Kelly, Mark
accident plus 1 hour, 60–61
arrives in Hemphill, 73
assesses situation in Nacogdoches, 70–71
at crew remains recoveries, 73–74, 97–99
returns home, 110
Kelly, Scott, 97, 180
Kennedy Space Center (KSC). See also Space Shuttle Program
aerial photo, 13
as site for debris reconstruction, 139–142
Columbia lost on reentry, 3–6
crew equipment interface test, 14
employees visit reconstruction hangar, 248–249
implementation of CAIB recommendations, 272–273
insists foam impact caused damage, 30–31
Landing Day, 3–6, 38–40
memorial service, Feb. 7, 155
new hires encouraged to visit Columbia room in VAB, 260–263
representatives in searches, 175
staff initial reactions to Columbia breakup, 53–54
TCDT week, 16–17
King, David
appointed to lead accident teams, 56–57
concerns about danger to volunteers, 167–168
conference call with response teams, 88–90
confidence in shuttle reliability shaken, 271
considers Forest Service taking over debris retrieval, 169–171
lands in Lufkin, 79
at Marshall Space Flight Center, 72
meets with Wetherbee to discuss roles, 81–82
put in charge by White House, 92
on support by Hemphill residents, 135
takes team to dinner after last crew recovery, 132–133
Whittle reporting to, 77–78
Kovacs, Greg, 215
Kreidel, Sam, 212
Krenek, Charles, 195–198
Krenek, Charlotte, 197
KSC engineers join reconstruction effort, 210–212
KSC Visitor Complex, 18, 261, 279, 282, 338
KSC Web Studio, 221
landing countdown clock, 4
Landing Day
astronauts’ preparations to land, 36
becomes Recovery Day, 51
Columbia becomes catastrophic event, 44–45
explosions, shaking ground, in TX, 43–44
landing and recovery team, at KSC, 3–6, 36–40, 42, 45–47
landing and recovery team, standby at Edwards, 40–41
loss of communication, 41–43
Mission Control informed of Columbia breakup, 45–46
projected reentry, 38
landowners, concerns with searchers, 175–176
Lane, Terry
accompanies spouses, 201
crew remains found, 73–74
invited to Discovery launch, 274
escorts Cohrs to Lufkin, 124–125
goes to Hemphill, 68
investigate report of crew remains, 97–99
on Joshua 1:9, 288
NASA appreciation of, 132
Orbiter Experiment system (OEX) recorder, 188–190
startled from sleep by noise, 43
toll on, 129–130
Lange, Richard, 196
Langley Research Center, 273
Launch Control Center (LCC)
accident plus 30 minutes, 55–57
accident plus 90 minutes, 65
de-orbit burn, 37
investigation initiated, 63
launch day, 19–24
TCDT week, 16
launch team, 7, 16, 19, 21–23, 251, 278
Leath, Jack, 67, 76, 203–204
Lehigh University, 257
Leinbach, Charlotte, 47, 67, 249
lessons learned, 283–288
“Lift-the-Dot” fastener, 118
Littlefield Tile, 185–186
lockdown of data, 46–47
Longview, 173
Lovell, James, 220–221
Lufkin
airport, 72, 100–101, 180
Bank of America building, as incident command center, 172
Downtown Hoedown Parade, 194
establishing operations at Civic Center, 69, 72, 79, 81–83, 91, 92, 99
FBI office, 52, 68–69
thank-you dinner, 203–204
Feb. 8 memorial service, Lufkin First Baptist Church, 126
memorial, Louis Bronaugh Park, 280
Lunde, Lauren, 46
Maddox, Tom
on conditions of searchers, 112
helicopter crash, 196
initial calls reporting accident, 44
problems with media, 98–99
sets up command station, 67–68
thank-you dinner, 203–204
Madura, John, 40
Magellan, xi
Mangiacapra, Amy, 254–256, 259–260, 286
Mango, Ed
arrives at Lufkin to review debris reports, 99–100
as assistant launch director, 34, 37, 42, 47
debris retrieval, 140–141
flies to tire sighting, notes debris en route, 101–103
funeral for helicopter crash victims, 198
on helicopter search operations safety, 195
lessons learned, 286
on pressure to return debris to hangar, 224
released to concentrate on fieldwork, 165
reports in on debris findings, 147
saying goodbye to the camps, 241–242
star tracker and pyrotechnic device finds, 152–153
thank-you dinner, Lufkin, 203–204
Marshall Space Flight Center, 56, 72, 139, 272
Martin, Glenn, 52, 68
McClure, Billy, 239
McCool, CDR William “Willie,” 10, 14, 20, 31, 39, 237, 258, 292
McCool, Lani, 201, 247
McCowan, Hivie, 95, 122
McGuirk, Col. Charles, 63, 86
McLellan, Marty, 14, 228
meal service for searchers, 111–112
Melroy, Pam
advocates for conducting survivability analysis, 257–259
“Cape Crusader,” 40
on crew module breakup, 225–226
debris recovered, as sign of hope, 234
manager of crew module reconstruction, 210–211, 219–220
meets with families to discuss use of debris for education, 254–256
thoughts on knowledge loss by ending program, 278–279
VAB as “Columbia’s Arlington”, 256
and yellow dinosaur, 222
memorial services for Columbia
Feb. 4, JSC, 115
Feb. 7, KSC, 155
Feb. 8, Barksdale, Carswell, Lufkin 126, 157
Feb, 14, Hemphill, 132–133
Michoud Assembly Facility, 276
Micklos, Ann
dating Dave Brown, 11
emotional catharsis at Manatees game, 244
on emotional response of reconstruction team, 219
film analysis of foam strike, 26, 29, 34
landing day, 53–54
as part of reconstruction crew, 211–212
watch flown on STS-107, 11, 237–239
Mier, Jules “Buzz,” 195–198
Mills, Ellen, 281
Millslagle, Jeff, 51–52, 64–69, 79, 81
Mishap Investigation Team (MIT)
activated, 62
assembled at JSC, 78
assessment of debris retrieval, 139–141
deploys to Barksdale, 81, 83
importance of volunteers, 192
RRT reporting to, 78
Mishap Response Team, KSC, 90
Mission Control
informs Columbia’s crew of foam strike, 31–32
Landing Day, 37
loss of telemetry, 190
receives information about Columbia breaking up, 46–47
stopped receiving telemetry from Columbia, 42
Mission Management Team (MMT), 19, 27–31, 65, 77, 80, 243, 273
Mitchell, Tim “Peewee,” 142–144
Monafo, Paul, 1
39
Mott, Cecil Paul, 68, 287
Moynihan, Linda, 66, 152, 240
Muldowney, Betty, 141
Museum, Patricia Huffman Smith “Remembering Columbia,” Hemphill, 281–282
mysterious object, observed by military, 33, 151, 159
Nacogdoches
airport, collection center, 70, 105, 116, 153, 201, 203
debris path, 61, 86, 100, 101, 163, 232
response to searchers, 135, 194
US Forest Service searcher camp, 173–174
worker morale, 185, 193
Nacogdoches, Lake, salvage operations, 181–182
NASA
announces failure scenario, May 1, 233
debates with FEMA on incident leadership, 92
gears up for two-month retrieval effort, 172
need to know why Columbia broke up, 171
participation in search, 103–104
politics and culture, 265
and reaching out to intelligence community, 30
requests public help with Columbia investigation, 101
NASA Accident Investigation Team, 319–320
NASA Remembrance Day, 256
National Guard
bivouacked in Hemphill school gym, 114
participation in search, 82, 103–104, 118, 124, 142
pulled from debris retrieval, 168–169
unit becomes lost, 126
National Park Service, 281
National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB)
debris search and retrieval, 77, 88–90
fault tree analysis of accident, 139–140
follow-up investigation, search efforts, 104
guidance for reconstruction, 207–210, 216
guidance to NASA on debris retrieval, 151
review of retrieved cassette tapes, 154–155
search helicopter crash, 198
National Wildfire Coordinating Group, 168
Native American fire crews, 120, 124, 173, 179, 191–194, 203–204
nematodes, found alive in Spacehab experiment, 228
Neutral Buoyancy Lab, 131
news media
in Hemphill, 73–74, 76, 94, 98–99, 114, 119, 132, 146
in reconstruction hangar, 222–224
nitrogen tetroxide tanks recovered, 153–154
Noguchi, Soichi, 200
nose cap, 144, 146–147
Nose Dock 6, 83, 87
nose landing gear, 183–185, 223, 261
Nowling, Jack, 254–256
Ochoa, Ellen, 45–46
Oden, Pat, 115, 128
Ojeda, Rikki, 152
O’Keefe, Sean
accident plus 1 hour, 64–65
accident plus 30 minutes, LCC meeting, 55–56
aftermath of event, 271–272
attends memorial service, 115
awaiting landing, 39
contingency plan for space flight emergencies activated, 5
debris reconstruction, 141–142
on failure to report issues, 266
leadership of, 253
lessons learned, 285
meets with families, 71
memorial services for Columbia, 155
and press at the hangar, 222–224
press briefing, 162
reaction at Shuttle Landing Facility, 46–47
speaks at memorial service, 125
thank-you dinner, Lufkin, 203–204
OMS pod, 230–231
Operation Iraqi Freedom, 189
Operation Yankee, 18
Operations and Checkout Building, 20, 57
Orbiter Experiment system (OEX) recorder, 105, 187–190, 247
Orbiter Processing Facility (OPF), 14, 267
Orbiter Project Office, NASA, 89, 165, 210
O-ring failure, Challenger, 265
Orion, 272, 287
Ostarly, Larry, 272
Palestine
air search support, 180
collection center, 90, 105, 154, 162
in debris path, 44, 160, 173, 186, 232
rodeo, 194
search camp, 202
Perry, Rick, 105, 125, 144
Pettit, Donald, 264
Phelps, Ron, 252–253
Pickavance, Adm. William, retired, 157
picnic at KARS Park, 244
plasma
and communications blackout, 42
evidence of damage by, 187, 213, 230, 232, 253, 258–259
trail during reentry, 41, 45, 55, 155, 158
penetration into wing, 27, 152, 171, 226, 230, 233, 258
Powell, Jerry, 122
power-chutes, 163
preserving the pieces, Columbia, 253–256
press at reconstruction hangar, 222–224
Proverbs 3:5, 293
pyrotechnic devices, 25, 147, 149, 153–154, 164–165, 209
radar contacts, unidentified, during countdown, 21–23
Ramon, Col. Ilan, 10, 17, 237, 293
Ramon, Rona, 201
Raney, “Brother Fred”
delivers prayers over crew remains, 97–99, 108
hears blast, 43
leads prayer for good weather, 130
meets with spouses, 201
NASA appreciation of, 132
roles in search, 135
unwillingness leaves to work unfinished, 240
Rapid Response Team (RRT)
crash investigations training, 66
deployment from KSC to Barksdale, 77–78, 81, 84–86
meets with response personnel to assess priorities, 88–90
representatives sent to Lufkin to review debris reports, 99–100
Readdy, Bill
and Contingency Action Plan for Space Flight Operations, 47, 55–57, 63–64
deploys Space Flight Awareness teams, 193
meets with crew families, 71
visits Columbia reconstruction site, 155–156
reconstruction hangar
family visits to, 247–248
layout grid and workflow, 207–210
KSC staff visits to hangar, 248–250
location of items found, 174–175
press at, 222–224
Recovery Control Center, NASA, 47
Recovery Office, NASA, 202
Reilly, Jim, 96, 142
reinforced carbon-carbon (RCC) wing panels, 27–31, 33, 231–232, 246, 262, 281
repair options
kit development, 257
Request for Information, debris preservation and study, 254
rescue mission
feasibility of rescuing Columbia crew, 267–269
backup to STS-125 Hubble servicing mission, 270
Resource Conservation and Recovery Act, 153
retirement of shuttle fleet, 279
returning to normal life, challenges of, 239–243
Reusable Launch Vehicle hangar, 207–210
Rhode, Linda, 45, 216–218, 286
Ridge, Tom, 70
Riley, Dwight, 90–91, 94, 118–119, 287
Robinson, Stephen, 275, 292
rocket scientists, on search team, 126
Rockwell International, 212. See also Boeing
Roe, Ralph, 89, 142, 165, 210
Rominger, Kent “Rommel,” 20
Ross, Jerry
arrives at Lufkin to review debris reports, 99–100
debris retrieval, 140–141
emotional aftershock, 240
flies to KSC with crew, 17
as Flight Crew Operations representative on RRT, 85
funeral for helicopter crash victims, 198
Grand Marshal at Lufkin parade, 194
Landing Day responsibilities, 45
launch day, 20, 40
lessons learned, 283–284
operations organization needed for debris retrieval, 168
on possible debris strike, 29
refining the search parameters, 122–123
report on search-and-recovery operations, 104–105
reports in on debris findings, 147
retrieval area maps, 151
takes turn running retrieval effort with Gorie, 172
and US Forest Service staffing debris retrieval, 169–170, 174
video of breakup, 57–58
Ross, Renée, 211, 223
Rounsaville, Marc, 169
Rowles, Billy, 67, 142
Ruggiero, Mark, 130
runner networks, 144
Sabine County
Cohrs’ search plans, 125
debris search corridor, 86, 96, 107, 174
NASA forward execution post established, 104
possibility of hazardous or classified material, 76
search crew accountability problems, 129
shuttle crew module, 187–189
victory dance in VFW, 202
Sabine National Forest, 131
Safety and Process Assurance Branch, NASA, 196
safety flaws and risks, space shuttle 264–266, 271–272
Salvation Army, 142
Sam Rayburn Reservoir, 163
San Augustine County
Adkins arrives at command center, 144–145
debris, 68, 76, 154, 162
debris search corridor, 86, 107, 174
memorial marker, 280
Orbital Experiment system (OEX) recorder found, 187–189
search for crew remains, 86, 96, 107, 125, 129
satellite phones, problems with, 143
Sauerwein, Dan, 131
Scales, Tommy, 73–74
Schirra, Wally, 220
school buses pressed into service, 112
school grounds in debris path, 101, 105–106, 112, 145
Schumann, Gail, 242
Schumann, Gerry
cockpit window frame retrieval, 160–161
communication problems, search crews, 143
dealing with livestock, 176
early experiences in searches, 112–115
emotional aftershock, 240–242
friendship with Native American searcher, 193–194
goes to Lufkin to work with King, 140
nose landing gear, 185
security forces, 18–19
sensor readings failure, 41–42
Shelby Saving Bank, 121, 128
Shuttle Interagency Debris Database, 149
Shuttle Landing Facility, 15–17, 20, 37–38, 57, 140, 239, 278
Shuttle Program. See Space Shuttle Program
Shuttle Training Aircraft, 13, 39
shuttle/orbiter
description of, 8–9
heat shield composition, 25–33
landing incidents, 39
Sioux, 192
Sixteen Minutes from Home: A Tribute to the Crew of STS- 107, 221
slag deposit analysis, 232
Smith, Albert, 281
Smith, Billy Ted, 67, 76, 98–99, 109, 119
Smith, Pat, 43–44, 121, 179
Smith, Patricia Huffman, 281
snakes, 177
Southeast Air Defense Sector, 77
Southwest Research Institute (SwRI), 244–247
Southwest Texas Debriefing Team, 173
Bringing Columbia Home Page 36
