander for the Hemphill Incident Command Team during the crew recovery
Mangiacapra, Amy
United Space Alliance staff in reconstruction hangar; helped set up the Columbia room in the VAB and managed it for 10 years
Mango, Ed
Assistant launch director; led the debris recovery effort in the field
McCowan, Hivie
Hemphill resident; volunteer food service worker nicknamed “Sweet Tea” at the VFW Hall
McLellan, Marty
Spacehab executive
Melroy, Pam
Astronaut; led the crew module reconstruction team and co-wrote the official crew survival report
Micklos, Ann
Thermal protection engineer, dated Columbia astronaut Dave Brown; worked in tile system reconstruction
Mills, Steve
High school principal, Hemphill
Millslagle, Jeff
FBI supervisor in Tyler, TX; managed the FBI resources during the recovery
Mott, Cecil Paul
City electrician for Hemphill
Moynihan, Linda
Administrative assistant for United Space Alliance; helped coordinate logistics in Barksdale and Texas for staff arriving from Kennedy Space Center
Nelson, Marie
Sabine County resident; volunteered at the Hemphill VFW
O’Keefe, Sean
NASA Administrator at the time of the accident
Ostarly, Larry
United Space Alliance chief for recovery operations from Barksdale and Lufkin
Raney, “Brother Fred”
Pastor of Hemphill First Baptist Church and head of Hemphill’s Volunteer Fire Department; performed last rites at each crew recovery location
Readdy, Bill
Former astronaut; NASA associate administrator for manned spaceflight at the time of the accident
Rhode, Linda “Agent 99”
KSC security special agent
Riley, Dwight “Grandpa”
Sabine County resident; volunteer searcher
Ross, Jerry
Astronaut; head of Flight Crew Operations support at KSC; set up processes for debris recovery in Texas along with Ed Mango; lead astronaut during the debris recovery effort
Ross, Renée
Crew module reconstruction support for on-board document identification
Sauerwein, Dan
Worked at NASA/Neutral Buoyancy Lab in Houston; spent a week as a volunteer searcher in Hemphill
Scales, Tommy
State trooper with Texas Department of Public Safety
Schumann, Gerald (Gerry)
Director of safety at KSC; on the ground in Hemphill during the debris recovery
Smith, Billy Ted
Emergency management coordinator for East Texas Mutual Aid Association; co-incident commander (with Sheriff Maddox) in Sabine County during the crew search operations
Smith, Pat
Bank officer in Hemphill at the time of the accident
Sowell, Jamie
US Forest Service forestry technician, led a volunteer search team in Sabine County during crew recovery operations
Stanford, Mark
Texas Forest Service overall lead in the recovery operations
Starr, Byron
Hemphill funeral director (Squeaky’s son); also on site for most recoveries; wrote a book about the crew recovery
Starr, John “Squeaky”
Hemphill funeral director; was on site for most of the crew recoveries and transported crew remains
Stilson, Stephanie
NASA debris recovery site manager in Nacogdoches
Thurston, Scott
Columbia processing flow manager; led Columbia preservation team to determine best approach for preserving and learning from the ship’s debris
Walker, Charles “Boo”
Texas Forest Service air operations; air-traffic controller for the helicopter searches
Wells, Scott
FEMA federal coordinating officer; led FEMA’s Columbia recovery operations in Texas
Wetherbee, Jim
Astronaut; directed operations for the search and recovery of Columbia’s crew
Whittington, Sunny
Hemphill elementary school teacher who had her class make sandwiches for searchers
Whittle, Dave
Director of NASA’s Mishap Investigation Team at Barksdale and Lufkin
Williams, Jeffrey
Geographic Information System (GIS) first responder, Stephen F. Austin State University, Nacogdoches
Willoughby, Jeremy
Florida wildland firefighter who was on the crew that found the OEX recorder in San Augustine County
ACRONYMS AND TECHNICAL TERMS
All-risk incident (also called “all-hazard incident”)—any incident or event—natural or human-caused—warranting action to protect life, property, environment, and public health and safety, and minimize disruption of governmental, social, and economic activities.
Apollo 1—NASA’s first fatal spacecraft accident. The crew of three astronauts was killed in a fire during a launchpad test on January 27, 1967.
Astronaut—anyone who has flown in outer space, defined as starting at 100 km altitude.
Bipod—a two-legged strut that attached the nose of the space shuttle orbiter to its external fuel tank during the ride to orbit. Explosive bolts severed the bipod’s connection to the orbiter when the vehicle reached orbit.
Bipod ramp—an aerodynamic wedge of foam insulation about 30 inches long, 14 inches wide, and 12 inches tall, which covered the fittings that attached a bipod strut to the external tank. The insulation was intended to keep ice from forming on the fittings, which could have been dangerous to the shuttle if the ice was dislodged during ascent. After the Columbia accident, heaters were added to the bipod fittings, eliminating the need for foam.
CAIB—see Columbia Accident Investigation Board.
Cape Crusader—an astronaut who supports the flight crew and processing activities at Kennedy Space Center during preparation for and at the end of a mission.
Challenger—the second orbiter to fly in space. The vehicle was destroyed during ascent in an accident on January 28, 1986, killing its crew of seven astronauts.
Columbia—the first orbiter to fly in space. Its first mission launched April 12, 1981. Columbia was destroyed during reentry over Texas on February 1, 2003, killing its crew of seven astronauts.
Columbia Accident Investigation Board (CAIB, pronounced “kabe”)—an independent investigation board tasked with determining the cause of the Columbia accident and making recommendations regarding changes to organizations, practices, policies, procedures, and flight hardware to prevent future accidents.
Crew module—the orbiter’s crew compartment, consisting of the flight deck (cockpit), mid-deck, and avionics bays. The crew rode into and back from orbit within the crew module, which also contained their toilet, sleeping berths, galley and food, and storage lockers.
Cryos (short for “cryogenic gases”)—gases that have been supercooled to the point that they have become liquefied. The shuttle’s main engines burned liquid hydrogen as fuel (stored at minus 423°F) with liquid oxygen (stored at minus 297°F) as the oxidizer. Both propellants were carried in the shuttle’s external tank. The orbiter itself carried smaller tanks of liquid helium to pressurize the maneuvering system propellant system and liquid oxygen and liquid hydrogen that were used by the shuttle’s electricity-generating fuel cells.
DPS—Te
xas Department of Public Safety.
Elevon—a control surface combining the functions of an elevator and aileron. There were two elevons (inboard and outboard) on the back end of each wing on the shuttle.
EPA—the US Environmental Protection Agency.
External tank (ET)—the only nonreusable part of the shuttle. The external tank contained the liquid hydrogen and liquid oxygen powering the space shuttle’s main engines during ascent to orbit. The tank was covered by a layer of orange-brown, sprayed-on insulating foam, which kept ice from forming on the tank.
Extra-vehicular Activity (EVA)—a “space walk,” in which an astronaut leaves the protective confines of the spacecraft to work outside in the vacuum of space.
FEMA—the Federal Emergency Management Agency.
Fire crews—teams of twenty men and women contracted by the US Forest Service to fight wildfires and respond to other natural and human-caused incidents.
Firing Room—one of four control rooms in Kennedy Space Center’s Launch Control Center in which the launch team ran the testing, countdown, and launch of a space shuttle mission.
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